TL;DR
Le projet Revitalizing Our Sustenance (ROSP) est un programme dirigé par des jeunes autochtones visant à offrir aux jeunes autochtones et non autochtones des opportunités d'en apprendre davantage sur l'importance des pratiques agricoles durables tout en nourrissant notre communauté ! Nous nous efforçons de revitaliser nos relations avec la nourriture, la communauté et la terre.
Détails
In February 2022, our CREation Grants team sent out a Q&A form to 2021 Creation Grantees to capture their experiences creating and carrying out their projects. Today we are featuring responses from the Revitaliser notre projet de subsistance, led by youth leaders Denise Miller, Erin Hayward, Sonia Hill, Jessa Laight, and Samantha Miller from Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, Ontario.
Q: Tell us about your group and project.
UN: Revitalizing Our Sustenance Project (ROSP) is an Indigenous youth led program to help provide Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth opportunities to learn about the importance of sustainable agriculture practices while feeding our community! We strive to revitalize our relationships to food, community, and the land.
Q : En tant que jeunes à la tête du projet, quel impact espérez-vous qu’il aura ?
UN: À mesure que le programme et l'équipe du ROSP se sont développés, les besoins de la communauté et de la restauration des terres sont devenus très évidents au cours des mois d'été 2021. À mesure que notre projet se développe au fil du temps, nos objectifs à long terme sont :
- Restauration des terres et revitalisation de la vie végétale
- Conservation des semences et accès communautaire aux semences
- Accès communautaire à l’alimentation et engagement communautaire dans l’apprentissage de l’agriculture durable
- Sensibilisation et éducation à l’agriculture, aux effets du changement climatique et à la restauration de l’environnement
- Building Resources for Land-Based Learning and Awareness
Q : Qu’avez-vous appris ?
UN: I learned that sustainable agriculture and permaculture is a lot more than just growing food. We also need native species, plants, and healthier ecosystems to have wholesome food. In addition to more helping hands in operating community driven food initiatives. There is a huge gap within our Indigenous communities with food sovereignty and sustainability. A lack of interest in gardening has made it hard to sustain and maintain a garden. So, cultivating interest and motivation is just as important for a community garden as planting seeds.
“Sustainable agriculture and permaculture is a lot more than just growing food. We also need native species, plants, and healthier ecosystems to have wholesome food.”
Denise Miller du projet Revitaliser notre subsistance
Q : Quel conseil partageriez-vous avec d’autres jeunes qui souhaitent lancer un projet ?
UN: The best advice I can give to a young person trying to make change within their community is that there will be obstacles, hard times, and the lack of support from older generations but it will be okay. As time goes on, with hard work and dedication, you will find the people needed to help your vision grow. Always be good to yourself and train your brain to say good things about yourself. You’re not alone in the process and people will always come to you, the ones that are meant to be part of the process.
“I support ROSP in that I have experienced first-hand the work done to enhance youth and community wellness. I began volunteering in the community garden in Six Nations, Ontario in August 2020 alongside youth from the community and other settler volunteers. We had the opportunity to pick, peel, and can vegetables from the community garden that would then be stored for use in the winter months by the Cayuga Longhouse. I saw younger youth having the opportunity to learn more about the land and traditional Haudenosaunee knowledge from older youth as well as some of the adults present.
This helped foster and strengthen ties with other community members, which enhanced ties to the overall community and its future seasonal needs as well. Furthermore, as a settler volunteer, I was grateful and appreciative to be invited into this space to learn more about traditional Haudenosaunee knowledge systems and connection to the land. The opportunity to connect with the Haudenosaunee community in this aspect has given me a new lens to view food sovereignty, environmental restoration, and global climate change and its impact on food systems.”
We are so proud of the heart work of our young relatives like Denise Miller, Erin Hayward, Sonia Hill, Jessa Laight, and Samantha Miller ce que nous faisons à travers l'Île de la Tortue et sommes Tellement chanceux pour pouvoir les accompagner dans leur travail.
Connect with the Revitalizing Our Sustenance Team
Follow them on Instagram: @revitalisernotresubsistance
