ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the views, interests, intuitions, stories, reflections, and experiences shared by participants in a talking circle. Here, a talking circle refers to a group discussion and sharing in a circle formation – a tradition deeply rooted in First Nations’ ways of dialoguing and sharing knowledge. The talking circle was held in 2011 during the People in Places Conference, which was hosted by the Coastal Community–University Research Alliance (Coastal CURA), a six-year project at Dalhousie University, Halifax. Coastal CURA focuses on the inclusion of Indigenous communities in integrated resource management processes and explores the use of local knowledge to address food security. It also discusses the inclusion of resource-dependent communities in spatial planning and integrated natural resource management. The conference enabled the convening of a talking circle, the latter of which provided an ideal opportunity for sharing knowledge in a forum that is rooted in Indigenous traditions. Participants were able to exchange experiences with Indigenous food knowledge or traditional food knowledge. Participants in the talking circle briefly discussed biocultural diversity in the context of governance practices relating to natural resources, culture, and food in Indigenous contexts. Also discussed are examples of social-spatial, political, and socioeconomic processes that are linked to globalisation and that influence the dynamics of food security in the global North and South. Key messages arise from the narratives of the talking circle; these messages raise important issues about the relationship of the biocultural diversity web with food security and governance. They also raise issues related to Indigenous Peoples’ engagement with the biocultural web through approaches to land governance and food security.
