Leandro Matthews Cascon

Leandro Matthews Cascon investigates how museum objects related to the cultivation and consumption of cassava can offer insight into Indigenous agricultural knowledge in Suriname over time. His research addresses this question through close analysis of material culture held in colonial collections in Dutch museums, focusing on artefacts connected to the agricultural practices of Surinamese Indigenous groups.

By bringing the colonial impact on food security and production in Suriname to the forefront, Cascon highlights the stark contrast between traditional Indigenous perspectives on plant cultivation—deeply shaped by affective relationships, reciprocity, and familiarity—and the Dutch colonial view, which treated agriculture as an instrument of economic gain and market-driven production.

Cascon views traditional agriculture as an expression of cultural heritage. In doing so, his work contributes to the goals and priorities of Indigenous communities in Suriname, promotes greater access to their historical collections, and supports contemporary practices of sustainable, culturally rooted livelihoods.