RCE Lima-Callao - 2018
Traditional Knowledge on Biocultural Diversity and Nutrition in Indigenous Communities
Region:
Americas
Country:
Peru
Location(s):
San Martin Region (Tarapoto City) and Lima Region (Metropolitan Lima)
Address of focal point institution for project:
Instituto Peruano del Pensamiento Complejo Edgar Morin – IPCEM de la Universidad Ricardo Palma
Centro Cultural Ccori Wasi
Av. Arequipa N° 5198, Miraflores, Lima - Peru
Centro Cultural Ccori Wasi
Av. Arequipa N° 5198, Miraflores, Lima - Peru
Ecosystem(s):
Target Audience:
Socioeconomic and environmental characteristics of the area :
Peru is rich in biological and cultural diversity. The Peruvian Amazon represents 60% of the Peruvian Territory. Although San Martin represents only 6.6% of the Amazon territory, it is the most densely populated region of the Amazon, home of approximately 800,000 indigenous and non-indigenous people who comprise 30% of the Amazonian population. Peru has 42 Amazonian ethnic groups with a population of 340,000. Three of them are in the San Martin region: Awajun or Aguaruna, Quechua-Lamas, and Chayahuitas. Awajun and Quechua-Lamas are the second and third largest ethnic groups in the Amazon after the Ashanika. These people have a deep knowledge of their territory and have kept and preserved, until now, not only their knowledge but also their values and practices for taking care of nature.
Description of sustainable development challenge(s) in the area the project addresses:
This project contributes to serious challenges Peru faces; to name, extreme poverty and those derived from food and health. Obese and malnourished children figure has surged. Take for instance, childhood anemia increased by 43%, RCE Lima-Callao has being working on this issue for a while, for instance, promoting a public alert event called ‘Zero Children Anemia’. We aim to recover traditional knowledge and products to reverse malnutrition. At the very base of this issue might be the lack of food education as well as the loss of dietary habits based on Amazonian Andean products of high nutritional value that, when lost, affect biodiversity conservation. Worst, these issues increase with climate change.
NOTE: RCE Lima-Callao is working in Peru the Global Project 'Reorienting Education and Training Systems to Improve the Lives of Indigenous Youth' directed by Dr. Charles Hopkins, which would rethink vulnerable and young indigenous peoples education. It is a very interesting Project since Dr. Hopkins has managed to articulate several RCE’s from 5 continents. Dr. Charles Hopkins is presenting within this Americas RCEs Conference a report summarizing project progress. We are willing to attend meetings of this project according to Project Directorate.
NOTE: RCE Lima-Callao is working in Peru the Global Project 'Reorienting Education and Training Systems to Improve the Lives of Indigenous Youth' directed by Dr. Charles Hopkins, which would rethink vulnerable and young indigenous peoples education. It is a very interesting Project since Dr. Hopkins has managed to articulate several RCE’s from 5 continents. Dr. Charles Hopkins is presenting within this Americas RCEs Conference a report summarizing project progress. We are willing to attend meetings of this project according to Project Directorate.
Status:
Ongoing
Period:
January, 2017 to December, 2018
Rationale:
The project seeks San Martin Region ancestral knowledge recovery. Here we observe Quechua Lamas indigenous communities wisdom in relation to native food-health-well-being, incarnated in women or Warmikuna Tarpudoras (Sowers Women) this led us to check the existence of a food culture based on native products and biodiversity of the area. From there we set out this project to research these indigenous communities’ food good practices and to promote a dialogue of knowledge systems on these issues. In addition, we research food concepts, policies and practices evolution and their impact for health, especially in children and young people, both at urban and rural levels and, their impact on these areas food security. We promote health and nutrition good practices exchange of both cultures.
We explore Quechua Lamas indigenous communities’ food tradition relevance that have raised biodiversity in San Martín Region, corroborating food sufficiency now violated and substituted by both industrialized foods of low nutritional level and export agriculture based on monocultures.
We explore Quechua Lamas indigenous communities’ food tradition relevance that have raised biodiversity in San Martín Region, corroborating food sufficiency now violated and substituted by both industrialized foods of low nutritional level and export agriculture based on monocultures.
Objectives:
General: To shape a relevant complex approach to understand food challenge in our country by addressing its conceptual, ethical, social and gender challenges and focusing on food in the treatment of nutrition as a public health issue.
Especific:
- Develop an intercultural education innovative approach for biological and cultural diversity care and its relationship with eco regions food culture. It brings together several areas of knowledge: nutrition, biodiversity conservation practices and cultural diversity and food practices.
- Revalue traditional knowledge identifying good practices relevant to raise biodiversity and food good practices in relation to health, nutrition and SD in an ecoregion; in this case, the area inhabited by the Quechua-Lamas indigenous communities of San Martín Region.
- Food education promotion based on native products and education in traditional communities.
Especific:
- Develop an intercultural education innovative approach for biological and cultural diversity care and its relationship with eco regions food culture. It brings together several areas of knowledge: nutrition, biodiversity conservation practices and cultural diversity and food practices.
- Revalue traditional knowledge identifying good practices relevant to raise biodiversity and food good practices in relation to health, nutrition and SD in an ecoregion; in this case, the area inhabited by the Quechua-Lamas indigenous communities of San Martín Region.
- Food education promotion based on native products and education in traditional communities.
Activities and/or practices employed:
First stage began in March 2017. Project activities followed as scheduled: Public awareness and information collection, good practices identification, meetings in San Martin Region and systematization (still going on). In 2017, we made three field visits to indigenous communities in Tarapoto and Lamas (San Martin Region). 1st visit: July. 2nd visit: October. Among other things, we visited the QaliWarma Social Program (free food for impoverishing schoolchildren) implementation in an indigenous community. 3rd visit: November. Then in Tarapoto, we work with authorities and beneficiaries of the QaliWarma Social Program in a Forum-Workshop we organized called "Food, Nutrition and Health". On November in Lima, the Forum-Workshop was held: "Food, Nutrition and Health. Perceptions from the urban and the rural" with Ministry of Women’s, Ministry of Culture’s, Social Security’s, NGOs’, among others representatives.
Size of academic audience:
100+ people in San Martin Region, 100+ people in Lima; However, take in mind, this is a research project, so we may not talk of ‘learners’ or ‘material from this project’.
Results:
Results evaluation is still an ongoing process; in fact, Project is not finished yet. Meanwhile at least two things are clear: (a) There is a local food intake tradition; however, there are changes in composition habits due to mainly industrialized food; and (b) state programs –like the QaliWarma Social Program (free food for impoverishing schoolchildren), stated above, not focused in providing native products of the zone and thus breaking habits.
Lessons learned:
Evaluation is still an ongoing.
Relationship to other RCE activities:
In the 2015 RCE of the Americas conference held in Grand Rapids, USA, this project was initially presented. In the 2016 RCE of the Americas conference held in Brazil some Latin American RCE were interested; however, due to funding, no joint actions followed. A first stage of this project in Peru is ongoing since early 2017 due to Universidad Ricardo Palma seed money.
Funding:
Thanks to Universidad Ricardo Palma seed money, project execution began in early 2017.
Pictures:
File Name | Caption for picture | Photo Credit |
---|---|---|
Project_RCELimaCallao_FieldWork_1_2018.JPG (3.56 MB) | Meeting with Warmikuna Tarpudoras (Sowers Women), Tarapoto, San Martin Region. | Universidad Ricardo Palma |
Project_RCELimaCallao_FieldWork_2_2018.JPG (3.94 MB) | Mikuna preparation, Tarapoto, San Martin Region. | Universidad Ricardo Palma |
Project_RCELimaCallao_FieldWork_3_2018.JPG (162.23 KB) | Meeting with Public organizations and professional boards linked to nutrition, Lima. | Universidad Ricardo Palma |
(https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs) and other themes of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
SDG 2 - End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture
Direct
SDG 3 - Ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all at all ages
Direct
Traditional Knowledge
Direct
Priority Action Area 1 - Advancing policy
Direct
Priority Action Area 2 - Transforming learning and training environments
Indirect
Priority Action Area 3 - Building capacities of educators and trainers
Indirect
Priority Action Area 4 - Empowering and mobilizing youth
Direct
Update:
No