Paper short abstract:

Colonialism and the global free market have had dramatic effects on crop choice and food systems in Zambia, leading to a loss of food sovereignty and resilience to climate change. Does the reintegration of former staples and protection of wild ‘commons’ provide a sustainable solution?

Paper long abstract:

Within Africa, the ‘agricultural revolution’ in Zambia occurred comparatively recently, less than 2000 years ago. The expansion of farming societies led to the decline, assimilation, or marginalisation of hunter-gatherer lifeways. By the early 2nd millennium CE, pearl millet, finger millet, and in places cattle rearing, were key to supporting a burgeoning population. Ethnographic evidence highlights the importance of the miombo woodlands as part of a managed landscape, crucial for swidden crop rotations and the provisioning of food, medicine, and energy.

Zambia’s exposure to El Nino has led farmers to adopt diversification strategies. New crops such a banana and cassava were quickly adopted into the food system and adapted to local cuisine, and farmers have been known to diversify their crops and use intercropping to buffer against poor rains.

While the 2nd millennium CE saw competition over land and control over links to Indian Ocean Trade networks, the effects of colonialism has arguably seen a more profound effect on the political ecology of Zambia with regards to farming. Deforestation, the confiscation prime land, and the legacy of colonial policies such as the promotion of maize, has led to the steady erosion of food sovereignty over the past century. A rush of foreign investment in agricultural land in Zambia is accelerating the loss of food sovereignty, and with it the ecological knowledge associated with sustainability. This paper will discuss the changing political ecology of Zambia and propose the integration of sustainable practices to increase resilience, conserve ecological knowledge, and promote food sovereignty.