For Anishinaabe families in Michigan, food is far more than what’s on the table. It connects generations, carries language and cultural knowledge, and promotes healing.

That’s what a group of mothers and grandmothers described in a new study published in Public Health Nutrition by the Wiba Anung research team, a long-running partnership between Indigenous community leaders, the Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan and researchers at Michigan State University. Wiba Anung, which translates to “Early Star” in Anishinaabemowin, works with the Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan to support food sovereignty, early childhood education and community well-being for Indigenous children and families across Michigan.

Dr. Heather Howard-Bobiwash, associate professor of anthropology and graduate program director, is a member of the Wiba Anung team and one of 14 co-authors on the study. Her research centers on how food, nourishment and collective memory shape identity, healing and well-being in Indigenous communities.

The study adapted Photovoice, a research method in which participants photograph their own experiences and discuss them together, to follow the principles of Anishinaabe Symbol-Based Reflection, which emphasizes creating and describing photographs as symbols for a holistic experience that engages mental, emotional and spiritual well-being. Six mothers and grandmothers caring for Anishinaabe children under five participated, photographing their everyday lives with food: gardening with their children, harvesting, preparing meals together.

Two themes emerged. The first centered on food as a connector, linking relatives across time and place through the acts of harvesting, preparing and sharing food. The second found that food is foundational to the health and education of children, families and communities, serving as an expression of love, a form of medicine and a pathway for learning between generations.

The research influenced the Wiba Anung team’s ongoing work developing the Gikinawaabi Child Well-being Curriculum for Tribal Home Visiting programs and Tribal Head Start settings. The curriculum is organized around the Anishinaabe lunar calendar and weaves food-related knowledge and practices into activities for families, supporting children in growing, gathering, preparing and eating healthy food while engaging with Anishinaabemowin vocabulary and meeting developmental milestones.

The full study is publicly available in Public Health Nutrition.