Hoop House Gardening in the Wapekeka First Nation as an Extension of Land-Based Food Practices

Abstract

Rural Indigenous communities in Canada’s North face many challenges getting regular access to nutritious foods, primarily because of the high cost of market food, restricted availability of nutritious foods, and lack of government support for nutritious food programs. The consequences of food insecurity in this context are expressed in high rates of diabetes, heart disease, and childhood obesity. Many Indigenous communities are responding to issues related to healthy food access by attempting to rebuild local food capacity in their specific regions. Important first steps have been taken in developing local food initiatives, yet whether these initiatives are improving northern food security remains to be seen. We explore this question by working with the Oji-Cree First Nation in the community of Wapekeka, northern Ontario, to construct a hoop house and develop a school-based community gardening program. Using a community-based participatory approach, we determined that hoop house and gardening initiatives in rural, northern settings have the potential to build up local food production, develop the skills and knowledge of community members, engage youth in growing local food, and align with land-based food teachings. We show that despite widespread and multidimensional community hardships, there was considerable community buy-in and support for the project, which gives hope for future development and provides important insight for those seeking to initiate similar gardening, hoop house, or greenhouse initiatives in northern Indigenous communities.

Examining Local Food Procurement, Adaptive Capacities and Resilience to Environmental Change in Fort Providence, Northwest Territories

“…Despite the existence of current scholarly interest in food security and community resilience in the Subarctic (Barbeau et al, 2015;Robidoux & Mason, 2017;Rudolph & McLachlan, 2013;Thompson et al, 2018;Wesche et al, 2016), there has been limited research highlighting local food procurement activities and community adaptive capacity in the Deh Cho region of the NT (Spring et al, 2018). By documenting the perspectives, experiences, and knowledge of community members, this research can be used to help tailor food procurement activities to meet localized needs.…”

“…For example, the importance of local food procurement was highlighted in every interview (20/20 or 100%). This is reiterated by studies which demonstrate the significance of wild foods to overall health and cultural well-being of northern Indigenous peoples (Douglas et al, 2014;Gerlach & Loring, 2013;Kenny et al, 2018;Robidoux & Mason, 2017;Thompson et al, 2018). In addition, procuring, harvesting, sharing, and consuming wild foods plays an integral part in local culture and identities.…”

“…2 Locally grown foods include vegetables and fruits produced in greenhouses, community gardens, or in aquaponic systems. Research indicates that community gardens and greenhouses are emerging in many northern communities as viable solutions to the limited availability of nutritious market foods and climate change-related barriers to land-based practices (Thompson et al, 2018;Chen & Natcher, 2019). Consequently, this study considers these practices as adaptation strategies.…”

“The land is a healer”: Perspectives on land-based healing from Indigenous practitioners in northern Canada

“…Many northern Indigenous communities have been vocal in their understanding that reconnecting people with land practices is a preferred mode of healing (Porter, 2012;"Yukon to invest", 2014). Both informal activities and contemporary programs are united under an integrated and culturally-determined epistemology, referred to in this study and corresponding literature as "land-based" (Dylan & Smallboy, 2016;Thompson et al, 2018;Walsh et al, 2018;Wildcat et al, 2014). For Indigenous practitioners, this cultural understanding differentiates it from other terms in the literature such as "outdoor", "adventure", "wilderness" or "nature-based" (Russell, 2001) which stem from Western conceptualizations and values of land ethic, often including a laden separateness or "stewardship over" (DeLancey, 2012) rather than interdependence with the natural world (Lowan, 2009).…”

“…Indigenous peoples in Canada are revitalizing land-based initiatives to strengthen community resiliency and address challenges arising from a continuing legacy of colonization and landdispossession (Ballantyne, 2014;Ilisaqsivik, 2014;Mikraszewicz & Richmond, 2019;Takano, 2005;Thompson et al, 2018;Tidlumaluk, 2007). These initiatives are "rooted in the land, traditional knowledge, spiritual values and ceremonial practice" (Walsh,201,p.…”