Since the COVID-19 pandemic, many peripheral, rural communities in Peru have been unequally impacted by the spread of the virus. Not only losing community members but also access to basic amenities such as healthcare and food. Indeed, for some this is only an exacerbation of prior struggles and inequalities. Yet there are burgeoning examples of people and places who have managed to build resilience, enabling them to continue flourishing (although the challenges should not be overlooked). One such example is El Parque de la Papa (from hereon referred to as the Potato Park).
| Authors | Viviane Straub |
|---|---|
| Topics | Ancestral Knowledge, Biodiversity, Commons, Earth jurisprudence |
| Case Report | Volume 2: "Resilience in the Face of COVID-19" |
Situated an hour away from Cusco, Peru, the park constitutes 15,000 hectares of communally managed land high in the Andes and comprises 6 Quechua communities totalling 6000 residents. It is also the origin of the potato and serves as a Biocultural Heritage Territory (BCHT)1. The Potato Park is therefore a striking example of community-led conservation of biological and cultural diversity. The communities practice in-situ (onsite) conservation, maintain an indigenous environmental ethic, and ensure ownership of the 1360+ potato varieties:
We are the owners of the potatoes [...] We are the ones keeping the varieties and who know how to use them. (GTA, 2020)
These factors, amongst others, have allowed the people of the Potato Park to become resilient, and subsequently overcome the pandemic.
Process that led to the community being resilient (Pre-covid)
Despite the size of both the territory and the communities, the people of the Potato Park have been able to create a sense of unity, allowing them to manage the land collectively. Key to this have been their shared principles and cosmologies. This includes the holistic worldview as expressed in the ayllu system. The communities believe that the runa ayllu (humans and domesticated species), the sallka ayllu (wild and semi-domesticated species), and the auki ayllu (the sacred and the ancestors) must be in balance. At the center of this vision is Pachamama (Mother Earth), provider of food and livelihoods, as described by one of the community members in a GTA webinar (GTA, 2020). When all are in balance, it is thought that sumaq causay (also known as buen vivir) can be achieved. This is an “alternative to improve wellbeing, living conditions, rights, livelihoods and the environment” as well as being an ecological approach practiced by the whole community in their governance and organisation structures. Having shared values and objectives has undoubtedly helped the communities know how to live with the land and one another. This has enabled greater resilience.
Closely connected to the above is the importance placed on solidarity and reciprocity. The former serves as the currency for connection and manifests itself in the respect shown towards the mountains, pachamama, the people, and in the sharing of crops. As well as in collective resistance against the dominant system – white supremacist capitalist patriarchy. There is also a reciprocal relationship between the ayllus. Thus the work of the community is not only the work of humans, but also of the mountains, the earth, and the sacred. Any activity is therefore informed by these values, as has been the case since pre-Inca times. This includes farming practices and the use of traditional knowledge. Solidarity and reciprocity have therefore helped to uphold a sense of togetherness and balance within changing environments, both natural and built.
The use of, and continued research on, traditional knowledge has also contributed to community resilience. As was affirmed during the fourth learning exchange of the International Network of Mountain Indigenous Peoples (INMIP): despite living in a globalised world, traditional knowledge has been very important to the success and well-being of indigenous communities. In this way, they have been able to maintain the integrity of their biocultural traditions and fragile ecosystems. Furthermore, this knowledge fosters the reciprocal relationship between people and the environment through holistic conservation and has been nurtured for centuries. An understanding of local food systems is thus deeply rooted and can be applied, as well as adapted, to changing conditions. Indeed, with over 1360 potato varieties already being used for food, fuel, fodder and medicines, many of the communities’ activities focus on diversifying the vegetable’s uses.
Finally, the communities have established microenterprises. These are economic collectives with specialised foci such as handicrafts, weaving, and pottery that strive for the sustainable use of biological resources. All proceeds of the enterprises go to the community and/or the often marginalised. Any activity is therefore done for the maintenance of the land and for the benefit of the communities’ livelihoods, not for profit.
How resilience that was established has helped during the pandemic
The communities’ cosmology and holistic vision of the world has been one way of staying resilient during the pandemic — caution should be taken so as not to appropriate or misinterpret this. Indeed, with their deep respect for the land, they have been asking for help from the mountain protectors. This is likely to have given them continued strength in overcoming the pandemic. Furthermore, the response to the current crisis has been communal and collective. Here, the principles of solidarity and reciprocity have been key. As has the desire to keep the ayllu system in balance. All food has been shared, families have received support, and all responsibilities have been equally distributed.
The communities’ cosmology and holistic vision of the world has been one way of staying resilient during the pandemic — caution should be taken so as not to appropriate or misinterpret this. Indeed, with their deep respect for the land, they have been asking for help from the mountain protectors. This is likely to have given them continued strength in overcoming the pandemic. Furthermore, the response to the current crisis has been communal and collective. Here, the principles of solidarity and reciprocity have been key. As has the desire to keep the ayllu system in balance. All food has been shared, families have received support, and all responsibilities have been equally distributed.
Lessons learnt
The biggest lesson learnt is arguably the importance of solidarity and reciprocity, as well as the irreplaceable value of having shared values, principles, and strong organisational, and social structures in place. For these reasons, the communities have been able to engage in the distribution of food and responsibilities, and shown support for one another and the wider community. Having a communal fund whereby those most in need could be supported also helped in carrying out these activities. In other words, the strength of their community organising has enabled them to respond as a people. In addition, the prior repatriation, reproduction, and redistribution of seeds meant that food systems could be sustained to a greater degree, and resilience during the pandemic upheld. Here it is important to note that the resilience of these food systems stems from regenerative land management practices, specifically agroecology and the inclusion of traditional knowledge. The health of the land and the people is hereby put at the fore.
Finally, the Potato Park case has served as a reminder of the need to focus on reproduction; to think about future generations and the regeneration of the land. This is in contrast to production; the search for profit. It also shows the importance of not imposing external solutions, but rather respecting knowledge that has allowed communities to co-exist within their environment since their beginnings.
References
- Bollier, D. (2016). The Potato Park of Peru. [Online] Available at: https://www.boell.de/ en/2016/01/25/potato-park-peru. [Accessed 5 October].
- Global Tapestry of Alternatives (2020) Dialogue 8: COVID-19 - Potato Park: Defending the past to envision the future. GTA webinar series. Available at: https:// globaltapestryofalternatives.org/webinars:2020:08?redirect=1. Accessed on 14 May 2022
- Hooks, B. (2009). Belonging: A Culture of Place. New York: Routledge.
- IIED. (2005) Biocultural Heritage: An evolving concept. [Online] Available at: https:// biocultural.iied.org/evolving-concept [Accessed 5 October 20].
- IIED. (2015) Biocultural Heritage Innovations in the Potato Park. London: IIED.
- Sayre, M., Stenner, T., Argumedo, A. (2017) You Can’t Grow Potatoes in the Sky: Building Resilience in the Face of Climate Change in the Potato Park of Cuzco, Peru. Culture, Agriculture, Food and Environment, 39(2), p. 100-108.
- The Fourth Learning Learning Exchange of the International Network of Mountain Indigenous Peoples (2017) YouTube video, Added by IIED. [Online] Available at: https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2a_82jVHAY&ab_channel=IIED [Accessed 5 October 20].
- Walsche, R., Argumedo, A. (2016) Ayni, Ayllu, Yanantin and Chanincha: The Cultural Values Enabling Adaptation to Climate Change in Communities of the Potato Park, in the Peruvian Andes. GAIA, 25(3), p. 166-173.
- Yun Loong Wong, B., Argumedo, A. (2011). The Thriving Biodiversity of Peru’s Potato Park. [Online] Available at: https://ourworld.unu.edu/en/the-thriving-biodiversity-ofperu-potato-park [Accessed 5 October 20].