A journey through feminist agroecology

In this third and final episode of our journey through feminist agroecology, we explore the complexities and challenges of feminism inside the agroecology and food sovereignty movement. Our two guests, Leonida Odongo and Paula Gioia, share with us how they experience patriarchal behavior inside the movement, each from their own unique perspectives. Their experiences show that movements on food sovereignty and agroecology are not by themselves feminist. The reproduction of patriarchal and male chauvinist behaviors, for example, is also prevalent in these movements. Within the agroecological movement, we want to change the system, but it is equally important to transform our ways of working from within. Leonida and Paula highlight which feminist values and practices they already see being translated into these movements and give some concrete examples of how these can be further strengthened.

In this episode we continue our journey, exploring the link between food sovereignty and Indigenous feminism as a decolonial project of reparations and reconstruction in the context of North America. Lisa Ironcloud tells us about the art of butchering buffalo, her personal journey of reconnection with Indigenous foods, and how this led her to support other people, especially women, in similar processes. Priscilla Settee then provides us with insights into the historical legacy behind the discrimination and intersectional, colonial violence against food and women. Finally, Simone Senogles talks to us about the complexity of feminism in the Indigenous food sovereignty movement. The stories of these three amazing women help us better understand how Indigenous food memories are braided in with experiences of systemic violence against women, and two-spirit people. Importantly, they provide insights into the ways in which feminism helps to untangle the mess colonialism has made of gender relations in Indigenous communities.

¿Cómo serían los sistemas alimentarios si estuvieran basados ​​en valores feministas? Entrevistamos a Diana Lilia Trevilla Espinal de México, investigadora que enfoca su trabajo en agroecología feminista e Isa Alvarez de España que trabaja para URGENCI en el movimiento de soberanía alimentaria y agroecología a nivel local y global desde una perspectiva feminista. Un sistema alimentario feminista colocaría la reproducción de la 'vida', tanto humana como no humana, en el centro de cómo tomamos decisiones sobre los alimentos, y sería nuestra responsabilidad colectiva garantizar el acceso a alimentos saludables para todos, en lugar de considerar alimentos como una mercancía determinada por los precios de mercado. A través de las historias de Diana e Isa, este episodio revela las formas en que es necesario ir más allá del género para la transformación del sistema alimentario, qué se necesita y cómo se puede hacer en la práctica.

What would food systems look like if they were based on feminist values?  We interviewed  Diana Lilia Trevilla Espinal from Mexico, a researcher who focuses her work on feminist agroecology and Isa Alvarez from Spain who works for URGENCI in the food sovereignty and agroecology movement locally and globally from a feminist perspective. A feminist food system would place the reproduction of ‘life’, both human and non-human, at the heart of how we make decisions about food, and it would be our collective responsibility to ensure access to healthy food for all, rather than considering food as a commodity determined by market prices. Through Diana’s and Isa’s stories, this episode unpacks the ways in which it is necessary to go beyond gender for food system transformation, what is needed and how it can be done in practice.