Indigenous food systems, biocultural heritage and the SDGs (session one: morning)
Channel: IIED
Date: 2020-10-11

This is the first half of the first day of a four-part virtual workshop co-hosted by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and Royal Botanic Gardens Kew on 'Indigenous food systems, biocultural heritage and the SDGs: challenges, interdisciplinary research gaps and empowering methodologies'.

The workshop brought together a range of actors, including UK academics from humanities and botanical sciences, agri-food sectors, action-researchers, indigenous experts and FAO. It aimed to enable equitable dialogue between diverse actors and disciplines.

This morning session on 9 October 2020 featured an introduction by IIED' principal researcher Krystyna Swiderska and opening remarks by IIED director Andrew Norton and RBG Kew's Philippa Ryan.

FAO's Yon Fernandez-de-Larrinoa and Anne Brunel discussed the potential of Indigenous peoples to re-shape global thinking on food; Joji Carino, of the Forest Peoples’ Programme, spoke about Indigenous food systems in Asia: resilience, nutrition, sustainability and wellbeing; Simon Mitambo, of the African Biodiversity Network, discussed, Indigenous food systems in Africa; and Harriet Kuhnlein, Centre for Indigenous Nutrition and Environment (CINE) focused on Indigenous food systems, health and nutrition.

The workshop forms part of a project on “Indigenous food systems, biocultural heritage and agricultural resilience”, funded by UKRI Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF).

More details: https://www.iied.org/indigenous-peoples-food-systems-hold-key-feeding-humanity