Within the context of climate change and uncertain economic times, access to and availability of both store-bought and traditional foods is decreasing in Yukon. Across the Canadian North, food insecurity is becoming an increasingly urgent issue. In Yukon, 17% of residents are food insecure.
“When people don’t have access to the good nutritious food that they want to eat, they are less likely to be able to live a healthy lifestyle”, says Jody Butler Walker, Director of the Institute. “There is a need to work together now and in the future to ensure realistic, culturally relevant and sustainable solutions to the problem of food insecurity”.
The Arctic Institute of Community-Based Research (AICBR) is hosting three events related to food security at the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre, May 18th - 19th, to bring people together from across the territory, Canada and neighbouring Alaska.
1) Yukon Food Security Roundtable:
This event will take place May 18th-19th and will welcome approximately 100 representatives from Yukon First Nations (YFN) and non-Indigenous communities, food producers & distributers, non-governmental organizations, governments (YFN, municipal, territorial and federal) and including the private sector to discuss food insecurity issues in Yukon and work towards a collaborative plan for action.
2) An Evening on Food Security:
This public event is being held May 18th, 7:00 - 9:00pm at the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre, with support from the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation. This is an opportunity to learn about food security from experts in the field, hear about activities going on in other Northern regions and learn about developments towards Canada’s National Food Policy.
3)Yukon Food Security Open House:
The Open House will take place May 19th, 1:30 - 4:30pm, at the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre. This will be an opportunity for the public to share their voices and experiences on this important topic.
Much work has already been done in this territory towards reducing food insecurity, and these events will help to bring people together to enhance opportunities for moving forward collaboratively.