Ecology of Knowledge Bibliometrix material

Ecology of Knowledge (EoK) and Knowledge Ecosystems (KE) are two concepts that have travelled across disciplines as both boundary objects and analytical paradigms. Thus, it is important to map the conceptual evolution of these constructs and propose unifying definitions. Through an integrative review, we screened 1039 records, retained 228 for full-text assessment and conducted an in-depth synthesis of 42 core publications about EoK and KE. A mixed-methods design combined bibliometrics (co-word networks, trend topics, thematic evolution) with qualitative content analysis. Results reveal rapid growth since 2010, strong yet uneven geographical concentration (notably Brazil, USA and China), modest international co-authorship, and seven categories structure the literature. Conceptually, we propose a modular triad distinguishing Ecology (paradigm), ecologies (models) and ecosystems (instances), yielding new definitions for EoK and KE that preserve biological roots while remaining applicable to socio-technical domains. We further argue that ecosystems are best understood as sympoietic (“making-with”) and ecopoietic (habitat-making) systems, shifting emphasis from autonomous optimization to world-producing relationality. We close with implications for governance (boundary infrastructures, ecotonal capabilities), mapping methods and a future agenda centered on possibilities such as operationalizing cognitive justice and engineering translational spaces.<br>