Safeguarding seeds to defend alternative territories in Riosucio-Caldas, Colombia

In the municipality of Riosucio-Caldas, the purchase of certified corn and corn-based processed foods is undermining food sovereignty processes, including seed exchange and sale practices. Based on the resistance strategies for the defense of native seeds by the Riosucio Seed Custodians Network, we ask: Why has the Seed Custodians Network not achieved the same political impact as an “alternative territory” in the four Indigenous reserves of Riosucio? Why are the initiatives not rooted in the reserves? To explore these questions in greater depth, this research draws on episodes from the life stories of the female seed guardian leaders who are part of the Riosucio Seed Custodians Network. The life stories, constructed from ethnographic information (field notes, participant observation, and semi-structured interviews conducted in 2019), contextualize the territorial dynamics in the reserves since the 1940s. Our findings reveal that families engage in resistance in order to preserve traditional agricultural practices despite the dynamics of socio-environmental conflicts and armed conflict. However, these efforts are scattered throughout the Indigenous reserves. We reflect that the struggles to defend seeds are changing, so much so that strategies such as the TLT declaration do not guarantee an effective defense of seeds and territories against GMOs. Part of the continuity of local resistance rests on the role of leaders and their influence on the governing bodies of each Indigenous reserve. We conclude that political advocacy in the form of an “alternative territory” requires greater ethnographic contributions that seek to explore other areas, such as the experiences of community autonomy and local organizations that can transition to other ways of building territory.