Research Paper

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S U P P L E M E N T A R T I C L E

Gender roles, food system biodiversity, and food security in Indigenous Peoples' communities

Harriet V. Kuhnlein

Centre for Indigenous Peoples' Nutrition and

Environment and School of Human Nutrition,

McGill University, Montreal, Canada

Correspondence

Harriet Kuhnlein, 1204 6th Street, Anacortes,

Washington, 98221, USA.

Email: [email protected]

Abstract Traditional knowledge and practice of Indigenous Peoples related to their food use and well‐

being is a wealth of information for academic study and for public health nutrition. Despite

unique long‐evolved heritages of knowledge of ecosystem resources, Indigenous Peoples com-

prise 15% of the global poor, but only 5% of the world's population, and they experience poverty,

discrimination, and poor nutritional health at far greater rates than mainstream populations in

their nations of residence. These disparities are unacceptable in all human rights frameworks,

and the call to alleviate them resonates through all human development programmes and the

United Nations organizations. The scholars contributing to this special issue of Maternal and Child

Nutrition describe how gender roles and the right to food for several cultures of Indigenous Peo-

ples can be fostered to protect their unique foods and traditions, providing food sovereignty and

food and nutrition security benefits, especially for women and children. Aspects of societal

maternal or paternal lineality and locality, division of labour, spirituality and decision‐making are

described. These factors structure the impact of gender roles with Indigenous worldviews on

the dynamics of family food access, its availability and use, and the use of local food biodiversity.

Cultures of Indigenous Peoples in Ecuador, Nigeria, Thailand, India, Canada, Japan, and Morocco

are discussed. This publication is a work of theTask Force onTraditional, Indigenous and Cultural

Food and Nutrition of the International Union of Nutritional Sciences.

KEYWORDS

biodiversity, food security, gender, Indigenous Peoples, nutritional status, traditional food

“Indigenous knowledge is embedded in community

practices, institutions, relationships, and rituals and is

inextricably linked to Indigenous Peoples' identity, their

experiences with the natural environment and hence

their territorial and cultural rights.” N. Kipuri, 2009

1 | INTRODUCTION

This special issue of Maternal and Child Nutrition is about why and how

food is harvested and used in Indigenous communities, with focus and

insight on how gender roles moderate food system use and change. It

explores how local cultures and environments predispose food selec-

tion, and ultimately food security, in Indigenous communities that uni-

versally face dietary change today, albeit in different ways, due to

globalization. If a society is guided by women's leadership, as is the

case in matriarchal and matrilineal cultures, is there a good chance

for food security and dietary adequacy if the ecosystem and political‐

economical structure are supportive? Do women's priorities and values

favour community health, particularly for children? How do patriarchal

or patrilineal societies respond to nutritional stress in communities?

These are basic questions addressed by authors in this special issue

of Maternal and Child Nutrition.

Communities, governments, and international bodies call atten-

tion to the imperative to resolve disparities in health status that Indig-

enous Peoples face in contrast to non‐Indigenous populations in their

countries. It is well documented that despite inconsistencies in data

compilation methodologies, there is poorer health for the Indigenous

and Tribal Peoples than for non‐Indigenous in populations of both

high income and middle‐to‐low income countries. This is reflected in

statistics for child malnutrition, child and adult obesity, life expec-

tancy, and other key indicators of health status (Anderson et al.,

2016). It is also understood that Indigenous Peoples maintain a

Received: 18 July 2017 Revised: 3 September 2017 Accepted: 5 September 2017

DOI: 10.1111/mcn.12529

Matern Child Nutr. 2017;13(S3):e12529. https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.12529

© 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltdwileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/mcn 1 of 5

knowledge base of ecosystem services, including the vast biodiversity

of food and medicinal species, a reservoir of human knowledge that

ultimately serves and protects our global food supplies and health

(Burlingame & Dernini, 2012; Johns, Powell, Maundu, & Eyzaguirre,

2013). The articles in this special issue document this remarkable

knowledge in selected areas to encourage greater appreciation for

Indigenous Peoples' heritage of knowledge and values, and to enforce

a call for their understanding and appreciation to further the principles

of the right to food, food sovereignty and food security, and dietary

sustainability.

Ensuring food sovereignty and food security for vulnerable Indig-

enous population necessarily includes principles of effective manage-

ment and use of food and nutrition resources (FAO, 2016). For this

to happen, there must be understanding of cultural values and tradi-

tions for protecting local food systems, and the provision of adequate

nutrition, particularly for vulnerable women and children. This

effectively happens with self‐determination, and can lead to

health improvement when Indigenous values for overall health are

honoured—including the emotional, spiritual, and mental components,

as well as physical health status (Kuhnlein, Burlingame, & Erasmus,

2013). As is known and understood in the world view of many gener-

ations of Indigenous Peoples in local ecosystems, well‐being is

grounded in intimate relation with the land and ecosystem that

enables access to animal and plant foods, as well as water, air, and

other components of well‐being. An essential part of the knowledge,

heritage, and disposition of these resources is based in gender, with

underlying issues of power and equality or inequality in societal

structures.

This collection of articles from research with Indigenous commu-

nities describes how gender roles and the right to food for several

cultures of Indigenous Peoples can be fostered to protect these

unique biodiverse food resources and traditions for their food secu-

rity benefits, especially for women and children. Aspects of societal

matriarchy and patriarchy show the impact on dynamics of family

food access, availability, and use. Indigenous Peoples' food systems

from Morocco, Nigeria, Thailand, India, Canada, Japan, and Ecuador

are included. Perspectives from these traditional, transitional, and pri-

marily rural Indigenous cultures give important insights on gender

roles that affect use of local food biodiversity and food security at

family and community levels. Our purpose has been to document this

remarkable knowledge to encourage greater appreciation for Indige-

nous Peoples' heritage of knowledge and values and to enforce a call

for cultural understanding to further our global knowledge on the

importance of gender roles, access and use of food systems, including

ecosystem provisioning of biodiversity, and how this manifests in

food and nutrition security, maternal and child nutrition, and overall

health and well‐being.

1.1 | Describing gender roles, biodiversity in food systems, food and nutrition security, and women's and children's nutrition

There is a surprising number of Indigenous cultures today (dozens, if

not hundreds) in which women are recognized as the primary house-

hold head and community leader, with obvious connections to food

availability, food access, and food utilization. Defining a society as

being matriarchal, matrilineal, and/or matrilocal, or as the more preva-

lent patriarchal or patrilineal or patrilocal societies, provides a window

to consider how power and decision‐making take place. Nevertheless,

it is prudent to realize that matriarchal or patriarchal societal and polit-

ical styles in communities are not simply defined, are certainly not

directly converse or opposites, and the social structure in each commu-

nity warrants independent reflection. In this special issue, communities

practicing principles of matriarchy or matrilineality are described from

Mohawk (Canada), Khasi (North‐East India), Ohafia (Nigeria), and

Karen (Thailand); communities practicing principles of patriarchy are

Berber (Morocco) and Chakhesang (Nagaland, North‐East India). The

Ainu (Hokkaido, Japan) society is described as being bilineal.

Goettner‐Abendroth (2012) describes the philosophy and

methods of understanding modern matriarchal societies of Indigenous

Peoples in many parts of the world. This impressive work helps to

ground thinking about successful functioning societies (for example,

as defined by healthy children and adults) with gender balance of

power. Four basic principles characterize this balance in matriarchal

societies: (a) the economy is mutual among women and men with var-

ious ways of sharing—for example, through gift exchange; (b) kinship is

matrilineal (disposition of resources through generations of the mater-

nal line) and matrilocal (couples reside with the woman's family) with

gender equality, but with mothers at the family centre; (c) political

decision‐making in communities is by consensus, often by a council

of male designates from families; (d) broad spirituality is expressed

for divinity in the entire ecosystem. Further descriptions of gender‐

based societies can be found in the article by Lemke and Delormier

(2017). These principles have been reflected upon in several ways

within the research reported in this special issue. Several of the articles

show how well‐functioning Indigenous societies express joint respon-

sibilities and mutual respect among genders to meet the goals of locally

defined well‐being. Revision in gender roles due to economic shifts,

including employment and possible migration for work in distant‐

from‐home communities is a major factor. In this regard, see especially

the article by Ellena and Nongkynrih (2017).

Key messages

• Traditional values of Indigenous Peoples recognize that

gender roles and ecosystem food biodiversity

contribute to provisioning of food security.

• Values for care, nurture, and protection of kin and their

natural resources are consistent threads in the

Indigenous societies discussed in the articles in this

special issue.

• Indigenous Peoples' food systems' biodiversity must be

studied further for scientific identifications and

biochemical values of species.

• Policies to recognize and protect the rights of

Indigenous Peoples to their traditional lands and foods

will benefit all human societies.

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Biodiversity within food systems is perhaps more easily

researched. The key is to engage community leaders, particularly

knowledgeable elders, to free‐list the biological species used as food

in focus‐group‐type meetings, and then to explore each food for

parameters of interest, such as “which foods give strength,”and “which

foods are good during pregnancy” (see, for example, the methodolo-

gies in Kuhnlein et al., 2006). This activity is popular in Indigenous

communities and develops enthusiasm and pride in the local resources

(Kuhnlein, 2009), which can lead to a platform of further scientific and

food composition information and activities in health promotion

emphasizing locally available traditional food and surrounding food

systems from other communities and economies.

Several strategies in various literatures have been used to docu-

ment the concept of food security and the realities of children's and

women's nutritional status from the biological viewpoint. Within this

issue of the journal, the researchers usually chose to document food

security with the recent FAO (2015c) methodology from the Voices

of the Hungry Project. This validated method does not lean exclusively

on financial resources, but instead uses an eight‐point questionnaire to

the household head to express difficulty in accessing food because of

constrained resources of all kinds in the previous 12 months. Nutri-

tional status evaluations were usually done with women and children,

or else reference was made to similar recent research. Each research

team developed their own objectives and methods to evaluate nutri-

tional status.

2 | THE IMPORTANCE OF NATURE‐HUMAN CONNECTION FOR WELL‐BEING

Included in the 11 articles in this special issue are discussions of locally

practiced religions, which may be based in mainstream, organized reli-

gions, and which are integrated with local concepts of spirituality that

have foundation within deities in the natural world. Cultures are

described that are linked in various ways to the organized religions of

Christianity (Tungurahua, Ecuador; Ohafia, Nigeria; Khasi and

Chakhesang, North‐East India; Mohawk, Canada), Islam (Berber,

Morocco), and Buddhism (Karen, Thailand; Ainu, Japan). Spirituality is

often cross‐referenced with gender for provisioning of food resources.

An example is the Haudenosaunee mythology and cosmology,

where three iconic plant foods originally grew from the body of

Sky Woman's daughter (Delormier, Horn‐Miller, McComber, & Mar-

quis, 2017). Another example is the Karen belief that all sustenance

is given by Song‐tha‐ree (Mother Earth), who is honoured with spe-

cial rituals (Sirisai et al., 2017). Indeed, the expressions of Indigenous

wisdom in this collection of papers consistently reflect the Indige-

nous worldview that the nature‐to‐human connection is essential

for multiple aspects of holistic well‐being. Native ways of knowing

the natural world give unique and profound perspective on mindful-

ness that can support human health and environmental sustainabil-

ity (Heke, n.d.; Wamsler et al., 2017; Kealiikanakaoleohaililan &

Giardina, 2016). These considerations reflect the importance that

Indigenous Peoples place on continued access to the land of their

ancestors, and how essential it is to develop food sovereignty based

in human rights and the human right to food (Kipuri, 2009). For

Indigenous Peoples, this is the bedrock foundation of food and

nutrition security (Damman, Kuhnlein, & Erasmus, 2013; Lemke &

Delormier, 2017).

3 | THE RESEARCH PROCESSES

TheTask Force onTraditional, Indigenous and Cultural Food and Nutri-

tion (TF) of the International Union of Nutritional Sciences (IUNS)

developed from members of IUNS TFs that were appointed in the

2006–2009 and 2009–2013 IUNS cycles (Task Force on Indigenous

Peoples' Food Systems and Nutrition). During these periods food sys-

tem and nutrition research was conducted with 12 cultures of Indige-

nous Peoples in different global regions, and resulted in two major

publications released in partnership with the United Nations Food

and Agriculture Organization (FAO) (Kuhnlein, Erasmus & Spigelski,

2009; Kuhnlein, Erasmus, Spigelski & Burlingame, 2013). The first ideas

for the 2013–2017 programme of theTF took root at a meeting of the

outgoing 2009–2013 TF at the IUNS Congress in Granada, Spain, in

September 2013. Drs. Longvah and Kuhnlein agreed to co‐chair the

application for a renewed TF in the next IUNS cycle, which was

approved in due course by the IUNS Council. The following year, the

TF chairs were contacted by Phrang Roy to consider contributing a

research programme grounded in leadership and methods from the

Centre for Indigenous Peoples' Nutrition and Environment at McGill

University, Canada, and the IUNS TF. The intent was to provide

greater understanding on the roles of gender and use of food biodiver-

sity in Indigenous Peoples' food systems for presentation at the Indig-

enous Terra Madre (ITM), planned for November, 2015, in Shillong,

India (see Roy, 2017). The TF co‐chairs agreed to develop the pro-

gramme and a symposium for the ITM, and engaged scholars familiar

with gender roles in Indigenous societies. Despite funding and time

constraints the research was conducted and a successful symposium

was presented at the ITM (Indigenous Terra Madre, 2015). During

the days of the Congress, several lectures by TF members were con-

tributed to local colleges and universities in Meghalaya, and a meeting

of TF members present at the ITM was held in Guwahati, India. In the

following months intensive communication and enthusiasm resulted in

the research in this special issue. In addition to Co‐chairsThingnganing

Longvah (India) and Harriet Kuhnlein (Canada and USA), TF members

contributing articles are Rekia Belahsen (Morocco), Sinee

Chotiboriboon (Thailand), Treena Delormier (USA and Canada),

Henrietta Ene‐Obong (Nigeria), Masami Iwasaki‐Goodman (Japan),

Stefanie Lemke (Germany), Solot Sirisai (Thailand), and Marion Roche

(Canada).

This rich collaboration of interdisciplinary scholars developed the

research, and each article reflects a team effort. Indigenous and non‐

Indigenous heritage within the TF teams ensured scientific validity

and the worldviews from the partnered Indigenous communities.

Brief bios of contributors at the end of the articles reflect expertise

in public health nutrition, food composition, anthropology, sociology,

nutritional sciences, and community leadership. All the communities

described in the articles shared rich descriptions of their ethnicity

and traditions, and the biodiversity used in cultural food traditions.

Descriptions are shared of how food accessed and used today

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reflects dietary change resulting from globalization, and, to some

degree, the effects of climate change.

4 | NEW KNOWLEDGE AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS

In addition to unique new knowledge about each of the cultures

described in the chapters, there are several threads of new knowledge

expressed in this special issue. The research leaders collectively agreed

that we want the evidence supplied here to stimulate others towards

promoting the diversity and wisdom of traditional food systems for

Indigenous Peoples, and for all people who share the planet. Our vision

is that mainstreaming food‐based approaches to health promotion

with local resources can be furthered by appreciating the impact of

gender roles of both women and men that are practiced at the local

societal level. These are important windows to understanding the ben-

efits and constraints of Indigenous Peoples' food systems, food secu-

rity and well‐being. We are ever more aware that Indigenous values

merge with universal parental (from mother and father) values for care,

nurture and protection of kin and their natural resources, and the

importance of place‐based food knowledge and well‐being. The roles

and capacities of all members of societies need to be understood,

empowered, and managed for the best outcomes of well‐being.

Another important concept that permeates the research from sev-

eral of the case studies is the extent of biodiversity known and used by

Indigenous Peoples, with a great deal of knowledge about food species

that are still to be documented in the scientific literature. Scientists work-

ing with communities have large tasks to complete scientific nomencla-

ture and laboratory evaluations for nutrient composition. This

important work must be fostered and supported. This has been especially

described for the extensive biodiversity in Asian cultures of Karen, Khasi,

and Chakesang, (Chyne et al., 2017; Longvah et al., 2017; Sirisai et al.,

2017) which are among the cultures where the highest numbers of

unique local food species have been recorded, but also for the traditional

cultural dishes described for the Ohafia, Haudenosaunee, Tungurahua,

Berber, and Ainu (Ene‐Obong, Onuoha & Eme, 2017; Delormier et al.,

2017; Roche, Ambato, Sarsoza, & Kuhnlein, 2017; Belahsen, Naciri, &

El Ibrahimi, 2017; Iwasaki‐Goodman, 2017). Making better use of local

food biodiversity and its related Indigenous knowledge can improve die-

tary diversity, enjoyment of food and cultural practices, and nutritional

status in communities, and thereby prevent malnutrition expressed as

undernutrition and/or overweight that results from unhealthy food con-

sumption patterns.

Indigenous Peoples place profound importance and commitment on

protecting their land and access to natural resources, especially their

food resources. The United Nations system and its member states are

active in developing policy frameworks that recognize traditional cus-

toms and lands of Indigenous Peoples, and the valuable knowledge they

hold as custodians of much of the world's biodiversity of food resources.

Strategies and policies that promote the autonomous use and

management of the natural resources in their territories depends on

recognition and respect for cultural knowledge. The United Nations

Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues meets annually to promote

equitable development policies, and to promote the Indigenous

Peoples' human rights within the framework of the Declaration on

the Rights of Indigenous Peoples that was adopted by the United

Nations General Assembly in 2007 (Kuhnlein et al., 2013). Two Inter-

national Decades of Indigenous Peoples, the Declaration on the Rights

of Indigenous Peoples, and the International Labour Organisation

Convention on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples' Rights (ILO 169

established in 1989) underpin the rights of Indigenous Peoples to their

traditional lands and food that contribute to Indigenous economies,

cultures, and identities (Damman, Eide, & Kuhnlein, 2008). Recently

the FAO released the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Gover-

nance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries, and Forests in the Context of

National Food Security (FAO, 2016). Other FAO resources are the

FAO Policy on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples (FAO, 2015). Both docu-

ments are available on the Indigenous Peoples window of the FAO

website (FAO, website 2017).

The members of the IUNS TF and the authors of the articles in this

issue hope that this publication has developed meaningful aspects of

this knowledge for the reader, and will contribute to improved policies

benefiting Indigenous Peoples at the local, state, national, and interna-

tional levels. Greater recognition and use of strategies derived from

Indigenous values, knowledge, and practices will benefit the health of

all human societies.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This article and the special issue are the result of the scholarly work of

many individuals who contributed to the research teams and author-

ships recognized herein. In particular, I thank the International Union

of Nutritional Sciences for the opportunity to engage with the Task

Forces described. Phrang Roy of Bioversity International and The

Indigenous Partnership for Agrobiodiversity and Food Sovereignty is

acknowledged for stimulating the initial concept for the research and

for funding contribution to five of the articles. Special thanks for the

gracious and able editing assistance of Heather Leach, and to Victoria

Moran, senior editor with Maternal and Child Nutrition, for facilitating

the production of this special issue.

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

The author declares no potential conflicts of interest with respect to

the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

CONTRIBUTIONS

The author created the manuscript, sought external readings and

advice on the draft, and revised the manuscript to the final draft.

ORCID

Harriet V. Kuhnlein http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9476-1756

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Harriet Kuhnlein is from a Pennsylvania agricultural family. Her

career developed from a love of natural food shaped by interests

in social justice and diverse cultures and ecosystems. She received

her PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and was

awarded an LLD. (hon.) from The University of Western Ontario.

She is honored as a Fellow of the American Society of Nutrition,

a Fellow of the International Union of Nutritional Sciences, and

Honorary Member of the Canadian Nutrition Society. Guiding

interdisciplinary participatory research with many cultures of

Indigenous Peoples over more than 40 years, she has friends and

colleagues around the world. Dr. Kuhnlein co‐chairs theTask Force

on Traditional, Indigenous, and Cultural Food and Nutrition of the

International Union of Nutritional Sciences. She and her husband,

Urs, spend family time in Anacortes (Washington State, USA),

Vancouver (British Columbia, Canada), and Switzerland.

How to cite this article: Kuhnlein HV. Gender roles, food sys-

tem biodiversity, and food security in Indigenous Peoples' com-

munities. Matern Child Nutr. 2017;13(S3):e12529. https://doi.

org/10.1111/mcn.12529

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