Paper short abstract:

This paper argues that the Teduray and Lambangian indigenous agricultural system known as the "Sulagad" embodies their continuing struggle for recognition and survival. It also allows us to tap into the rich potential of indigenous knowledge systems and practices as "the basics" of our survival.

Paper long abstract:

The Tëduray and Lambangian indigenous peoples in Maguindanao, Philippines have, since time immemorial, practiced an indigenous system of agriculture called "Sulagad". Informed by their principle of "sumfat lowoh bërab fërënawa," literally, "the connection between body and breath," Sulagad ensures food sufficiency through a holistic approach that promotes living in harmony with nature. Everything in the environment that sustains life is recognized as co-equal with humans and nurtured in a web of relationships that fosters sustainability and intergenerationality.

Against the external threat of capitalism and modernization, and its concomitant climate crisis, Sulagad does not only provide an alternative to but also questions the viability of market-driven strategies. However, there is more to Sulagad than just localized food production that empowers the community. This paper argues that food sovereignty in the Teduray and Lambangian practice is a political assertion of their land, territory, and identity that is encapsulated in "memusaka inged" -- ancestral domain claim. With their ascription as "Non-Moro Indigenous Peoples" under the newly-established Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), the Sulagad system embodies their continuing struggle for recognition and survival.

Using ethnographic data from key informants, I will demonstrate how Sulagad as a cultural system embodies the fundamental principles of living, governing, sharing and caring for the rest of the duniya --the whole creation. These are central to understanding Tedurayness and Lambangianness -- an articulation of rootedness which allows us to tap into the rich potential of indigenous knowledge systems and practices as "the basics" of our survival .