The integrity of Indigenous Peoples' food systems is intimately connected to the overall health of the environment. Recent declines in many aspects of environmental quality, from loss of biodiversity to environmental contamination, have combined with social, economic, political and cultural factors
to threaten the health and well-being of Indigenous Peoples, and ultimately of people everywhere. This has affected the quality of indigenous food, restricted its availability or curtailed access to it.
All of the global case studies of Indigenous Peoples in the Indigenous Peoples' Food Systems for Health Program indicate concerns over environmental degradation as a major aspect of Indigenous Peoples' declining use of their indigenous food. Interconnected concerns include biodiversity
loss of wild species and of cultivated species and varieties; hydroelectric dams and their impacts on fish and other foods; contamination of water and food from a host of chemical, radioactive and biological pollutants; and climate change, with its accompanying uncertainties and instabilities regarding food systems. Reconnecting Indigenous Peoples with their traditional territories, and reversing some of the restrictive regulations against Indigenous Peoples' historical hunting and plant harvesting practices may help to restore and maintain traditional resources. More cooperative arrangements for co-management of habitats and resources should be instated.
Collaborative research is recommended, such as that reflected in this volume in which environmental and other relationships among Indigenous Peoples' cultures, lands and resource stewardship are complemented with supporting work by academic partners. Ultimately, this will help to maintain and
strengthen the resilience of ecosystems and cultural systems, including diverse and healthy food systems.