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Published VersionCC BY V4.0, Open Access
Journal article
Socio-ecological challenges and food security in the ‘salad bowl’ of Fiji, Sigatoka Valley
Regional Environmental Change, Vol.23, pp.1-11
2023
Appears in UniSC Supported Open Access Outputs
Abstract
This article examines food security in the Sigatoka Valley, one of the most productive food regions in Fiji, in the context of recent socio-ecological challenges through a case study of Narewa village. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews (n = 25), a fixed question food insecurity experience survey (n = 25), and a free listing exercise about preferred and consumed foods (n = 24). Results revealed that while most households had access to sufficient food, the increased frequency and intensity of droughts, tropical cyclones, and flooding caused almost half to worry about meeting their future food needs. To date, a culture of sharing within the village has helped most households access food but this will likely be inadequate to meet future needs as climate change is projected to impact food production. Given that the foundation of food production in Narewa, like other villages in the valley, relies on the long-term viability of agricultural systems, better focus needs to be placed on the natural resources that form the backbone of these systems such as water availability, soil health, and slope stability and their resilience to anthropogenic and natural stressors. Efforts that focus on protecting and enhancing local ecosystems in light of expected future climate change, combined with greater attention on food storage and the use of resilient crops, and enhancing social cohesion and sharing networks are needed to avoid breaching tipping points in the food system.
Details
- Title
- Socio-ecological challenges and food security in the ‘salad bowl’ of Fiji, Sigatoka Valley
- Authors
- Kerrie Pickering (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Sustainability Research ClusterTristan Pearce (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Sustainability Research ClusterLui Manuel (Author) - Department of Environment, FijiBrendan Doran (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Sustainability Research ClusterTim F Smith (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Sustainability Research Cluster
- Publication details
- Regional Environmental Change, Vol.23, pp.1-11
- Publisher
- Springer
- Date published
- 2023
- DOI
- 10.1007/s10113-023-02059-6
- ISSN
- 1436-378X; 1436-3798
- Copyright note
- This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
- Grant note
- Open Access funding enabled and organized by CAUL and its Member Institutions The research was funded by the Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship, University of the Sunshine Coast Research Scholarship, and the Canada Research Chairs Program (Pearce).
- Organisation Unit
- School of Law and Society; Sustainability Research Cluster
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99717598902621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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