Synopses & Reviews
"Eating is not only a political act, it is also a cultural act that reaffirms oneand#8217;s identity and worldview," Enrique Salmand#243;n writes in Eating the Landscape. Traversing a range of cultures, including the Tohono Oand#8217;odham of the Sonoran Desert and the Rarand#225;muri of the Sierra Tarahumara, the book is an illuminating journey through the southwest United States and northern Mexico. Salmand#243;n weaves his historical and cultural knowledge as a renowned indigenous ethnobotanist with stories American Indian farmers have shared with him to illustrate how traditional indigenous foodwaysand#8212;from the cultivation of crops to the preparation of mealsand#8212;are rooted in a time-honored understanding of environmental stewardship.
In this fascinating personal narrative, Salmand#243;n focuses on an array of indigenous farmers who uphold traditional agricultural practices in the face of modern changes to food systems such as extensive industrialization and the genetic modification of food crops. Despite the vast cultural and geographic diversity of the region he explores, Salmand#243;n reveals common themes: the importance of participation in a reciprocal relationship with the land, the connection between each groupand#8217;s cultural identity and their ecosystems, and the indispensable correlation of land consciousness and food consciousness. Salmand#243;n shows that these collective philosophies provide the foundation for indigenous resilience as the farmers contend with global climate change and other disruptions to long-established foodways. This resilience, along with the rich stores of traditional ecological knowledge maintained by indigenous agriculturalists, Salmand#243;n explains, may be the key to sustaining food sources for humans in years to come.
As many of us begin to question the origins and collateral costs of the food we consume, Salmand#243;nand#8217;s call for a return to more traditional food practices in this wide-ranging and insightful book is especially timely. Eating the Landscape is an essential resource for ethnobotanists, food sovereignty proponents, and advocates of the local food and slow food movements.
Review
"Salmón's lineage serves as the touchstone for this episodic volume, each chapter of which introduces the reader to a different mode of traditional land stewardship." —Publishers Weekly
Review
and#160;"Salmand#243;n's lineage serves as the touchstone for this episodic volume, each chapter of which introduces the reader to a different mode of traditional land stewardship." and#8212;Publishers Weekly"This is very fine work reminiscent of the style and substance of the best by other stalwarts in the field of Indigenous knowledge like Gary Paul Nabhan, Greg Cajete, and Winona LaDuke." and#8212;Devon Peand#241;a, author of Mexican Americans and the Environment: Tierra y Vida
Review
"An intimate geographical and cultural journey."and#8212;AlterNative
Synopsis
Eating is not only a political act, it is also a cultural act that reaffirms one's identity and worldview, Enrique Salm n writes in Eating the Landscape. Traversing a range of cultures, including the Tohono O'odham of the Sonoran Desert and the Rar muri of the Sierra Tarahumara, the book is an illuminating journey through the southwest United States and northern Mexico. Salm n weaves his historical and cultural knowledge as a renowned indigenous ethnobotanist with stories American Indian farmers have shared with him to illustrate how traditional indigenous foodways--from the cultivation of crops to the preparation of meals--are rooted in a time-honored understanding of environmental stewardship.
In this fascinating personal narrative, Salm n focuses on an array of indigenous farmers who uphold traditional agricultural practices in the face of modern changes to food systems such as extensive industrialization and the genetic modification of food crops. Despite the vast cultural and geographic diversity of the region he explores, Salm n reveals common themes: the importance of participation in a reciprocal relationship with the land, the connection between each group's cultural identity and their ecosystems, and the indispensable correlation of land consciousness and food consciousness. Salm n shows that these collective philosophies provide the foundation for indigenous resilience as the farmers contend with global climate change and other disruptions to long-established foodways. This resilience, along with the rich stores of traditional ecological knowledge maintained by indigenous agriculturalists, Salm n explains, may be the key to sustaining food sources for humans in years to come.
As many of us begin to question the origins and collateral costs of the food we consume, Salm n's call for a return to more traditional food practices in this wide-ranging and insightful book is especially timely. Eating the Landscape is an essential resource for ethnobotanists, food sovereignty proponents, and advocates of the local food and slow food movements.
About the Author
Enrique Salmandoacute;n is head of the American Indian Studies Program at Cal State University East Bay in Hayward, California.and#160; He has been a Scholar in Residence at the Heard Museum and a program officer for the Greater Southwest and Northern Mexico regions for the Christensen Fund. He has published several articles and chapters on indigenous ethnobotany, agriculture, nutrition, and traditional ecological knowledge.