Food costs and climate change impact stories from remote BC communities

Abstract

A special supplement report to the Food Costing in BC 2022 report

Food sovereignty and food security, including accessibility, affordability and availability, are critical issues affecting remote Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities in British Columbia (BC). This project set out to gain a better understanding of food costs and climate change impacts for people in remote communities and to amplify local voices to highlight the experiences, challenges, opportunities and hopes for people living in remote communities across BC.

In 2022-2023, eight communities were identified to participate through a Call for Interest approach. One-on-one and group conversations with Knowledge Keepers and community members were held to hear stories and experiences.  Five overarching themes and thirteen subthemes emerged from the common experiences and stories of people in participating communities.  A report and website were produced to share out the stories and understandings gained through this project and we will be sharing this information with you in this presentation.

The BC Centre for Disease Control is pleased to release the Food Costs and Climate Change – Impact Stories from Remote BC Communities report and visual storytelling website.

What is the project? This project aims to share experiences of food costs, food access and the impacts of climate change from people living in remote Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. Through sharing the stories of seven communities, we aimed to identify food security challenges and opportunities to address them.

This project is a special supplement to the  Food Costing in BC 2022: Assessing the affordability of healthy eating report that assesses the amount of money required for individuals and families to eat a nutritious diet in BC.

What we found: Five overarching themes and thirteen subthemes emerged from the common experiences and stories of the participating communities. The themes include issues of food cost, availability and accessibility and intersections with climate change and community health and wellbeing.

Spread the word and get engaged:

• Read the Food Costs and Climate Change – Impact Stories from Remote BC Communities report, including key themes
• Engage with our Visual Story Library, including key quotes, illustrations and photos from the communities
• Share social media posts coming up on our BCCDC channels (X, Facebook, Instagram)

Please contact us at [email protected] for more information on the Food Costs and Climate Change Impact Stories Project.

Speakers

Janelle Hatch is a white settler of mixed European ancestry who lives and works on unceded, ancestral and stolen homelands of Ləkʷəŋən peoples of Songhees (Ləkʷəŋən) and Esquimalt (Xwepsum) Nations, colonially known as Victoria, British Columbia.  She is a Registered Dietitian and Public Health Professional for more than 20 years.  She works as Lead for Food Security at the BC Centre for Disease Control, a part of the Provincial Health Services Authority.  The Food Security team works alongside partners in the BC regional health authorities, First Nations Health Authority, Provincial Government Ministries, non-profit organizations and academics to realize strengthened food security, reduce food insecurity and support Indigenous food sovereignty.  The team centres relational work, focusing equity and justice.

Laurin Moro (she/her) is a Master of Public Health candidate at Brock University, set to complete the program in August 2024. She is of mixed ancestry, First Nations and European, occupying the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee peoples in what is colonially known as Niagara Falls, Ontario. Laurin is currently completing her practicum at the BC Centre for Disease Control, working with the Food Security and Healthy Eating teams.