Agriculture for Development (Ag4Dev) is a journal of the Tropical Agriculture Association (TAA), a unique professional alliance of individuals, businesses and corporate bodies involved in sustainable agricultural development, and their role throughout the world. The Ag4Dev Journal is published three times a year.

In this noteworthy issue of Ag4Dev, the various aspects of food system transformation in the context of the upcoming UN Food Systems Summit 2021 and in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic are highlighted.

The issue puts a spotlight on the Global-Hub on Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems as an important platform for targeted research and evidence generation in informing food systems approaches that aims to influence policy discussions.  The platform serves to aid in the understanding and respect of Indigenous Peoples’ inherent right to feed themselves and sustain their livelihoods. For Indigenous Peoples, food carries nutritional, medicinal, healing, spiritual, social, cultural and emotional dimensions. It is therefore important to support the wellbeing and the preservation of Indigenous Peoples ancestral territorial management practices and food systems.

The objectives of TAA is to support the achievement of the 2015 UN Sustainable Development Goals, especially Goal 2: “End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture”; and Goal 15: “Life on Land” and to contribute to international policies aimed at reducing poverty and improving livelihoods in rural areas in the tropics, sub-tropics and countries with less developed economies in temperate areas. In line with these objectives, the TAA journal showcases the Global-Hub and its aim to inform the sustainable food systems debate, in particular the 2021 United Nations Food Systems Summit and other policy discussions on sustainable food systems in the context of the United Nations Decade of Action on Nutrition (2016–2025), the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda.

In this regard, the 42^nd issue highlights the first task of the Global-Hub on Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems, which is the publishing and drafting of the White/Whipala Paper on Indigenous Peoples’ food systems to provide general elements that characterise Indigenous Peoples’ food systems, identifying areas where currently dominant concepts and frameworks can be challenged ,as well as informing the global debate on thetransformation of current food systems to make them sustainable and resiliant.

The Special Issue can be found here: https://taa.org.uk/publications/journals/.

More about the Global-Hub on Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems

The Global-Hub on Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems (The Global-Hub) was launched during the 27th session of FAO’s Technical Committee on Agriculture (COAG) in September 2020 supported by the representatives of Argentina, Algeria on behalf of the Africa Regional Group, Australia, Canada, Germany on behalf of the European Union-27, Guinea, Dominican Republic, New Zealand, Malaysia and Russian Federation

It brings together Indigenous and non-indigenous experts, scientists and researchers to establish a knowledge-dialogue that gathers evidence-based contributions on Indigenous food systems.   

The Global-Hub is informing policy discussions and research agendas on food security, biodiversity and climate change at local, national and regional level ensuring that Indigenous Peoples knowledge and rights are at the center and that their food systems are valued and protected.

As of today, 18 research, academic, and multilateral institutions working on Indigenous food systems have joined the Global-Hub, including the Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD), the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII), Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP), the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO), the Indigenous Partnership for Agrobiodiversity and Food Sovereignty (TIP), the Sámi Parliament, Gaia Amazonas, the Fund for the Development of the Indigenous Peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean (FILAC), Centre for Sustainable Development and Environment (Cenesta), INFOODS, and the Universities of Massey, Monash, Cambridge, Greenwich (through its Natural Resource Institute: NRI) and McGill (through its Centre for Indigenous Peoples’ Nutrition and Environment: CINE.

More Information:

Global-Hub on Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems

Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems publications:

-        Indigenous Peoples' food systems & well-being.

-        Indigenous Peoples' food systems the many dimensions of culture, diversity and environment for nutrition and health.

United Nations Food Systems Summit