Food and Agriculture
Ecuadorian agriculture is deeply intertwined with the politics and cultures of the nation. Historically, most pre-colonial Ecuadorian communities placed a strong focus on collective identity and sustained themselves through collective based farming practices. Northern Andean communities practiced interplanting strategies with beans and maize. The rapid increase of altitude in the Andes resulted in immense biodiversity in the mountains of Ecuador and mountain communities made vertical use of the land in order to maximize the unique resources of each climatic zone along the length of the mountains (Camacho). Exchange of crops with other communities from different climatic zones was also common. Throughout these communities, as well as in certain portions of the Amazon, the farming tradition of the minga was performed. The minga is a practice in which all able-bodied members of the community unite at various points throughout the world to perform acts which serve to maintain the comm
