The Survival of Traditional Knowledge

Braun & Beckie (2014) from the University of Alberta recently conducted a study where they looked at rural communities and determined what factors influence the prevalence of traditional food knowledge.

What they found is that there are four conditions which influence the persistence of traditional food knowledge (such as canning and gardening):

1. The experience and history of scarcity

2. Normative expectations

3. A close connection to family

4. Development of a community of practice.

But what does this mean? Well I think of it this way…

If you are from a town where grocery stores were not easily accessible, and during this time you experienced a food shortage, you would be aware of the consequences of not having food. This experience would motivate you and your community to ensure that there is food security. Gardening and canning would become normative. In my lifetime, I have never experienced this; however, when I think of my grandmother I really see the difference in our behaviors. She grew up in a time when food deprivation was not uncommon and I believe because of this she gardened, canned and preserved food her whole life! So even though I doubt that many people have the same experience, I think that people should think that people need to start working towards food security.

There are many people who practice gardening and canning because it is a part of their culture. When you ask them why they do it, they might tell you that their grandparents and their grandparents grandparents have done so in the past. The don't really have any other reason for doing it, other than it is what they have always done, and always will do. For example, a lady selling jam at a farmers market may only make the jam because it is what her family has always done. She might not be a activist, or be politically motivated to do so; however, her motivation comes from keeping up traditions.

Now I wish I could say that my family has taught me every trick in the book when it comes to making traditional dishes, gardening and preserving food but the truth is, even though I ate obscene amounts of peas and carrots from my grandmother's garden, I never actively learned any of her techniques. This being said, to those of you lucky enough to still have your grandparents around, I encourage you to get as much knowledge from them as possible while you can. This is because if you have a family that gardens and if you invest in learning their techniques, it will be more likely that you continue the practice as you get older.

The last argument is an important point. Before I even read this paper by Braun & Beckie (2014) I’ve noted that having a tight community bond, which practices gardening, will help others get started. I mean the development of community practices is the backbone ideology for this page. If we begin now, traditional practices will not be lost.

~Practices die out if ties between their defining elements fizzle out, or if communities cannot recruit or preserve practitioners (Shove et al., 2012).~

References

Beckie, M. (2014). Against the odds: the survival of traditional food knowledge in a rural Albertan community. Canadian Food Studies. 1(1), 54-71.

Shove, E., Pantzar, M., & Watson, M. (2012). The Dynamics of Social Practice Everyday Life and How it Changes. London: Sage.