2 - Exploring Diverse Contemporary Accesses to Conservation of Indigenous Traditional Crop in Central Taiwan Bunun Communities

How can the vanishing indigenous traditional crop be re-embedded into contemporary indigenous communities under the pressure of neoliberalism? In this research, we aim to explore diverse community-based approaches to restore and conserve foxtail millet landraces by participatory action research. Foxtail millet was a crucial crop for Bunun people, one of the indigenous populations in Taiwan. It plays significant roles in livelihood, ritual, institution, and culture. However, due to the impacts of the Japanese colonization and post-colonial commodity economy, most local peasants transitioned to growing cash crops for livelihood, leading to the dis-embedding of foxtail millet from the cropscape of communities. To revitalize the bio-cultural heritage of foxtail millets, our team reintroduced landraces from the seedbank of College of Bioresources and Agriculture in National Taiwan University (NTU) to their original habitat in Xinyi Township, Nantou County. A series of collaborative actions between the NTU and local communities have been ongoing since August 2020. Research methods such as participant observation study, in-depth interviews, texture analysis were employed to document the diverse approaches to conservation developed by each stakeholder. Local schools, elder centers, churches, and youth organizations played important roles in the process. Besides, the resurgence of foxtail millet underscores the agency of materiality: beyond cultivation, the restoration of foxtail millet embodies the pursuit of self-identity, indigenous cultural revitalization, healing, and decolonization. This research not only offers insights for restoration of indigenous traditional agriculture, but also delves into cross-species care in contemporary indigenous communities.

 

Co-Author 1
Ming-Jer Tsai, National Taiwan University

Co-Author 2
Yann-Rong Lin, National Taiwan University