FAO Geneva gathers stakeholders to discuss Indigenous food systems and climate change.
It is estimated that there are more than 370 million Indigenous Peoples worldwide. Over the centuries they have adapted to different environments by establishing livelihoods in close relationship with the natural environment, developing highly specialized resource management practices and livelihood strategies. They have therefore played a key role in the preservation of forests, lakes, rivers and other natural resources that today constitute some of the richest remaining pockets of biodiversity.
Notwithstanding their valuable contributions to the planet, indigenous peoples face several challenges and are among the poorest in the world. With a mandate of working to end hunger and malnutrition, FAO believes that SDG 2 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as a whole will not be attained if the situation of food insecurity and poverty faced by Indigenous Peoples is not solved.
Against this background, the FAO Liaison Office in Geneva today organized a side event in the margins of the 12thExpert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP) to discuss Indigenous Food Systems and Climate Change. The objective of the event was to inform and build awareness of indigenous food systems in relation to climate change and discuss the role that indigenous youth can play in ending hunger and malnutrition.
The side event was moderated by Ms Carolyn Rodrigues Birkett, Director of FAO Geneva, and benefitted from the insights of Ms Anne Nuorgam, Chair of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues; Ms Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, Special Rapporteur on the Right of Indigenous Peoples; Ambassador John Ronald Dipchandra Ford, Permanent Representative of Guyana to UNOG, FAO , WTO and Switzerland; and Mr Yon Fernández-de-Larrinoa, FAO Indigenous Peoples Team Leader.
In her opening remarks, Ms Rodrigues-Birkett said that “because Indigenous Peoples depend heavily on the natural environment for their livelihood and very survival, they are on the front lines of being affected by the impacts of climate change”. Her words were echoed by Ambassador Ford who quoted a Nonuya man interviewed in a documentary about the Colombian Amazon region who said that “disorder in nature is the reflection of disorder in society”, not the other way around. Ambassador also suggested that more focus be placed on resilient crops, such as cassava, which is a staple for some Indigenous Peoples.
On the importance of indigenous food systems for biodiversity, Yon Fernandez-de-Larrinoa pointed the fact that “there are only 100 to 150 crops grown for commercial purposes in the world and the wealth of biodiversity in food crops is being safeguarded by Indigenous Peoples.” For example, there are over 2000 potato varieties in Peru only. Ms. Tauli-Corpuz shared examples of sustainable practices in the Philippines that have proven to reduce the impacts of climate change, such as terrace rice farming.
As part of FAO’s Violet Chair Initiative, Ms. Carolyn Rodrigues Birkett invited Ms Joênia Wapichana, Brazilian Member of Parliament, to occupy the Violet Chair as a sign that an indigenous woman was in the room taking part in the debates. Ms Wapichana, of the Wapichana People in Northern Brazil, is the first indigenous woman elected to Brazil’s Lower Chamber and the first indigenous woman lawyer in the country.