A global index of biocultural diversity

This article describes the first calculation of global biocultural diversity according to an index applied to every country in the world. The concept of biocultural diversity refers to the variety found within natural and cultural systems. Three factors are used to calculate the index: an uncorrected calculation of biocultural richness, a second calculation corrected for the surface area of the country in question, and a third calculation corrected for the country’s population size. The corrected calculations are derived from the difference between the expected and observed diversity values. The expected diversity is calculated on the basis of the relationship that exists between the number of species and the size of the country in question. The index identifies three regions with exceptional levels of biocultural diversity: the Amazon Basin, central Africa and the Indo-Malayan/Melanesian region.