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Topic

Nourishing Roots: From Food Insecurity Towards Food Sovereignty for Toronto’s Black diasporic community

School of Public Administration

Date & location

• Thursday, April 9, 2026

• 12:00 P.M.

• Virtual Defence

Reviewers

Supervisory Committee

• Dr. Astrid Pérez Piñán, School of Public Administration, ̽��ϵ�� (Supervisor)

• Dr. Elizabeth Vibert, Department of History, UVic (Member) 

External Examiner

• Dr. Sara Edge, Department of Geography, University of Guelph 

Chair of Oral Examination

• Dr. Ewa Czaykowska-Higgins, Department of Indigenous Education, UVic

   

Abstract

This thesis examines the capacity-building needs required to advance food sovereignty as a strategy for reducing food insecurity within Toronto’s Black diaspora. While existing research documents disproportionately high rates of food insecurity among Black Canadians, less attention has been paid to the skills, resources, and structural supports needed to sustain community-led food systems. Using Toronto as a case study, this research employs a mixed methods approach combining questionnaire data and semi-structured interviews with individuals engaged across the food system, including community leaders, farmers, food workers, policy actors, and advocates. Findings highlight land access, household income stability, and sustained funding for Black-serving organizations as central priorities, alongside the importance of culturally grounded education, youth engagement, and policy reform. The study situates these findings within Critical Race Theory, Community Development Theory, and food sovereignty scholarship, arguing that advancing food sovereignty requires coordinated structural, community, and institutional action beyond short-term emergency food access interventions.