About us

LEAD is a multidisciplinary Research & Training Centre, in The Netherlands with a mission to develop and strengthen the multidisciplinairy field of Applied Ethnoscience. We do so within the context of development in various sectors of the society through international cooperation in education, training and research with students, scientists and counterpart institutions. Priority is given to facilitate and contribute to advanced research and education in the main sub-fields of applied ethnoscience at Post-Graduate and PhD level with a focus on the three geographical target regions of LEAD, i.e. South-East Asia, East-Africa & the Mediterranean Region.

By studying local systems of knowledge, belief, practices and institutions, and using them as a stepping stone in the development process in interaction with global systems, improved local participation can be achieved in order to realize sustainable development. This important aspect not only increases the societal relevance of this field of study of applied ethnoscience, but also offers new opportunities for innovative research in modern science, such as in economics, communication , pharmacy, ecotourism and medicine.

As such, LEAD is engaged in various international networks, consortia and joint activities and involved in the study, analysis and explanation of indigenous knowledge systems and development (IKS&D), aimed at reaching its objective to integrate global and local knowledge and technology in order to strengthen the scientific base as a contribution to the achievement of sustainable community development.

In addition to its academic endeavour to contribute to document, study and analyse indigenous systems of knowledge, belief, practices and institutions as the ‘cultural dimension of development’ in the subfields of ethno-economics, ethnomedicine, ethnobotany; ethno-pharmacology, ethno-agriculture, ethno-ecology, indigenous bio-cultural diversity management and conservation, integrated microfinance management and integrated ecotourism managemen.

LEAD also seeks to further develop a specific IKS-oriented complementary qualitative and quantitative research methodology, based on the special design and implementation of the ‘Leiden Ethnosystems Approach’. The related advanced analytical model encompasses a stepwise bivariate, mutual relations, multivariate and multiple regression analysis of independent, intervening and dependent variables, focused on the understanding, explanation and prediction of determinants of participants’ behaviour in the dynamic transcultural setting of local-global systems interaction in the research areas.

In addition to the provision of a contribution to the theoretical and methodological development of applied ethnoscience, LEAD also seeks to contribute to the new paradigm of ‘development from the bottom’ by formulating evidence-based recommendations for alternative strategies from the community level for policy planning and implementation of integrated local-global systems with a view to attain truly sustainable community development in the various sectors in the research areas and beyond. LEAD received the official recognition and logo of UNESCO as an important education programme of the ‘Decade for Culture and Development’.

Mission

The LEAD Mission encompasses the 7 principles of the integrated LEAD Approach to contribute to Sustainable Development:

  1. facilitating of research & education in ethnoscience and its subfields complementary to science within the context of sustainable development;
  2. provision of advanced theoretical, methodological and practical contributions to the multidisciplinary field of ethnoscience;
  3. advancement of integration of traditional and modern knowledge systems in various sectors of the society;
  4. promotion of local peoples’ participation in order to attain sustainable community development;
  5. formulation of evidence-based strategies for ‘development from the bottom’;
  6. revitalisation and functionalisation of indigenous institutions in integrated policy planning and implementation;
  7. recognition and protection of indigenous peoples’ property and resource rights.

Vision*

The vision of LEAD is, that the contribution of multidisciplinary ethnoscience research & training in the field of Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Development in various sectors of the society with the aim to document, analyse and explain participants’ behaviour in the dynamic transcultural setting of local-global systems’ interaction, will contribute to the achievement of sustainable community development for the improvement of health and well-being of the population and the conservation of bio-cultural diversity in the research areas and beyond.

In this way, LEAD also seeks to provide an ethnoscience-based contribution to realising the objectives of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.