Creating a space on campus for Indigenous Food Sovereignty

On March 13, the University of Guelph, in partnership with several other universities and Meal Exchange, hosted a virtual panel on Indigenous Food Sovereignty on campus. Pictured are some of the attendees and speakers, including Acting Academic Director of Indigenous Studies at McMaster University, Adrianne Xavier.

Having access to enough food is not the same as having access to good food

ARTICLE AND IMAGE BY TAYLOR PACE

To truly nourish their students, university campuses across Canada should be working towards and encouraging food sovereignty, according to the virtual panel held last month on Indigenous Food Sovereignty on Campus.

The panel was part of the Promoting Food Security in Higher Education series that ran from March 2 to March 30 in collaboration with several universities, including the University of Guelph, and Meal Exchange, a charity dedicated to empowering students across Canada to create “healthy, just, and sustainable food systems.”

Topics included the distinction between food security and food sovereignty, as well as how Indigenous communities and activists throughout Canada are addressing food security issues.

Participants included Acting Academic Director of Indigenous Studies at McMaster University, Adrianne Xavier, and some of her students, among others. Just under 100 people from across Canada — and as far as New Zealand — were in attendance.

Overall, it seemed that the panel succeeded in getting the conversation started — the first step to implementing change.

What is the difference between food security and food sovereignty?

Food security is defined by World Vision as “having consistent, reliable access to safe, nutritious food,” and is determined by accessibility and availability, how it contributes to one’s health and well-being, and if it will be continuously available.

However, food security doesn’t concern where the food comes from, the conditions of production and distribution, or the food in relation to one’s tradition and culture.

Essentially, global food security is the goal, and food sovereignty is the ideal, grass-roots approach to getting there.

According to Food Secure Canada (FSC), food sovereignty is “the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agricultural systems.”

In other words, it emphasizes a democratic food system that involves input from both citizens and producers. FSC lists seven pillars of food sovereignty, including: • A focus on food for people, making food more than just

a commodity; • Building on traditional knowledge and skills; • Working with nature by optimizing “the contributions of ecosystems;” • Valuing food providers by respecting and supporting sustainable livelihoods; • Localizing food systems by, for instance, reducing the distance between providers and consumers; • Placing local communities in control of their food systems; • Acknowledging that food is sacred, “a gift of life” that can’t be commodified.

More specifically, Indigenous food sovereignty “is a specific policy approach to addressing the underlying issues impacting Indigenous peoples and our ability to respond to our own needs for healthy, culturally adapted Indigeonous foods,” according to the Indigenous Food Systems Network.

In this regard, student participants in the panel showed concern that people on university campuses don’t have access to food that “physically, mentally, and spiritually sustains them.”

They mentioned that food programs in schools (for instance, the mandatory dorm meal plans the U of G has) don’t necessarily address food sovereignty, because they “just have to ensure someone’s eating.”

One essential distinction is that enough food is not necessarily enough good food; the food being offered on university campuses doesn’t always emphasize health and is usually westernized food, which limits students from easily accessing the food that “connects them to their history.”

Some participants suggested more community kitchens in dorms to accommodate students so they can be in charge of their food and foster that sense of community.

However, the panel ended noting that there is no blanket, one-fits-all solution, adding that a big part of food security and sovereignty is tailoring it to the needs, capabilities, and resources of each local community.