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I would like to invite MSU colleagues and anyone in the Lansing area and beyond to attend this special opportunity. Please forward widely, flyer and information on the speaker attached. Contact me if you have questions ([log in to unmask]) -Kyle Whyte 

Brown Bag Event on Indigenous Food Sovereignty @MSU

Friday, October 16, 2015, 530 S. Kedzie Hall (368 Farm Lane, East Lansing, MI 48824)

12pm-1pm (speaker will be available for further discussion through 2pm)

Lunch provided for all who RSVP to Kyle Whyte with dietary requirements, [log in to unmask]

Indigenous Knowledge: A key for the development of a food sovereignty framework

Mariaelena Huambachano
University of Auckland


This paper presents on the findings of a research project that analyses the notion of food security/sovereignty as seen through an Indigenous lens and subsequently the development of a food sovereignty framework.  This paper proposes a New Zealand food sovereignty framework that encompasses a comprehensive analysis of Aotearoa’s cultural, economic and social sustainability aspects, law and regulations such as the Resource Management Act, Food Bill and integration of Indigenous people’s knowledge. This investigation focuses on the ‘good living principles’ of Indigenous Peoples of Peru (Allin Kawsay) and New Zealand (Tē Atānoho) as a key to understanding the extent to which Indigenous good living philosophies might be a key for improving food security policies. Both a Western and Indigenous research approach guided this project. Case studies based on in-depth semi-structure interviews and focus groups with Māori Kaumatua/Elders, business leaders and academics in the North Island, and similarly in the Peruvian Andes are presented in this paper. The case studies demonstrates how Māori and Quechua peoples’ resilience to food security/sovereignty stems from their good living principles. Such principles emphasises cultural identity, revitalisation of small-scale farmers and sustainability practices that value community participation, self-sufficiency and empowerment. The paper concludes that Indigenous peoples’ knowledge embedded in their ‘Good living philosophies’ to food security/sovereignty is one of the key aspects for the conceptualisation of a food sovereignty framework.