Abstract:

Rose Ongalibang shows off the pinkish-purple powder in a small bag. “It’s taro flour,” explains the genial retiree at her home on Palau’s largest island, Babeldaob. With its distinctive heart-shaped leaves, taro is traditionally cultivated by Palauan women in plots of land around the shores of this tiny Pacific country. The root crops provide a source of starch and have historically served as a symbol of wealth and an object of ceremonial exchange. It is also a key ingredient in Palau’s plans to make its tourism industry more sustainable, more environmentally friendly and a more level playing field for women and men.The slow food community, which Rose and a group of her female neighbours started last year, is an example of how Palau’s Sustainable Tourism Value Chain Programme is being put into action with FAO support. For the community members, it’s a chance to refocus on taro cultivation traditions, while also finding new, innovative uses for the product.