title: Shared Lunch: An Ethnography of Food Sovereignty in Whaingaroa and Beyond

authors: Ritchie, Isa Pearl

subjects: Anthropology

abstract: Food presents complex interconnectedness between inner and outer; social and political; culture and biochemistry; values and practices; tradition and innovation; wealth and poverty; the global, local and highly personal. Amid this multifaceted intersection vast bodies of contemporary academic literature have emerged. This study is an ethnography of alternative food networks; of food sovereignty and social economics. More specifically it is an ethnography of a community of small-scale local food providers in Whaingaroa, a small coastal township in Aotearoa [New Zealand].  Through the lenses provided by perspectives of these food providers, the global corporate food system is critiqued. Through their everyday practices, alternatives have been developed which offer potential solutions to widely recognised problems associated with environmental and social exploitation. These problems are largely attributed to the current dominant global systems of corporate capitalism, including the dominant systems of food production, consumption and disposal.  
A theoretical framework has been woven together in order to aid understanding of participant world-views and values. This framework is constructed around ontologies of connectedness and the negotiation of paradox. Ethnographic participant observation was carried out as the primary research method alongside in-depth interviews with key participants. Further information was gathered from the internet, largely from websites and blogs, in order to further assist in locating the framework of food sovereignty within a New Zealand context.  Much of the fieldwork was carried out in Whaingaroa. Several other sites were also included in order to gather understandings from a broader range of settings within the New Zealand context. The initiatives and groups of focus during participant observation included community gardens, small scale organic and permaculture farms, and other community groups and businesses focussed on producing and distributing local food, as well as minimising waste and environmental harm. Key participants were chosen to represent the diverse range of people involved in aspects of local food activities.
This research suggests that these small-scale local food initiatives are often connected, especially as they are responses by people and community groups to the tensions of exploitation, struggle, and scarcity created by the perceived globalising corporate system. They present a rational response to the sense of powerlessness engendered by this system, whereby personal and community agency is channelled into ‘focussing on solutions’. In doing so, a range of alternative economic systems are implemented at a community level, largely based on relationships and trust. These relationships potentiate greater sharing of resources which result in greater agency for participants, particularly those who would otherwise lack access to land for food production. Strong similarities between participants are evidenced in the ethical values expressed, as well as in the tension they negotiate in their daily lives. These also resemble the values and tensions of focus in the global campaign for food sovereignty. Participants present a deliberate focus on solutions, and on what is possible and achievable by small groups of people with minimal resources, and they reflect a protest against the alienation experienced under the dominant power structures of the global corporate system.

text: Shared Lunch: An Ethnography of Food Sovereignty in Whaingaroa and Beyond Food presents complex interconnectedness between inner and outer; social and political; culture and biochemistry; values and practices; tradition and innovation; wealth and poverty; the global, local and highly personal. Amid this multifaceted intersection vast bodies of contemporary academic literature have emerged. This study is an ethnography of alternative food networks; of food sovereignty and social economics. More specifically it is an ethnography of a community of small-scale local food providers in Whaingaroa, a small coastal township in Aotearoa [New Zealand].  Through the lenses provided by perspectives of these food providers, the global corporate food system is critiqued. Through their everyday practices, alternatives have been developed which offer potential solutions to widely recognised problems associated with environmental and social exploitation. These problems are largely attributed to the current dominant global systems of corporate capitalism, including the dominant systems of food production, consumption and disposal.  
A theoretical framework has been woven together in order to aid understanding of participant world-views and values. This framework is constructed around ontologies of connectedness and the negotiation of paradox. Ethnographic participant observation was carried out as the primary research method alongside in-depth interviews with key participants. Further information was gathered from the internet, largely from websites and blogs, in order to further assist in locating the framework of food sovereignty within a New Zealand context.  Much of the fieldwork was carried out in Whaingaroa. Several other sites were also included in order to gather understandings from a broader range of settings within the New Zealand context. The initiatives and groups of focus during participant observation included community gardens, small scale organic and permaculture farms, and other community groups and businesses focussed on producing and distributing local food, as well as minimising waste and environmental harm. Key participants were chosen to represent the diverse range of people involved in aspects of local food activities.
This research suggests that these small-scale local food initiatives are often connected, especially as they are responses by people and community groups to the tensions of exploitation, struggle, and scarcity created by the perceived globalising corporate system. They present a rational response to the sense of powerlessness engendered by this system, whereby personal and community agency is channelled into ‘focussing on solutions’. In doing so, a range of alternative economic systems are implemented at a community level, largely based on relationships and trust. These relationships potentiate greater sharing of resources which result in greater agency for participants, particularly those who would otherwise lack access to land for food production. Strong similarities between participants are evidenced in the ethical values expressed, as well as in the tension they negotiate in their daily lives. These also resemble the values and tensions of focus in the global campaign for food sovereignty. Participants present a deliberate focus on solutions, and on what is possible and achievable by small groups of people with minimal resources, and they reflect a protest against the alienation experienced under the dominant power structures of the global corporate system.

year: 2017

title: Depuration of tetrodotoxin and changes in bacterial communities in Pleurobranchea maculata adults and egg masses maintained in captivity

authors: Wood, Susanna A.

subjects: chemical defense

abstract: Depuration of tetrodotoxin (TTX) was investigated in adult grey side-gilled sea slugs, Pleurobranchaea maculata, maintained in captivity on a TTX-free diet. Three adults were harvested every 21 days for 126 days, and TTX concentrations were measured in organs/tissues and egg masses. Automated rRNA intergenic spacer analysis (ARISA) was used to investigate bacterial community structure in selected samples. Linear modeling of adult data demonstrated a decline (P < 0.001) in average total TTX concentrations over time. Temporal data obtained from a wild population showed similar depuration rates, indicating that once adults reach a certain size, or sexual maturity, TTX is no longer produced or acquired substantially. Depuration rates differed among organs, with concentrations in the heart declining the fastest. The gonads had the slowest and least significant depuration rate indicating, at most, weak depuration of this tissue. There was a strong correlation (R (2) = 0.66) between TTX concentrations in the first-laid egg masses and total TTX in the corresponding adult. These data suggest that adult P. maculata transfer TTX to their offspring, and presumably that functions as a chemical defense. ARISA data showed a shift in bacterial community structure within 3 weeks of introduction to captivity. Based on the combined data, the exact origin of TTX in P. maculata is unclear, with evidence both in favor and against a dietary source, and endogenous or bacterial production.

text: Depuration of tetrodotoxin and changes in bacterial communities in Pleurobranchea maculata adults and egg masses maintained in captivity Depuration of tetrodotoxin (TTX) was investigated in adult grey side-gilled sea slugs, Pleurobranchaea maculata, maintained in captivity on a TTX-free diet. Three adults were harvested every 21 days for 126 days, and TTX concentrations were measured in organs/tissues and egg masses. Automated rRNA intergenic spacer analysis (ARISA) was used to investigate bacterial community structure in selected samples. Linear modeling of adult data demonstrated a decline (P < 0.001) in average total TTX concentrations over time. Temporal data obtained from a wild population showed similar depuration rates, indicating that once adults reach a certain size, or sexual maturity, TTX is no longer produced or acquired substantially. Depuration rates differed among organs, with concentrations in the heart declining the fastest. The gonads had the slowest and least significant depuration rate indicating, at most, weak depuration of this tissue. There was a strong correlation (R (2) = 0.66) between TTX concentrations in the first-laid egg masses and total TTX in the corresponding adult. These data suggest that adult P. maculata transfer TTX to their offspring, and presumably that functions as a chemical defense. ARISA data showed a shift in bacterial community structure within 3 weeks of introduction to captivity. Based on the combined data, the exact origin of TTX in P. maculata is unclear, with evidence both in favor and against a dietary source, and endogenous or bacterial production.

year: 2012

title: Editorial

authors: Clarkin-Phillips, Jeanette

abstract: As New Zealand contemplates wholesale review of the formal schooling system and the leadership implications thereof, the winds of educational change begin to swirl. Not the persistent, yet gentle flutter of change that evolves the educational landscape in almost imperceptible ways, but tumultuous paradigmatic gales that potentially change it beyond all recognition. Heralded by politicians, economists and capitalists, there is little doubt that the 1989 neoliberal tempest wrought havoc on notions of community and profession. The whirlwind shift from social democracy to market competition, managerialism and performativity saw critical voices silenced and educators disparagingly positioned as self-interested providers. In the rush to legislate Tomorrow’s Schools, 18,000 submissions remained unanalysed and therein lies a crucial lesson: we ignore research at our peril. As educators, we have a moral obligation to generate, disseminate and critique understandings of leadership, policy and practice; to remain open to counter perspectives; and to contribute positively and hopefully to research that empowers and emancipates. Consistent with JELPP’s commitment to honouring diversity in leadership focus, setting, and authorship, articles in this year’s general edition offer fresh insight into topics of interconnected and perennial importance: native knowledge, instructional leadership, indigenous teachers, appraisal, professional values, and safe schools.

text: Editorial As New Zealand contemplates wholesale review of the formal schooling system and the leadership implications thereof, the winds of educational change begin to swirl. Not the persistent, yet gentle flutter of change that evolves the educational landscape in almost imperceptible ways, but tumultuous paradigmatic gales that potentially change it beyond all recognition. Heralded by politicians, economists and capitalists, there is little doubt that the 1989 neoliberal tempest wrought havoc on notions of community and profession. The whirlwind shift from social democracy to market competition, managerialism and performativity saw critical voices silenced and educators disparagingly positioned as self-interested providers. In the rush to legislate Tomorrow’s Schools, 18,000 submissions remained unanalysed and therein lies a crucial lesson: we ignore research at our peril. As educators, we have a moral obligation to generate, disseminate and critique understandings of leadership, policy and practice; to remain open to counter perspectives; and to contribute positively and hopefully to research that empowers and emancipates. Consistent with JELPP’s commitment to honouring diversity in leadership focus, setting, and authorship, articles in this year’s general edition offer fresh insight into topics of interconnected and perennial importance: native knowledge, instructional leadership, indigenous teachers, appraisal, professional values, and safe schools.

year: 2019