CLIMAVORE x Jameel at the Royal College of Art expands its network in Istanbul

CLIMAVORE x Jameel at the Royal College of Art (RCA) will co-host a symposium entitled 'Transnational foodways and food citizenship across Türkiye and the Levant' with Birkbeck, University of London and Özyeğin University at SALT Galata in Istanbul on 28-30 November 2024.

Inspired by CLIMAVORE x Jameel at RCA’s 'Water buffalo commons' project, the symposium will explore the socio-political implications of new foodways in Türkiye and the Levant through the lens of transnational food citizenship.

A public symposium at SALT with Özyeğin University and Birkbeck

Focusing on ecologies, terroirs and landscapes, the programme will feature over 23 interventions by national and international specialists, including Alejandro Colás (Birkbeck, University of London), Berkan Özyer (programme director, Greenpeace Mediterranean, Türkiye) and Kamal Mouzawaq (social entrepreneur, Synergos, and founder, Souk el-Tayeb).

Training 375 future chefs at MSA

Alongisde the symposium, CLIMAVORE x Jameel at RCA will initiate a series of three workshops hosted by the Mutfak Sanatları Akademisi (MSA), Türkiye’s only international culinary school, with over 22,000 students.

Together with chef and food researcher Serhan Hasdemir and CLIMAVORE x Jameel at RCA, MSA teams and students have been exploring new methods of mozzarella, kaymak, yoghurt and kefir production.

These workshops will highlight the importance of the culinary heritage of Istanbul's wetlands and train 375 of the city's future chefs.

New sustainability course for up to 300 students at Sabancı University

Expanding the CLIMAVORE x Jameel at RCA network in Istanbul, Sabancı University will organise a launch event on 2 December to announce the opening of its Sustainability minor course, in collaboration with CLIMAVORE x Jameel at RCA.

Aiming to reach 300 participating students, the course will present 'Water buffalo commons' as a case study of applied efforts to achieve sustainability at a local scale.

A collaboration between CLIMAVORE and Community Jameel at the RCA

CLIMAVORE x Jameel at RCA reimagines foodways for drylands and wetlands in the climate crisis. It advances ecological networks to produce new knowledge and action towards spatial justice. CLIMAVORE x Jameel at RCA is a partnership between CLIMAVORE and Community Jameel developed at the RCA.

Alon Schwabe and Daniel Fernández Pascual, principal investigators of CLIMAVORE x Jameel at RCA, said: "We are excited that the launch of the collaboration with Mutfak Sanatları Akademisi and CLIMAVORE x Jameel at the RCA coincides with the 'Transnational foodways and citizenship across Türkiye and the Levant' event organised by Alex Colas, Birkbeck, University of London, and Ismail Ertürk, Özyeğin University, in conversation with the 'Water buffalo commons' project.

"It’s a wonderful opportunity for culinary students and those who are interested in the food cultures of Istanbul and the region to get acquainted with the important traditions of buffalo herding and milk production and its  impact on the ecology and culture of the city."

Cléa Daridan, head of arts and culture at Community Jameel, said: "Achieving long-term climate resilience and supporting vulnerable pastoralist communities around the world is key to our work at Community Jameel. With CLIMAVORE x Jameel at RCA, we are pleased to collaborate with Özyeğin University, Birkbeck, University of London, Mutfak Sanatları Akademisi and Sabancı University to celebrate the culture of Istanbul's wetlands, expand the availability of buffalo milk products in Istanbul and the conservation of its wetlands."