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116 CHAPTER 3 CASE STUDIES: BRINGING BIODIVERSITY TO THE PLATE 117 BIODIVERSITY AND SUSTAINABILITY OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES’ 118 FOODS AND DIETS Harriet V. Kuhnlein Centre for Indigenous Peoples’ Nutrition and Environment (CINE), McGill University, Montreal, Canada Abstract tral territory and society, and as stewards of vast Indigenous Peoples living in their rural homelands areas of biodiversity in their rural homelands. and intact ecosystems retain a vast knowledge of There are more than 370 million Indigenous Peoples biodiversity in food resources. Living in historical in 90 countries, who speak more than 4 000 lan - continuity over thousands of years implicitly rec - guages (Bartlett et al. , 2007; UNPFII, 2009). Sus - ognizes the sustainability of their local food sys - tainability of a local indigenous diet is presumed if a tem. However, recent stresses to cultures and culture has occupied a territory for a very long time ecosystems, globalization of industrially produced in harmony with nature, respecting and learning foods, and simplification of diets have created from the natural world and the bounty it provides to commonalities for Indigenous Peoples for severe sustain community life and cultural ways of know - financial poverty, discrimination, disadvantage and ing and doing. If a culture survived through history challenges to nutrition and health. This report to the present day, the diet was necessarily nutri - summarizes a ten-year programme of research tionally complete; although recognition is given to and health promotion with 12 cultures of Indige - the constant change and evolution experienced in nous Peoples in different parts of the world. Fol - natural ecosystems. lowing methods development for documentation of local food systems of rural Indigenous Peoples, Our programme has been especially significant in research highlighted a vast diversity in food its recognition that Indigenous Peoples in both de - species and their patterns of use. Dietary meas - veloped and developing countries are often the most ures were used to evaluate improved use of local at risk populations within nations for issues related food resources that were emphasized in pro - to both undernutrition and overnutrition, because 119 grammes and policy developments to sustainably they often experience the most severe financial improve diets and food and nutrition security in poverty and disparities in health (Gracey and King, these areas. Effective cross-cutting strategies 2009; Reading, 2009). The transition to oversimpli - were participatory decision-making for research fication of diets away from food resource diversity and intervention activities, focus on locally avail - generated by healthy ecosystems is a global phe - able cultural food species, capacity development nomenon that especially affects Indigenous Peoples and networking, educational activities with youth, dependent on ecosystems that are under stress and use of media to strengthen local perceptions of (UNPFII, 2009). local food qualities. The interventions are on- going, and several have been successful in scaling In this context our research has focused on under - up their activities to other communities in the re - standing the foods and diets of Indigenous Peoples gions. Addressing threats to cultural and ecosys - in rural territories, and the treasures of knowledge tem sustainability and improving access to local these hold. Specifically, we focused on 12 long- traditional food will improve use of biodiverse food evolved cultures in defined ecosystems in different resources by Indigenous Peoples, enhance dietary parts of the world. Our objective has been to inquire quality, and improve sustainable food and nutrition into the food biodiversity, to understand the unique security. species and subspecies/varieties/cultivars known . with traditional knowledge and how these continue 1. Introduction to be cultivated, hunted, fished or gathered and then Indigenous Peoples are recognized by the United prepared and appreciated with cultural knowledge Nations as having historical continuity with ances - and techniques. The overall goal is to guide the use of this knowledge by communities for nutrition and health promotion activities that improve wellness. 2. Methods Using participatory research methods created through the Centre for Indigenous Peoples’ Nutri - tion and Environment at McGill University (CINE), Canada (Sims and Kuhnlein, 2003), staff from CINE in cooperation with the Nutrition Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) developed a methodology with partners in Asian settings. This provided a framework to food Figure 1. Case study partners meeting in Bellagio, Italy, in 2008 systems documentation, structure to processes for to discuss research process, results and health promotion strategies (kp studios). scientific nomenclature, laboratory studies on nutri - ent composition, and qualitative methods to under - dietary intake and health by using elements of the stand local food meanings and use (Kuhnlein et al. , diverse food systems of Indigenous Peoples in sev - 2006). Subsequently, in cooperation with the Task eral of the case studies. Interventions were created Force on Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems and Nu - with participatory methods with local teams from trition of the International Union of Nutritional Sci - case studies working with the Nuxalk, Dalit, ences (IUNS) the methodology was applied and Gwich’in, Inuit, Ingano, Awajún, Karen and Pohnpei. 120 adapted within 12 unique cultural case studies of In - The Ainu developed an education intervention that digenous Peoples residing in different rural ecosys - stressed cultural revival and traditional knowledge tems in various global regions: Awajún (Peru), Ainu taught to youth. (Japan), Baffin Inuit (Canada), Bhil (India), Dalit (India, Gwich’in (Canada), Igbo (Nigeria), Ingano 3. Results (Colombia), Karen (Thailand), Maasai (Kenya), Nux - Each case study completed a report of their findings alk (Canada), and Pohnpei (Federated States of Mi - and prepared a chapter for a book published and cronesia). In each area, communities of Indigenous distributed widely by FAO (Kuhnlein et al. , 2009). In People collaborated with in-country academic part - addition, several colourful food-system posters in ners and CINE for research in two phases: 1) docu - recognition of the International Decades of the mentation of the food system including use of both World’s Indigenous Peoples were widely distributed local traditional food and imported market-sold by FAO (FAO and CINE, 2004-06). Eight 20-minute food, food species and food component data; and 2) documentary films were created and are posted free use of this knowledge to implement health promo - on the internet (KP Studios, 2009). tion interventions using culturally sensitive and en - vironmentally relevant elements of the local food 3.1 Diversity of species documented and variation systems. Team members communicated electroni - in extent of use cally and team leaders met annually over a ten year As anticipated, there is an astonishing diversity of period (2001 –2010) to discuss methods, results and species known and used, with up to 380 species strategies for implementing health promotion poli - used annually within one culture. There is also wide cies and activities (Figure 1) (Kuhnlein et al. , 2006). variation in the extent of use of these foods, varying Funding from a variety of sources was obtained to from less than 10 percent to up to 95 percent of daily develop and implement interventions to improve energy provided by local species in the ecosystem (Table 1). the Awajún and Igbo. Research with the Karen, Bhil, Maasai, Pohnpei and Dalit showed that commercial Indigenous Group Energy % No. of (or donated) refined staples replaced traditional species/ varieties foods in the diet; the Canadian Gwich’in, Inuit and Nuxalk peoples were using less than 45 percent of Awajún (Peru) 93 223 energy as traditional species with the commercial Bhil (India) 59 95 foods derived primarily from refined wheat flour, fats Dalit (India) 43 329 and sugar. The Ainu in Japan used very little tradi - Gwich’in (Canada) 33 50 tional food in their daily diet, and could not recog - Igbo (Nigeria) 96 220 nize all the available species or record the extent of Ingano (Colombia) 47 160 energy consumed from them (Kuhnlein et al. , 2009). Inuit (Canada) 41 79 Karen (Thailand) 85* 387 3.2 Indigenous Peoples’ food and nutrition inter - Maasai (Kenya) 6 35 ventions for health promotion and policy Nuxalk (Canada) 30* 67 Eight interventions were developed with diverse Pohnpei (Micronesia) 27 381 re sources from within the communities as well as * Estimated for adults. from external sources. Funding and logistic Table 1. Adult dietary energy as local traditional food and num - con straints necessitated work with unique small ber of species/varieties in the food system. populations where meaningful control groups were not (Reproduced with permission from: Kuhnlein HV, in: Kuhnlein, Erasmus, Spigelski, 2009, pg 5) available. This led to before- and after-intervention research designs using both qualitative and quanti - 121 Ways of cultivating, harvesting, processing and preparing tative measures. Special considerations were needed the foods for families were shown to be fascinating. to build local cultural pride, develop cross-sectoral However, many species/varieties documented did planning and action, and create energetic and en - not have scientific identifications

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