An appreciative inquiry and inventory of Indigenous food sovereignty initiatives within the western U.S

Ashley Babcock and Rachael Budowle

Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, 2022, vol. 11, issue 2

Abstract: Indigenous food sovereignty is informed by—and is a framework and movement that supports—all the various means through which Indigenous peo­ple are revitalizing and reclaiming their traditional foodways. These efforts incorporate established values, pro­cesses, and outcomes, including rela­tionality, self-determination, decolonization, and wellbeing. Through appreciative inquiry, this re­search inven­tories Indigenous food sovereignty initiatives in the western United States and identi­fies their common themes and key features. A systematic search of scholarly and popular sources yielded a database of 123 initiatives that vary by type, land base, and geo­graphic location. Three themes emerged across ini­tiatives. First, concrete strategies include growing and food production, harvesting and food acquisi­tion, food preparation, and distribution and ex­change. Second, cultural revitalization occurs through community develop­ment, youth and young adult education, other forms of education, and regenerating cultural iden­tity through tradi­tions. Finally, initiative founda­tions include advo­cacy, policy, and environmental stewardship; fund­ing mechanisms; and partner­ships with non-Indigenous actors. Across themes, individual initia­tives include numerous intercon­nected food sover­eignty efforts and demonstrate the adaptive capaci­ties of Indigenous people. This research compiles and aims to respectfully celebrate the myriad ways Indigenous people in the western U.S. are revitaliz­ing their foodways as part of a larger movement toward Indigenous food sovereignty.

Keywords: Food Security and Poverty; Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession; Community/Rural/Urban Development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/360397/files/1030.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:joafsc:360397

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development from Center for Transformative Action, Cornell University
Bibliographic data for series maintained by AgEcon Search ().