Paddle with Me
This lesson shares some great stories of resilience and sovereignty. There are some great efforts and programs showing positive and healthy changes in our Pacific Peoples. The required resources in this lesson just give a glimpse of some of these changes in the Pacific to create healthier lives and healthier environments. I hope this lesson gives you some ideas of approaches to take in promoting child health.
A Paddler’s Perspective
There are wonderful resources in this lesson. In the videos, you’ll see some great work being done at a local, community level to increase food sovereignty. The stories are heart-warming. In the articles, the value of the traditional Hawaiian diet has proven to be a successful tool when used to promote healthy eating. Not only is the traditional diet healthy, it brings Native Hawaiians back to their roots and heritage, thereby providing a feeling of resilience and support. Perhaps, this connection is motivating. Having the ability to define one’s own food system, particularly based on indigenous foods, can be empowering. This empowerment and connection to indigenous roots for Pacific Peoples provides a path of self-determination – including the right to self-determine one’s own health. Bottomline, food (diet and food systems) is a social determinant to health.