Rights and responsibilities.  The idea that the right to food is sacred and cannot be constrained by policies or institutions.  Indigenous food sovereignty is fundamentally achieved by upholding the sacred responsibility to nurture healthy, interdependent relationships with the land, plants and animals that provide people with food.

Self-determination.  The right to judge one’s own needs for healthy, culturally adapted foods. The ability to make decisions over the amount and quality of food that is hunted, fished, gathered, grown and eaten. Freedom from dependence on grocery stores or corporately controlled food production, distribution and consumption in industrialized economies.

Participation. The importance of sharing and developing traditional knowledge to encourage participation at the individual, family, community and regional levels.  Participation is key to maintaining Indigenous food sovereignty as a living reality for both present and future generations.

Policy.  Indigenous Food Sovereignty  attempts to reconcile Indigenous food and cultural values with colonial laws and policies and mainstream economic activities, providing a restorative framework for policy reform which encompasses forestry, fisheries, environmental conservation, health, agriculture, and rural and community development.

(Adapted from https://www.indigenousfoodsystems.org/food-sovereignty)