Championing the resiliency and achievements of outstanding “agripreneurs” and Native producers, the 2022 IAC Annual Conference luncheon celebrates Native producers & Indigenous agriculture, cuisine, and food systems. We are proud to announce that this year's featured chef is Mariah Gladstone, founder of Indigikitchen.
Indigikitchen is dedicated to re-indigenizing diets using digital media, which is why their name is a portmanteau of Indigenous, digital, and kitchen. Their focus is on giving viewers the tools necessary to find and prepare food in their own communities. At Indigikitchen, there is value in Indigenous food systems as they strengthen cultural ties, give fuel to everyday needs, and support healthier ecosystems, bodies, and families.
"It’s no secret that healthy eating generally involves avoiding processed foods and preservatives. Indigenous foods like wild game, berries, corn, squash, and wild rice are far easier for the digestive system to process than wheat flour, dairy, and sugar. In the case of Natives, there is the added benefit of cultural revitalization; pre-contact foods, especially those harvested locally, are a testament to the resilience of Native lifestyles and a delicious way of resisting colonization."
- Chef Mariah Gladstone, founder of Indigikitchen
Mariah Gladstone (Blackfeet, Cherokee) grew up in Northwest Montana. She graduated from Columbia University with a degree in Environmental Engineering and returned home where she developed Indigikitchen. Mariah has been recognized as a Luce Indigenous Knowledge Fellow through the First Nations Development Institute, a Culture of Health Leader through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and an MIT Solve Indigenous Communities Fellow.