A phenomenological exploration of how ecojustice and sciencivic literacy manifest in the food learning experiences of urban minority youth

This interpretative phenomenological study explores how urban minority youth in Semarang, Jakarta, and Surabaya interpret their everyday food learning experiences as a form of structured ecological injustice, and how these experiences construct their understanding of sciencivic literacy and critical agency. Involving 320 participants from diverse religious, ethnic, and socio-economic class backgrounds, this research employed in-depth interviews, participant observation, and document tracing analyzed through interpretative phenomenological analysis. Findings reveal that participants interpret inequitable food access, environmental pollution, and stigmatization of local food as manifestations of ecological injustice deliberately produced by urban power structures. These experiences simultaneously construct critical understanding of the interconnections between scientific mechanisms and public policies, while fostering agency to negotiate identities and position themselves as subjects capable of responding to injustice through alternative food literacy practices. This study contributes to the conceptual expansion of food literacy as a civic practice imbued with ecological and social justice concerns.