scholarly journals The nature of food: indigenous Dene foodways and ontologies in the era of climate change

2015 ◽  
Vol 26 ◽  
pp. 225-49
Author(s):  
David Walsh

Climate change leading to a drastic decline in caribou populations has prompted strict hunting regulations in Canada’s Northwest Territories since 2010. The Dene, a subarctic indigenous people, have responded by turning to tradition and calling for more respectful hunting to demonstrate respectful reciprocity to the caribou, including a community-driven foodways project on caribou conservation and Dene caribou conservation which I co-facilitated in 2011. In these ways the caribou is approached as a person. Dene responses to caribou decline can best be understood by ontological theories of an expanded notion of indigenous personhood. However, I argue these theories are inadequate without an attention to foodways, specifically the getting, sharing, and returning of food to the land. The necessity of sustenance reveals a complicated relationship of give-and-take between humans and caribou, negotiated by tradition, yet complicated by the contemporary crisis.

Author(s):  
Alistair Fox

This chapter examines Merata Mita’s Mauri, the first fiction feature film in the world to be solely written and directed by an indigenous woman, as an example of “Fourth Cinema” – that is, a form of filmmaking that aims to create, produce, and transmit the stories of indigenous people, and in their own image – showing how Mita presents the coming-of-age story of a Māori girl who grows into an understanding of the spiritual dimension of the relationship of her people to the natural world, and to the ancestors who have preceded them. The discussion demonstrates how the film adopts storytelling procedures that reflect a distinctively Māori view of time and are designed to signify the presence of the mauri (or life force) in the Māori world.


Author(s):  
Giulia Sajeva

The conservation of environment and the protection of human rights are two of the most compelling needs of our time. Unfortunately, they are not always easy to combine and too often result in mutual harm. This book analyses the idea of biocultural rights as a proposal for harmonizing the needs of environmental and human rights. These rights, considered as a basket of group rights, are those deemed necessary to protect the stewardship role that certain indigenous peoples and local communities have played towards the environment. With a view to understanding the value and merits, as well as the threats that biocultural rights entail, the book critically assesses their foundations, content, and implications, and develops new perspectives and ideas concerning their potential applicability for promoting the socio-economic interests of indigenous people and local communities. It further explores the controversial relationship of interdependence and conflict between conservation of environment and protection of human rights.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (24) ◽  
pp. 10676
Author(s):  
Yih-Ren Lin ◽  
Pagung Tomi ◽  
Hsinya Huang ◽  
Chia-Hua Lin ◽  
Ysanne Chen

Whereas indigenous people are on the frontlines of global environmental challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and numerous other forms of critical planetary deterioration, the indigenous experiences, responses, and cultural practices have been underestimated in the mainstream frameworks of environmental studies. This paper aims to articulate a meaningful response to recent calls to indigenous and local knowledge on food as a source of resilience in the face of global climate change. By retrieving the values and practices indigenous people of Taiwan, specifically Tayal women, associate with human and non-human ecologies, our collaborative work with the indigenous community explores indigenous resilience and its relevance to indigenous cultural knowledge and global environmental concerns. Pivoting on the “Millet Ark” action, a Tayal conservation initiative of the bio-cultural diversity of millets, this study revolves around issues of how Tayal communities adapt to the climate change, how to reclaim their voice, heritage, knowledge, place, and land through food, and how to narrate indigenous “counter-stories” of resilience and sustainability. The cultural narrative of “Millet Ark” investigates indigenous way of preserving millet bio-cultural diversity and restoring the land and community heritage, inquiring into how Tayal people are adaptive and resilient to change and therefore sustainable through the cultural and social life of millets.


Polar Record ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tristan Pearce ◽  
Barry Smit ◽  
Frank Duerden ◽  
James D. Ford ◽  
Annie Goose ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTClimate change is already being experienced in the Arctic with implications for ecosystems and the communities that depend on them. This paper argues that an assessment of community vulnerability to climate change requires knowledge of past experience with climate conditions, responses to climatic variations, future climate change projections, and non-climate factors that influence people's susceptibility and adaptive capacity. The paper documents and describes exposure sensitivities to climate change experienced in the community of Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories and the adaptive strategies employed. It is based on collaborative research involving semi-structured interviews, secondary sources of information, and participant observations. In the context of subsistence hunting, changes in temperature, seasonal patterns (for example timing and nature of the spring melt), sea ice and wind dynamics, and weather variability have affected the health and availability of some species of wildlife important for subsistence and have exacerbated risks associated with hunting and travel. Inuit in Ulukhaktok are coping with these changes by taking extra precautions when travelling, shifting modes of transportation, travel routes and hunting areas to deal with changing trail conditions, switching species harvested, and supplementing their diet with store bought foods. Limited access to capital resources, changing levels of traditional knowledge and land skills, and substance abuse were identified as key constraints to adaptation. The research demonstrates the need to consider the perspectives and experiences of local people for climate change research to have practical relevance to Arctic communities such as for the development and promotion of adaptive strategies.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 8
Author(s):  
Mufti Ahmed

The prime and foremost purpose of this study was to explore climate change perception among indigenous people living in Sylhet, Bangladesh. This study also tried to investigate the nexus between some socio-demographic dimensions of the respondents and their perception regarding climate change. The present study followed descriptive-explanative research design where survey method used to collect necessary data. In case of survey method, a self-developed semi structured questionnaire was provided to the respondents for collecting relevant data. Total number of population was 75 and 63 respondents has been interviewed following the sample size estimation of Nurul Islam (2011). Findings of this study revealed that, there is a statistically significant difference between some socio-demographic dimensions (like; Age, Family type, Education and Income) and climate change perception. Furthermore, no statistically significant relationship found between Gender, Religion, Savings and climate c...


2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Teresa Sierra

La policía comunitaria es una institución de los pueblos indígenas de Guerrero conocida por su capacidad para enfrentar a la delincuencia y generar alternativas de paz social., através de un sistema de justicia y seguridad autónomo. En los últimos años, sin embargo, el sistema comunitario enfrenta el acoso de actores diversos vinculados al incremento de la violencia y la inseguridad que se vive en el país y especialmente en el estado de Guerrero; dicha situación está impactando a la institucionalidad comunitaria, obligando a su redefinición. En este trabajo destaco aspectos centrales de dicha conflictividad así como las respuestas que han dado los comunitarios para hacer frente a las tareas de justicia y seguridad en el marco de nuevos contextos marcados por el despojo neoliberal y la impunidad de actores estatales y no estatales. En este proceso se actualiza la relación de la policía comunitaria con el Estado revelando el peso de la ambigüedad legal y los juegos del poder así como los usos contra-hegemónicos del derecho para disputar la justicia. ---SEGURANÇA E JUSTIÇA SOB ACOSSO EM TEMPOS DE VIOLÊNCIA NEOLIBERAL: respostas do policiamento comunitário de GuerreroO policiamento comunitário é uma instituição dos Povos Indígenas do Guerrero conhecidos por sua capacidade de lidar com o crime e gerar paz social de forma alternativa, usando um sistema próprio de justiça e segurança. Nos últimos anos, no entanto, o sistema da UE enfrenta assédio de várias autoridades envolvidas no aumento da violência e da insegurança que reina no país e, especialmente, no estado de Guerrero; essa situação está afetando as instituições comunitárias, forçando a sua redefinição. Neste artigo, destaco os principais aspectos do conflito e as respostas que têm a comunidade para lidar com as tarefas da justiça e da segurança no contexto dos novos contextos marcados por pilhagem neoliberal e a impunidade de atores estatais e não estatais. Neste processo, a relação de policiamento comunitário com o estado é atualizada, revelando o peso da ambiguidade e dos jogos de poder legais, além de usos contra-hegemônicos do direito de disputar a justiça.Palavras-chave: violência neoliberal; Guerrero; comunidades indígenas---SECURITY AND JUSTICE UNDER HARASSMENT IN TIMES OF NEOLIBERAL VIOLENCE: responses of the Community Police of GuerreroThe community police is an institution of the Indigenous Peoples of Guerrero known for its ability to deal with crime and generate alternatives for social peace, using a system of justice and self security. In recent years, however, the EU system faces harassment from various people responsible for the increase of violence and insecurity within the country and especially in the state in Guerrero; this situation is impacting instituitions in the community, forcing their redefinition. In this paper I highlight key aspects of the conflict and the community's responses to deal with the tasks of justice and security in new contexts marked by neoliberal plunder and impunity of the state (as well as non state figures). In this process, the relationship of the community police with the state is updated revealing the weight of legal ambiguity and power plays, as well as counter-hegemonic use of the right to dispute justice.key words: neoliberal vilence; Guerrero; indigenous people.


Author(s):  
Ali Reja Osmani

Moving ahead from the freshwater reservoir versus climate change debate, the Indo-Bangla controversy over the Tipaimukh Project exists over the right of riparian states. India needs more energy to propel its economic growth, whereas Bangladesh is worried about downstream impact. The concerns of Bangladesh are based on the experience of severe water shortage and other impacts of Farakka Barrage and Teesta Barrage and also Himalayan Component of the Interlinking of River Project. Over the years some progress was made at bilateral level. But the major problem remains unaddressed i.e. without reconciling the issues of indigenous people a big dam cannot be constructed. This paper highlighted the existing scenario of Bangladesh and the indigenous people of Manipur in India in one hand and ecological, socio-economic concern in other hand i.e. obligation not to cause significant harm. There is no straight way answers available to be choose between a ‘Yes' or ‘No'; neither depends on the issues of ‘might' over ‘right' or ‘development' over ‘destruction', but on the circumstances to come.


Sustainability and nutrition 380 Sustainable development 382 Food security 383 Climate change and obesity 384 Useful websites and further reading 388 The public health nutrition field has identified a need to encompass the inter-relationship of man with his environment (The Giessen Declaration, 2005). Ecological public health nutrition places nutrition within its wider structural settings including the political, physical, socio-cultural and economic environment that influence individual behaviour and health. As a consequence, it includes the impact of what is eaten on the natural environment as well as the impact of environmental and climate change on all components of food security, i.e. on what food is available, accessible, utilizable and stable (...


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