Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Food Sovereignty As Decolonization: Some Contributions From Indigenous Movements To Food System And Development Politics, Sam Grey, Raj Patel

Sam Grey

Indigenous Knowledge, Sam Grey

Sam Grey

Indigenous knowledge (IK) includes the expressions, practices, beliefs, understandings, insights, and experiences of Indigenous groups, generated over centuries of profound interaction with a particular territory. Its iterations and mechanisms are unique to each community, even where it shares certain features across groups by virtue of being embedded in a wider, common culture. In all locations IK is the foundation of Indigenous governance, ecological stewardship, social, ethical, linguistic, spiritual, medical, food, and economic systems, so that the continual production and reproduction of local, land-based knowledge is the basis of Indigenous identity and sense of place in the world, as well as …

Decolonisation As Peacemaking: Applying Just War Theory To The Canadian Context, Sam Grey

Sam Grey

For decades now, Canada has been seen as a global exemplar of peacemaking and peacekeeping, yet the troubled relationship between its state and the Indigenous peoples within its borders does little to support this image. There is, in fact, a strong case to be made that the ongoing crisis of Indigenous–settler state relations in Canada is best understood as a protracted war; or more succinctly, as a failure to achieve peace following the initial violence of conquest and colonisation. Accordingly, it makes sense to apply just war theory — a doctrine of military ethics — to the issue. Grounded in …

In The Form Of A Longhouse: Haudenosaunee Political Philosophy And Social Contract Theory, Sam Grey

Sam Grey

This essay presents the Haudenosaunee Confederacy (sometimes referred to as the Iroquois League or Five Nations) as part of an alternative social contract theory, contrasting the social and political institutions and norms of the Five Nations with those proposed by Enlightenment-era philosophers. Although the oral history of the Haudenosaunee describes a Hobbesian ‘state of nature’ prior to the founding of the Confederacy, the Five Nations entered into, and constantly renewed, a substantially different ‘social contract’ than that theorized by Hobbes, Rousseau, or Locke. Because these differences reveal a unique understanding of human nature and potential, undergirded by distinctly Haudenosaunee political …

Indigenous Peoples And Climate Change: Vulnerabilities, Adaptation, And Responses To Mechanisms Of The Kyoto Protocol - A Collection Of Case Studies, Sam Grey

Sam Grey

One of the reasons for the lack of recognition of Indigenous Peoples in the discourse on climate change is the scarcity of research and information documenting the full impact of this multifaceted issue on their communities. While articles and papers have been written on related topics (in particular by the World Rainforest Movement), there has yet to be a cohesive published report outlining the areas of concern and action prioritized by Indigenous Peoples. Such a study is necessary in order to raise awareness and demonstrate the need to include Indigenous Peoples in the proceedings of the UN Framework Convention on …

From Text To Action: Negotiating And Advancing Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Through The Convention On Biological Diversity, Sam Grey

Sam Grey

The purpose of this primer is to provide basic information on the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) that Indigenous Peoples can easily understand. It aims to familiarize Indigenous Peoples with the processes and programmes of work of the CBD, so that they can participate effectively at various levels and take advantage of available opportunities for engagement. It presents some strategies used by Indigenous Peoples in holding their governments accountable for their commitments to the CBD. It could serve as a tool for Indigenous Peoples in negotiating and advancing their rights to land, resources, biological diversity, cultural diversity, and self-determination – …

Indigenous Peoples' Contributions To Cop-8 Of The Convention On Biological Diversity, Sam Grey

Sam Grey

During the Seventh Conference of the Parties (COP-7), held in Malaysia in 2004, Indigenous Peoples made a significant impact on the negotiations between states in a number of key issue areas. Building on this success, and as a part of the preparations for COP-8, held in Brazil in 2006, the IIFB has decided to provide documentation detailing Indigenous Peoples’ experiences with the thematic areas under discussion. Hence, the effort to compile this set of case studies. These case studies are meant to synthesize Indigenous input into the different themes discussed at the Eighth Ordinary Meeting of the Conference of the …

Waiting For Some Angel: Indigenous Rights As An Ethical Imperative In The Theory And Practice Of Human Rights, Sam Grey

Sam Grey

This article uses the stalled Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as the impetus for an examination of arguments championing and opposing the framing of Indigenous rights as human rights. Failings both theoretical and practical – in the conceptualisation, promulgation and interpretation of human rights – have long left Aboriginal peoples at a disadvantage. The dual focus of Indigenous claims is unique in the rights lexicon, asserting the right to be simultaneously different from and equal to the majority population. Yet Indigenous rights are often perceived, by governments with the power to block their progress, as a threat …

The Health Status Of Aboriginal Peoples In Canada: Reflection, Realization, And Response, Sam Grey

Sam Grey

“[A] great many people have little access to health care […] and spend their lives fighting unnecessary morbidity” (Sen, 1999:15). To Nobel-laureate Amartya Sen, this is a fundamental form of ‘unfreedom.’ To many Aboriginal1 people, it is a characteristic of contemporary existence within the boundaries of Canada. Because the health status of Native people has continued to register as inequitably poor, despite the existence of socialized medicine and a proliferation of government health programs, claims that a simple increase in health services or a reorganization of the health care budget will have a positive impact are no longer sensible. And …