Indigenous Food Systems Changes and Resiliency: Protocol for a Scoping Review (Preprint)

Abstract

UNSTRUCTURED Background: Indigenous food systems (IFS) consider the complex relationships and connections between land, animals, plants, water, and people. These food systems may differ between regions, Indigenous cultures, and history. Climate change and pollution continue to impact the environment in catastrophic ways, and this in turn, impacts IFS. However, to date, there has been no review of the literature on IFS, how they are changing, and how communities are responding. Objective: In this scoping review, we will summarize primary research related to IFS addressing the following questions: 1) What changes are IFS experiencing in the context of climate change and pollution? 2) What actions have been taken in response to IFS changes? 3) What are the characteristics of IFS research in peer-reviewed academic literature? Methods: We will use the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines for scoping reviews and the Joanna Briggs Institute reviewer’s manual to inform the review process. MEDLINE, SCOPUS, International Bibliography of the Social Sciences, Sociological Abstracts, and the Bibliography of Native North Americans are the databases included in this review search. All screening and extraction have been supported by Covidence software with two independent reviewers conducting the abstract and full-text screening. We will map concepts and themes related to the research questions to contribute to the understanding of IFS within the academic literature and provide a narrative review of the outcomes. Discussion: This review will provide valuable insight into current IFS needs by summarizing the peer-reviewed literature on how IFS are changing because of climate change and pollution, and how communities are responding to these changes. Results of this review will be shared with Indigenous communities, through academic publications, community conversations, and conference presentations. Registration: This protocol is registered with the Open Science Framework (10.17605/OSF.IO/XRJ87)