Case Studies: Empowering Indigenous Youth and their Communities to Defend and Promote their Food Heritage

Case Study 1

Capacity building and empowerment of Indigenous Youth activities

After three years of work, eight ITM international events in 5 countries, activities on 10 Presidia and a global pandemic, the IFAD and Slow Food project “Empowering Indigenous Youth and their Communities to Defend and Promote their Food Heritage” is coming to its closure, but the results are countless.

Its main goal was to empower indigenous youth to protect and promote their food heritage. Since 2017, when the project started, more than 325 indigenous youth attended trainings and workshops organized by indigenous youth. But let’s just take a step back.

Read more about the Case Study 1: capacity-building and empowerment of Indigenous Youth activities

Case Study 2

A Participatory Guarantee System for Indigenous-led Slow Food Presidia

Within the framework of the IFAD-funded project “Empowering Indigenous Youth and their Communities to Defend and Promote their Food Heritage,” a pilot PGS initiative was launched to increase Presidia traceability and the level of guarantee of quality according to Slow Food (good products, produced cleanly and fairly) of two indigenous Slow Food Presidia: Ogiek Honey and Oaxaca Mixteca Agave (Maguey in Spanish). At the same time another Presidium in Italy, the Lucca Red Bean, was also following the same path.

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Case Study 3

Slow Food Presidia

The overall goal of the project was to empower indigenous youth and their communities, improve the livelihoods of beneficiaries by protecting and promoting their food heritage and uphold the sustainability and resilience of their practice.

A case study was conducted to learn about the enabling factors and the challenges that affected the implementation process and the achievement of results and impacts. It studied significant changes (impacts) in the producers’ lives and in their communities, as well as the prospects of these changes being sustained over time and a number of cross-cutting issues.

Read more about the Case Study 3: Slow Food Presidia