Scientific research on human-environmental interactions is now a budding sustainability science. The concept recognises that the well-being of human society is closely related to the well-being of natural ecosystems. Traditional knowledge is vital for sustainability of natural resources including forests, water, and agro ecosystems across landscape continuum spanning from households through farms, village, commons and wilderness. This article identifies recent developments in local knowledge research and interface this with the challenges that contemporary society faces and how local knowledge can be useful to address the biodiversity conservation. Humanity faces exceptional challenge of eroding natural resources and declining ecosystems services due to a multitude of threats created by unprecedented growth and consumerism. Also imperilled is the biodiversity and sustainability of the essential ecological processes and life support systems in human dominated ecosystems across scales. Indeed, human-domination of earth is evident in global change biodiversity extinctions and disruption of ecosystem functions. Ecological problems coupled with unequal access to resources results in human ill-being and threats to the livelihood security of the world's poorest.
