In environmental conflicts, the evictions of indigenous people from forests conducted under the banner of conservation (green grabbing) is prevalent across the world. These evictions are often based on the premise that conservation can best be accomplished by establishing protected areas where ecosystems can operate in seclusion from human activities. Through the lens of political ecology, this premise seems to be flawed as it misses out on the political, social, and economic issues involved in and influencing these evictions. The Ogiek are an indigenous community that has faced evictions from the Kenyan government in the name of conserving the Mau Forest. Using the political ecology concepts the theory of access, green grabbing, and moral economy, and indigenous food sovereignty, the study investigates the role of political-ecological forces in the marginalization of Ogiek people and how this marginalization affects their food sovereignty. To fulfill this aim, the study sought answers to the subsequent research questions. How do the Ogiek articulate their indigenous land rights against claims by the Kenyan state?: What is the role of green grabbing in denying the Ogiek access to the Mau Forest?: How is the marginalization of Ogiek people affecting their food sovereignty? And What role can a food sovereignty conceptual framework play in rehabilitation of the Ogiek and reclamation of their rights to the Mau Forest? Following the interpretive research philosophy and applying the qualitative research approach, the study gathered data using oral history interviews and folklore methodology. The sample of the study included Ogiek community members and Kenya Forest Service foresters involved in the evictions of the Ogiek people. An analysis of the study's findings reveals that despite the change in livelihood from mainly hunting and gathering to the addition of small-scale farming, the Ogiek still demonstrates a strong bond with the Mau, have knowledge and also the desire to conserve the forest. Also, the study reveals that government actors underplay Ogiek's indigenous conservational knowledge and accentuate the influence of economic and, social and political factors from the colonial times in conservational efforts of the Mau Forest. The study findings that Ogiek's evictions negatively influences their food.

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Sathyamala, Christina
hdl.handle.net/2105/55987
Agrarian, Food and Environmental Studies (AFES)
International Institute of Social Studies

Masika Nandako, Valentine. (2020, December 18). Political ecology, marginalization, and indigenous food sovereignty interactions: the case of Ogiek indigenous people, Kenya. Agrarian, Food and Environmental Studies (AFES). Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/2105/55987