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Indigenous Food Sovereignty & Security Program

Food sovereignty is intimately linked to the right of self-determination, as Indigenous Peoples’ food systems are inextricably linked to values and systems of governance and resource management that have been proven successful over thousands of years.  Our Food Sovereignty and Security Program supports grassroots initiatives that strengthen Indigenous Peoples’ food systems across Sub-Saharan Africa and Mesoamerica. The programme deploys Indigenous-led grants that prioritize challenges facing Indigenous Peoples as they work to maintain and strengthen their traditional food systems in the face of increased threats from climate change, industrial agriculture, infrastructure projects, and extractive industries. 

Land is Life’s Food Sovereignty and Security Program enhances the food security and sovereignty of Indigenous Peoples.

land is life

The issues addressed in this program are:

  • Territorial security

    as the basis of food sovereignty.

  • Traditional knowledge

    as the capital of autonomy and self-management of sustainable use and management of ecosystems and conservation of agricultural diversity.

  • Community organization,

    for the creation and re-creation of ecological sound food systems with a gender and transgenerational approach.

  • Land governance

    as a basis for sustainability and fair and equitable access for the population to livelihoods for food security and sovereignty.

  • Strengthening

    Indigenous Peoples’ Economies.

Our program is working in the following regions:

In 2022, Land is Life launched its new Indigenous-led Fund to support agroecology initiatives across Sub-Saharan Africa. Managed by four Indigenous Regional Advisors across the region, In 2023 the project supported 10 Indigenous Peoples: Baka, Maasai, Bagyeli, Bakwango, Kamba, Kpando, Sengwer, Tugen, Mijikenda and Batwa, across the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi and Ghana.

This program has been catalytic in building requisite capacities in Indigenous Peoples’ community production systems and improving overall food security in target communities.

In Mesoamerica, Land is Life works with Indigenous Peoples’ communities in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, and Nicaragua to restore ecosystems that they depend upon for their livelihoods, recuperate their ancestral food systems, and strengthen their territorial and resource management. The formal launch of this initiative began in 2021, after two powerful hurricanes destroyed the entire food system of Karata, Nicaragua in late 2020.

The methodology for this initiative focuses on supporting target Indigenous Peoples’ communities by: analyzing the state of each community’s food systems, the current situation’s impact on livelihoods, and on the communities’ traditional territorial management systems; conducting surveys on climate resilience and adaptation measures; training community members on the rehabilitation and management of plots for agro-ecological production; recovering genetic material for traditional use in agroforestry crops; and delivering farming materials to at-risk families within communities.

Our Indigenous Food Sovereignty & Security Program contributes to progress in the following areas:

1.

Enhancing involvement in agroecology, particularly among Indigenous women and youth, while strengthening resilience to climate change.

2.

Defending and asserting Indigenous Peoples’ collective rights to their lands, territories, and resources, and establishing mechanisms for the protection and better use of the environment and its resources.

3.

Improving livelihoods and nutrition for Indigenous Peoples’ households by diversifying diets and supporting sustainable production and consumption.

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