CPD Highlights: Gastrodiplomacy

This fall, the PDiN team noticed a significant increase in articles on gastrodiplomacy due in large part to the State Department’s launch of the “American Chef Corps,” a diplomatic culinary partnership aiming to “elevate the role of culinary engagement in America’s formal and public diplomacy efforts.”  This news resulted in a flurry of articles, partly because it is a novel idea but also because of the celebrity chef star power that joined the initiative.

However, the U.S. State Department is not the only institution taking gastrodiplomacy seriously. Articles on gastrodiplomacy have been gathered from all over the world by the PDiN team: from the Israeli tourism ministry inviting international food bloggers to their events to a BBC series exploring Chinese culture by way of its cuisine. Clearly food can unite people across borders, and gastrodiplomacy is increasingly understood as an important tool in the diplomatic tool box.

The CPD Blog also recently featured two posts on gastrodipolomacy. In “Setting the Table for Diplomacy,” Paul Rockower reflects on the State Department’s new initiative while Madhurjay Kotoky explores how social media connected international food bloggers at the Phillips Foodathon 2012 in New Delhi.

Below is a selection of recent articles from PDiN on the topic. You can read all PDiN articles and blogs on food and diplomacy by clicking on the gastrodiplomacy or food diplomacy tags on the CPD website.

PDiN Articles

Vietnamese Restaurants Turn Philanthropy into Business
VOA

China’s Gastrodiplomacy on BBC
Pyblic Diplomacy and International Communications (blog)

Culinary Diplomacy: Connecting Individuals, Leaders and Nations Through Food
DipNote

“Israel Brings International Food Bloggers for a Taste of the Holy Land”
Haarezt

The State Department has the Right Idea: Use Chefs to Further Diplomacy
San Francisco Chronicle (Blog)

State Department to Induct 1st American Chef Corps
FOX News

America’s Best Chefs Answer the Call to Serve Their Nation.
NPR

Chefs to Serve as Culinary Diplomats
Chicago Tribune

CPD Blogs

Setting the Table for Diplomacy
Paul Rockower

Foodathon 2012 & The Opportunity of ‘Category Blogging’
Madhurjay Kotoky