Lemke and Delormier reflect on 'Indigenous Peoples' food systems, nutrition, and gender' [19.01.18]
Key messages from the authors: (1) Meaningful research and community action for Indigenous Peoples' food systems and well-being must be based on an understanding of both the broader historical, political, social, economic, cultural, and environmental conditions and the local context. (2) Respect, responsibility, and relationships are core values that should apply to all research and collaborations between Indigenous and Western researchers. (3) Indigenous methodologies should receive equal weight in research. This requires critical reflection on conventional scientific knowledge production. (4) Indigenous Peoples' rights, right to food, and food sovereignty are progressive global frames that enable mobilization for more sustainable and just food systems.
Original paper:
Lemke, S., Delormier, T. (2017) Indigenous Peoples' food systems, nutrition, and gender: Conceptual and methodological considerations. Maternal and Child Nutrition, 13, art. no. e12499.
Dr. Stefanie Lemke is a private lecturer at the Department of Societal Transition and Agriculture
Abstract
Indigenous Peoples, especially women and children, are affected disproportionately by malnutrition and diet-related health problems. Addressing this requires an investigation of the structural conditions that underlie unequal access to resources and loss of traditional lifestyles and necessitates inclusive approaches that shed light onto these issues and provide strategies to leverage change. Indigenous Peoples' food systems are inextricably connected to land, which in turn is interwoven with issues of self-determination, livelihoods, health, cultural and spiritual heritage, and gender. Ongoing loss of land and the dominant agri-food model further threaten Indigenous Peoples' food systems. Continuing gender-based discrimination undermines the self-determination and rights of women and negatively impacts their health, nutritional status, and overall well-being, as well as the well-being of households and communities. We suggest that feminist political ecology and modern matriarchal studies provide holistic interlinking frameworks for investigating underlying issues of power and inequality. We further argue that a focus on the principles of respect, responsibility, and relationships, and an openness to different worldviews, can facilitate a bridging of Indigenous and Western approaches in research and community action conducted in partnership with Indigenous Peoples. This can contribute to creating new ways of knowing regarding Indigenous Peoples' food systems, equally valuing both knowledge systems. Indigenous Peoples' rights, right to food, and food sovereignty are frames that, despite some tensions, have the common goal of self-determination. Through their ability to inform, empower, and mobilize, they provide tools for social movements and communities to challenge existing structural inequalities and leverage social change.
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