CREATIVITY, ECOLOGY AND EDUCATION - 1st level Master of Gastronomy: a.y. 2020_21 Student Guide - Description
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1st level Master of Gastronomy:
CREATIVITY, ECOLOGY AND EDUCATION
a.y. 2020_21
Student Guide
1
CONTENTS
GENERAL INFORMATION ..................................................................................................................................................... 3
Program Overview ............................................................................................................................................................. 3
Calendar ................................................................................................................................................................................ 3
Program Structure .............................................................................................................................................................. 3
Syllabi ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 7
Workshops/Partecipatory Learning ........................................................................................................................... 30
University Fee Payment Regulations .......................................................................................................................... 37
TEACHING MATERIAL.......................................................................................................................................................... 38
BlackBoard ........................................................................................................................................................................ 38
STUDENTS ATTENDANCE.................................................................................................................................................. 40
QuickPresences ................................................................................................................................................................ 40
EXAMS and EVALUATIONS ................................................................................................................................................. 40
Grading Chart................................................................................................................................................................... 41
Plagiarism: Policy And Penalties .................................................................................................................................. 41
Turnitin .............................................................................................................................................................................. 42
UNISG ONLINE PORTAL ...................................................................................................................................................... 42
Esse3 ................................................................................................................................................................................... 42
CONTACTS AND OTHER USEFUL INFORMATION ............................................................................................... 42
Unisg Academic Staff ...............................................................................................................42
Unisg Administrative Staff ............................................................................................................................................ 43
Student Services ............................................................................................................................................................... 43
2
GENERAL INFORMATION
Program Overview
Designed to examine and explore the multiple values of food and the possibilities of gastronomy under the lens of
creativity, following the “thinking in practice” model to unfold various creative strategic fields along with the students.
This program focuses on experimental practices of teaching and learning and envisions gastronomy as a powerful tool to open up
ideas for contemporary artistic projects, new social platforms and novel paths in food education; equipping the students with ecological
sensibility and care for food.
The three conceptual focal points, – creativity, ecology, and education – are analysed in depth throughout the program because creative
thinking in gastronomy constantly faces environmental and ecological issues, and is therefore explored at every point in the supply
chain, from food production, to transformation, to consumption.
The University applies a system of educational credits to its curriculum, which corresponds to the procedures in place in Inter-
University Collaboration Relations. This master is a first-level master, with a total of 90 ECTS credits (1 ECTS credit = approx. 25
hours of student work).
Calendar
The calendar of classes, study trips, and other programmed events can be found here.
Morning and afternoon sessions are generally scheduled as follows:
10:00 a.m. – 1:15 p.m.
2:30 pm – 5:45 p.m.
Program Structure
This program is structured with an interdisciplinary and experiential study of gastronomic sciences and it’s divided into:
1. Interdisciplinary basics of gastronomy: Introduction to food and gastronomy through creativity, ecology and education.
2. Interactive teaching & learning: workshops, seminars with scholars and professionals, and group projects, each with the following
focal points:
Creativity – Creative process, food writing, food photography, art and food, etc…
Ecology – Circular ecology and economy, sustainability, social economy, etc…
Education – Tasting of wine, cheese, coffee, tea, food criticism and food journalism, etc…
3. Study Trips: one-week study trips provide the students with a profound understanding of global food systems, both artisanal and
industrial, by visiting far-flung places and going behind the scenes of food production. Study trips allow students to meet the real
protagonists of contemporary food systems, such as farmers, producers, chefs and other food professionals, while tasting typical
products in their context of origin. For the current academic year, destinations will be chosen in accordance with the most recent
Covid-19 restrictions.
Due to Covid Emergency, the study trips might become virtual trips. For more detailed information, please contact tutor@unisg.it.
4. Internship: The internship aims to give students the opportunity to explore, through work experience, some of the topics studied
during the previous months of classes and study trips. Alternatively, students can choose to pursue an individual research project.
5. Personal creative portfolio: Before the end of the program, each student will prepare a final creative portfolio to present from her
/ his point of view the most important steps she / he has taken during the program
6. Final thesis or report: Students can choose between an academic level thesis or a simple report of the internship/research project.
The activities related to the second part of the program are carefully planned so every student creates a personal project
portfolio intended as an extra tool for them to enter the professional world in terms of creative innovation, education and research.
Program Requirements
an undergraduate or first-level degree
proficiency in written and spoken English
Students from all countries are eligible to apply. Note that diplomas issued from non EU-accredited institutions must be accompanied
by an Italian consular accreditation (the “Dichiarazione di Valore” or “DV”) as part of the admission process, which candidates must
obtain and submit to the Registrar Office. The original DV must be handed in to the Registrar Office no later than the first day of the
program and will be kept by the university for the duration of the program. (The consulate may choose to send the document directly
3
to UNISG.) The application to UNISG must be completed through an Italian consular representative. Applicants should contact their
local Italian consulate as early as possible to ensure adequate time for all consular processes. For more information, please see the
Bureaucratic Procedures page on our website.
Study Plan
Name: Master of Gastronomy: Creativity, Ecology and Education
Convenor: Prof. Nicola Perullo
Starting Date: March 3rd, 2021
ES
ACADEMIC
AREA ECTS LECTURER AFFILIATION HOURS (exam)/FREQ
ACTIVITY
(attendance)
Human Sciences and Ecology (Area coordinator Paolo Gruppuso) ES
Basics of G Food and History Gabriele Proglio University of Pollenzo 16
Basics of G Food and Anthropology Paolo Gruppuso University of Aberdeen 16
12 Food and Cultural
Basics of G Ecology Gabriele Volpato University of Pollenzo 16
Basics of G Food and Sociology tbc tbc 16
Science, Nutrition and Psychology (Area coordinator Gabriella Morini) ES
University of Western
Basics of G Food and Psychology Carol Coricelli Ontario 16
10 Riccardo Migliavada University of Pollenzo
Basics of G Dietetics and Well-Being Andrea Pezzana University of Turin 16
Basics of G Food and Science Gabriella Morini University of Pollenzo 16
Diplomacy, Geography and Politics (Area Coordinator Lorenzo Kihlgren Grandi) ES
Kihlgren
Basics of G Gastrodiplomacy Lorenzo Grandi Sciences Po 16
Food Activism:
10 Agroequity and Stone Barns Center for
Basics of G Advocacy Shakira Simley Food and Agriculture 16
Animal and more-than
Basics of G Human geographies Robert Hearn University of Nottingham 16
Philosophy, Education and Perception (Area coordinator Nicola Perullo) ES
Philosophy, Taste and
Basics of G Creativity of Perception Nicola Perullo University of Pollenzo 16
10 Eating, Parasitism and Gustavus Adolphus
Basics of G Personhood Lisa Heldke College 16
Basics of G Theory of Education Jan Masschelein University of Leuven 16
Art, Architecture and Design (Area coordinator Sonia Massari) ES
Umami Festival - New
10
Basics of G Food and Art History Yael Raviv York University 16
4Artist Deutch Institute for
Basics of G Food Design and Art Marije Vogelzang Food Design 16
Sustainability and Food Indipendent Resercher
Basics of G System Design Sonia Massari GustoLab 16
Manchester School of
Basics of G Food Architecture Ray Lucas Architecture 16
WORKSHOPS / PARTECIPATORY LEARNING (Area Coordinator Paolo Gruppuso)
CREATIVITY ES
Food and Drink Writing Bruce Mc Michael Free Lance Journalist 12
Practical Workshops in
the kitchen in
collaboration with
Master Culinary Arts Carol Povigna University of Polenzo 12
Creative Process in
University of Pollenzo 12
Cooking Nicola Perullo
8 Artist Deutch Institute for
Arts and Crafts Marije Vogelzang Food Designer 12
Giulia Mattalia 8
Edible Garden Practices Pollenzo's didactic
Aleksiei Taran gardener 8
Food Photography Erik Olsson Free Lance photographer 12
Performance, Culture
and Nutrition Caroline Gatt University of Aberdeen 12
EDUCATION ES
Contemporary
Gastronomy and Food Journalist and Director
Criticism Marco Bolasco Giunti Editore Food 12
Foraging and Deep Andrea Pieroni University of Pollenzo 4
Mapping Paolo Gruppuso University of Aberdeen 8
Cooking Skills and
Education Barny Haughton Square Food Foundation 12
Quality Assessment
(Coffee) Paolo Panero Coffee Expert 8
The Taste of Tea Jameel Lalani Tea Entrepreneur 8
8 The Taste of Raw Milk
Cheese Ludovico Roccatello Slow Food 8
Epistenology : from
Knowledge about Wine
to Knowledge with
Wine Nicola Perullo University of Pollenzo 12
Making and Learning
about Bread Enrico Giacosa Professionals 8
The Taste of Natural
Honey Andrea Paternoster Mieli Thun 8
The Taste of Beer Eugenio Signoroni Slow Food 8
ECOLOGY ES
Food Marketing and
8
Sustainability Daniela Pirani University of Liverpool 12
5Circular Ecology and
Economy : the case for Emanuel
Water e Bompan Renewable Matter 12
Food Publishing Emilia Terragni Phaidon Publishing 12
Difference that Makes a
Difference tbc tbc 12
Slow Food Philosophy Carlo Petrini, Paolo di Slow Food Management 12
Croce, Roberto Burdese
Sustainability: Reality
Matters Cinzia Scaffidi University of Pollenzo 12
Social Economy and
Power Relations Francesca Grazioli Bioversity International 12
Socio-Economic
Dimensions of Food Donatella Saccone University of Pollenzo 12
Deepening and exploration of one field (Creativity, Ecology, Education) by three ES (Collective
3
groups presentation)
Intertwinin
g the 2 Final Portfolio (on the base of the 3 areas and specific activities of each group) ES
Threads
Workshop Career Center 6
Italian Language Paola Capellino 24
Other 3 Study Trips freq
Activities
Internship or Personal
3 freq
Research
3 Thesis or Report ES
90 Total ECTS Credits Total number of hours 582
6 Syllabi
Program Name: Master of Gastronomy: Creativity, Ecology and Education (MOGCEE)
Academic Year: 2020/21
PLEASE NOTE THAT DATES AND INFORMATION INCLUDED IN THE SYLLABUS MAY BE
SUBJECT TO CHANGE. PLEASE ALWAYS REFER TO YOUR ONLINE CALENDAR.
HUMAN SCIENCES AND ECOLOGY (MA0462)
Course Name: FOOD AND HISTORY
Preliminary information:
a) Lecturer’s name and surname: Gabriele Proglio
b) Lecturer’s email address for students: g.proglio@unisg.it
c) Office hours for students (if applicable): Monday morning, 10-12 p.m.
d) Affiliation (Institution, company, organization): University of Gastronomic Sciences
e) Teaching language: English
Course Content
This course examines the cultural history of food and foodways in Europe, taking into account many aspects and
periods of the Western modernity. All classes – with frontal teaching and involvement of students in debates –
will address relevant subjects in understanding and interpreting the relationship between the human being and
historical contexts. After a preliminary introduction, in the first class we will talk about the nexus nature and
culture, analyzing important contributions written by Massimo Montanari, Fernand Braudel and Marie-Claire
Amouretti and Georges Comet) on the role of time and space in the production of food and articulation of
foodways. The second class will be on the invention of the cuisine, examining the use of the fire in cooking and,
in particular, focusing on positive and negative aspects of written and oral cuisines (Montanari, Goody and Giard).
The third class, then, will focus on the taste as a cultural product, showing its relation to knowledge. In particular,
we will consider the taste as a collective and shared cultural construct, with close connections to gastronomies,
diets, habits, and “good manners”. In this section, we will read and comment two essays by Montanari, and
introduce some reflections by Norbert Elias, Pierre Bourdieu and Jean-Louis Flandrin. In the last class, we will
address the role of food in describing social structures, reading an essay by Appadurai, and focus on two specific
topics: gender and race. In particular, these two subjects will be analyzed through the intersectional approach in
the article by Psyche Williams-Forson and Abby Wilkerson, and taking into account many facets and aspects of
the relation between food studies and race in the contribution by Rachel Slocum.
2. Specify the type of teaching used: lessons, exercises, team work, workshops, etc. and how they will be
structured.
Frontal lessons with collective discussion. Presentation and reading of historical sources (written
documents, iconographic sources).
3. Describe the exam, assignment(s), presentation(s), or other evaluation tools to be used
Exam:
Short answer test questions.
7Reference Text
Please look at the assignment section, with a complete reference texts list.
Teaching Material
Slides
Objectives
At the end of the course, students should know the essential lines of food history, on the economic, social and
cultural plan, based on the reading of documentary, narrative, literary, scientific sources, shown as examples of
start-up for historical work. Students should communicate in written form on the subject of the discipline using a
specific terminology.
Requirements/Advance readings (or other assignments)
Reading the reference text (see supra) before the lectures will be highly appreciated, so to implement collective
discussion on the topics that will be proposed.
Assignments:
Class 1 – Nature/Culture
Reading required:
- Massimo Montanari, Food is culture, Chapter 1
- Fernand Braudel, Il pane quotidiano, in Id., Civiltà materiale, economia e capitalismo. Le strutture del quotidiano
(secoli XV-XVIII), Torino, Einaudi, pp. 81-83; ENG: Fernand Braudel, Daily bread, in The Structures of
Everyday Life. Civilization & Capitalism (15th-18th century), University of California Press, Berkeley and
Los Angeles 1992, pp. 104-108.
- Marie-Claire Amouretti and Georges Comet, L’ulivo e la sua storia, in Jacques Le Goff e Jean Ferniot (a
cura di), La cucina e la tavola. Storia di 5000 anni di gastronomia, Dedalo Edizioni, Bari 2019, pp. 241-257.
Screening required:
- “About culture and food”, a speech by Claudia Roden
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=is7IJgibSxE)
Class 2 – Oral and Written Cuisines
Reading required:
- Massimo Montanari, Food is culture, Chapter 2
- Jack Goody, Part II Food, in Id. Food and Love, Verso, New York, pp. 125-148.
- Luce Giard, Doing-Cooking, in Michel de Certeau, Luce Giard and Pierre Mayol (eds), Practice of Everyday
Life. Volume 2: Living and Cooking, University of Minnesota Press, pp. 149-151.
Class 3 – Taste as a cultural construct
Reading required:
- Massimo Montanari, Food is culture, Chapter 3
Class 4 – Gastropolitics, Race and Gender
Reading required:
- Arjun Appadurai, Gastro-Politics in Hindu South Asia, in American Ethnologist, Vol. 8, No. 3, Symbolism
and Cognition (Aug., 1981), pp. 494-511.
- Psyche Williams-Forson and Abby Wilkerson, Intersectionality and Food Studies, in Food, Culture &
Society, Vol. 14, Issue 1, 2011, pp. 7-28.
Rachel Slocum, Race in the study of food, in Progress in Human Geography, Vol. 25, No. 3, 2010, pp. 303-327.
This course is part of the area “Human Sciences and Ecology”, so the final written paper of this area will comprise
different courses.
8Course Name: FOOD AND ANTHROPOLOGY
Preliminary information:
a) Lecturer’s name and surname: Paolo Gruppuso
b) Lecturer’s email address for students: p.gruppuso@unisg.it
c) Affiliation (Institution, company, organization):
d) Teaching language: English
Course Content
1.Program
a) Anthropology and Food I
Introduction to anthropology and pioneering approaches to food.
(Commensality; Reciprocity; Food as a Social Total Fact)
b) Anthropology and Food II
Influential approaches in anthropology of food.
(Structuralist and Symbolic approaches; Cultural Materialism)
c) Food Systems
Relational Approaches in anthropology.
(Food as an array of more-than-human relations and practices: Restaurants, Sociality, Cooking)
d) Food and the environment
Sustainability, Environmental Conservation, Anthropocene.
(Critical perspectives; Environmental Conflicts)
2. Teaching Method
Meetings will include frontal lectures, team work, and discussions.
3. Describe the exam, assignment(s), presentation(s), or other evaluation tools to be used
Final review (pass-fail) in class on Friday March 19th (10 – 13.15pm).
This course is part of the area “Human Sciences and Ecology” so the final written paper will comprise different
courses.
Reference texts and Teaching Material
The amount of readings required for the course will not exceed a maximum amount of approximately 100 pages.
This is a basic and indicative bibliography:
Berris, D. and Sutton, D. (eds.) 2008. The Restaurants Book: ethnographies of where people eat. Oxford, New York: Berg.
Boas, F. 1921. Ethnology of the Kwakiutl, based on data collected by George Hunt. Washington: Government Printing
Office.
Boas, F. 1909. The Kwakiutl of Vancouver Island. Memoirs of the AMNH. E. J. Brill,: New York
Brightman, M. and Lewis, J. (eds.) 2017. Anthropology of Sustainability. Beyond development and progress. Palgrame
Macmillan.
Brown, N., de González, T. and McIlwraith, T. 2017. Perspectives: An Open Invitation to Cultural Anthropology. American
Anthropological Association. http://perspectives.americananthro.org/ebook.php
Counihan, C. and Van Estrik, P. (eds.) 2012. Food and Culture: a reader, 3rd Edition. New York: Routledge.
Crowther, G. 2013. Eating Culture. An Anthropological Guide to Food. Toronto: University Press.
Douglas, M. 1972. Deciphering a meal. Daedalus, 101(1):61-81.
Gruppuso, P. 2018. Edenic Views in Wetland Conservation: Nature and Agriculture in the Fogliano Area, Italy. Conservation
& Society.
Ingold, T. 2000. The Perception of the Environment. London: Routledge
Ingold, T. 2005. Epilogue: Towards a Politics of Dwelling. Conservation & Society. 2005. 3(2):501-8.
Ingold, T. 2018. Anthropology. Why it Matters. Medford, Cambridge: Polity Press
Meigs, A. 1987. Food as a cultural construction. Food and Foodways. 2(1):341-357.
Malinowski, B. 1922. Argonauts of the western Pacific; an account of native enterprise and adventure in the archipelagoes of
Melanesian New Guinea. London: G. Routledge & Sons.
Parham, S. 2015. Food and urbanism. The Convivial City and a Sustainable Future. London: Bloomsbury.
9Paxson, H. 2016. “Rethinking Food and its Eaters: Opening the Black Boxes of Safety and Nutrition”. In Klein, J.A. and
J.I. Watson (eds.) The Handbook of Food and Anthropology. London: Bloomsbury. Pp. 268-288.
Robertson Smith, W. 1889. Lectures on the Religion of the Semites. Fundamental Institutions. London: Adam & Charles
Black.
Steel, C. 2013- Hungry City. How Food Shapes Our Lives. London: Vintage.
Further materials will be provided before the beginning of the classes and during the lectures.
Objectives
Premising on the idea of food and gastronomy as inherently transdisciplinary issues, the course aims to give a taste
of the richness and diversity of anthropological approaches that may help to situate food in a broader perspective.
Insights into the foundation of the discipline will be provided, along with a number of varied contemporary
ethnographic cases. Particular attention will be directed to food in relation to sustainability, the Anthropocene, and
the nature/culture divide.
In the spirit of anthropology as an art of enquiry, the final goal of the course is to challenge common thoughts
about food and to raise questions, rather than providing answers.
Requirements/Advance readings
Required readings will be provided before the first meeting.
This course is part of the area “Human Sciences and Ecology”, so the final written paper of this area will comprise
different courses.
Course Name: FOOD AND CULTURAL ECOLOGY
Preliminary information:
a) Lecturer’s name and surname: Gabriele Volpato
b) Lecturer’s email address for students: g.volpato@unisg.it
c) Office hours for students (if applicable): in class after lessons or on appointment
d) Affiliation (Institution, company, organization): UNISG
e) Teaching language: English
Abstract
An understanding of the relations among humans, other-than-human species and the environment is fundamental
to build sustainable food systems. All food systems rely on a fabric made of biodiversity and species relations, a
fabric that our global civilization is eating like clothing moths. The aim of this course is to illustrate and discuss
the essential ties that exist between ecological relations and sustainability in food production, highlighting at the
same time contemporary trajectories in the relation between humans and the living planet that hosts them.
Course content
1. Program
Lesson 1: Ecology and the web of life; The Gaia theory and Planet Earth as a super-organism;
interconnectedness of everything
Lesson 2: The importance of diversity (biological, cultural) for food systems and for the resilience of
households, communities, and humankind
Lesson 3: Invasive species and the evolution of humans as a super-invasive species; one species eating
the planet into a Sixth Mass Extinction
Lesson 4: Indigenous wisdom and how to nurture the web of life; sustainability, creativity, and
transitions toward resilient food systems
2. Teaching method
Lectures with projection of slides, case studies, and discussions. Teaching language: English.
3. Criteria, rules and procedures for the exam
10The exam will consist in an oral assessment about the topics of the teaching. The questions refer to the themes,
concepts, and principles addressed in the course, which the student will need to address critically.
This course is part of the area “Human Sciences and Ecology” so the final written paper will comprise different
courses.
Reference text and Teaching Material
For this course, didactic material does not coincide with available texts. The material consists of the PowerPoint
presentation of the course and of the notes students take in class.
Useful and advised readings (available for consultation at the Unisg Library) are:
• Capra, F., Luisi, P.L. 2016. The Systems View of Life: A Unifying Vision. Cambridge University Press.
• Diamond, J. 2011. Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. Penguin Books.
• D’Alisa, G., Demaria, F., Kallis, G. (Eds.). 2015. Degrowth. A vocabulary for a New Era. Routledge.
• Flannery, T. 2011. Here on Earth. A natural history of the planet. Atlantic Monthly Press.
• Kolbert, E. 2014. The Sixth Extinction: An unnatural history. Bloomsbury Publishing.
• Krebs, C.J. 2016. Why ecology matters. University of Chicago Press.
• Lovelock, J. 2000. Gaia: A new look at life on Earth. OUP Oxford.
• Margulis, L. 1999. Symbiotic planet. Basic Books.
• Marsden, T. Morley, A. 2014. Sustainable Food Systems: Building a New Paradigm. Routledge.
• Marten, G.G. 2001. Human Ecology: Basic Concepts for Sustainable Development. Routledge.
• Mueller, M.L. 2017. Being Salmon, Being Human: Encountering the Wild in Us and Us in the Wild.
Chelsea Green Publishing Company.
• Smith, T.M., Smith, R.L. 2013. Elements of Ecology. Pearson.
• Wall Kimmerer, R. 2014. Braiding sweetgrass. Milkweed Editions.
The material of the course will be available to students before the beginning of the course.
Objectives
An understanding of the relations among humans, other-than-human species and the environment is fundamental
to build sustainable food systems. Biodiversity and species relations are the foundation of the web of life that
supports all of us and maintains the conditions for life on Planet Earth, Gaia. Biodiversity is like the weave of a
fabric: the thicker and more interconnected it is, the more weight it can bear. All food systems rely on that fabric,
which our global civilization is eating like clothing moths, literally and metaphorically, to fuel greed and growth,
out of ignorance and indifference, causing a sixth mass extinction and a change in Gaia’s climate and habitability.
There is an urgent need to reorganize food systems toward their relocalization and decarbonisation, to produce
food rooted in a diversity of ecological relations and non-exploitative social relations, thus supporting the
interconnectedness of life.
The aim of this course is to explore these themes keeping ecology and food in the foreground, thus illustrating
and discussing the essential tie that exists between ecological relations and sustainability in food production.
Examples and case studies will be presented and discussed in class.
Specific objectives of the course are:
- To provide students with basic concepts of ecology and human ecology
- To explore the fundamental role of interconnectedness and mutualism for life on Planet Earth
- To discuss humans’ ecological relations and their evolution in relations to food production
- To explore the role and importance of biodiversity for food systems and food heritage
- To foster a critical, systemic and interdisciplinary thought about the web of life and the future of our
global society
Requirements/Advance readings
There are no readings required in preparation for the course. Students interested in deepening their knowledge
and understanding of specific themes and topics after the course are advised to consult the ‘useful readings’ section.
This course is part of the area “Human Sciences and Ecology”, so the final written paper of this area will comprise
different courses.
Course Name: FOOD AND SOCIOLOGY
11TBC
SCIENCE, NUTRITION AND PSYCHOLOGY (MA0461)
Course Name: FOOD AND PSYCHOLOGY
Preliminary information:
a) Lecturer’s name and surname: Carol Coricelli, PhD and Riccardo Migliavada
b) Lecturer’s email address for students: carolcoricelli@gmail.com; r.migliavada@studenti.unisg.it
c) Office hours for students (if applicable):
d) Affiliation (Institution, company, organization):
e) Teaching language: English
Course content
1. Sequence of topics
Lesson 1 – Brain and mind and how to study them (4h) – 12/04/2021 time to be announced (online lesson)
In order to understand the cutting-edge neuroscience methods used nowadays it is necessary to make a step back
and understand what led to this scientific revolution. During this lesson we will time travel back to when ancient
philosophers first raised the “mind-body problem”, we will go through the hypotheses formulated by different
thinkers who have tried to assess this issue. This excursion will walk us through the development of the different
branches of Psychology and Neuroscience. The protagonists behind the main turning points in the history of these
disciplines will be introduced along with their main discoveries. The most exciting and anecdotal findings in the
field will also be presented during this lesson and they will be analyzed from a critical point of view. This
introduction will give us the tools to understand the rationale of the core scientific methods of this vast field of
research and how these methods are applied to the food domain. Cognitive neuroscience as a discipline will be
introduced, during this lesson the main techniques of the field will be presented and how they have developed
throughout the years. The main contributions which allow us nowadays to look into the brain in a real-time fashion
will be described. We will dive into the fascinating world of brain functions and mechanisms and how to investigate
them in a systematic way applying the scientific method.
Lesson 2 – The cognitive functions underlying eating behaviors (4h) – 13/04/2021 time to be announced
(online lesson) Once we have unlocked our way through the brain, we will discuss the main cognitive functions
involved in food perception and cognition. Food is a multisensory stimulus in nature, we interact with it using
different sensory modalities. During this lesson we will learn about the different pathways through which the brain
deals with sensory information related to food and the basic mechanisms related to eating behaviors. We will
disentangle different aspects of the hedonic responses to food and how these different aspects have been
investigated through experimental setups. Relevant neuroimaging findings focusing on food cognition will be
presented and discussed. The students will learn to search, read and critically comment scientific papers during
this class.
Lesson 3 – Applied Food Psychology (4h) – 29/04/2021 from 2.30pm to 5.45pm
Although eating is probably the most common and essential act of human nature, as is breathing, it is a complex
and multidimensional activity involving both physiological and psychological aspects. Even from a biological
perspective, food consumption is more than just the consequence of energy consumption. If it is true that without
eating we cannot survive is equally true that we do not eat only to survive. During the lesson we will discuss the
main brain mechanisms involved in the regulation of appetite and satiety, and we will examine how environmental
aspects and bodily signals constantly influence our food intake. The topics will be explored from an evolutionary
perspective that will help us to further understand our relationship with food and its capability to affect our mood,
cognitive capabilities and memories.
Lesson 4 – Applied Food Psychology (4h) – 30/04/2021 from 2.30pm to 5.45pm
Eating is a multimodal and cross-modal experience during which the stimuli perceived by the senses interact in an
additive process and combine together. During the lesson we will explore two food-related aspects, such as naming
12and plating, which can deeply influence our daily eating experience and therefore impact our life and health. What
is food plating, why is it important and which are its functions besides giving a dish an attractive appearance? How
does the name we give a food affect the amount we eat of it and our experience of it? Far from being just an artistic
arrangement of food on a serving plate or a simple label on a packaging, plating and naming can deeply affect how
we perceive foods and how much we eat. During the lesson we will disentangle the concepts of plating and naming
by exploring and broadening their meanings. The purpose of the class is to provide theoretical and practical skills
on how to actively use food plating and naming.
Course Materials
Required Materials: The slides of the lessons will be the only required materials for this course, they will be
uploaded on BLACKBOARD by the teacher after the completion of each lesson.
Optional Materials
Suggested readings, including scientific papers, will be provided during the course, book suggestions will also be
provided but are not required for the completion of the course.
Assessment Method
Final Exam: The date and the assignments for the final examination will be communicated to the students during
the lessons.
This course is part of the area “Science, Nutrition and Psychology”, so the final written paper of this area will
comprise different courses.
Course Name: DIETETICS AND WELL-BEING
Preliminary information:
a) Lecturer’s name and surname: Andrea Pezzana
b) Lecturer’s email address for students: andrea.pezzana@unito.it
c) Office hours for students (if applicable): under appointment
d) Affiliation (Institution, company, organization): SC Nutrizione Clinica – ASL Città di Torino
e) Teaching language: English
Course Content
The UN Decade of Action on Nutrition is a commitment by United Nations Member States to undertake 10 years
of sustained and coherent implementation of policies, programmes and increased investments to eliminate
malnutrition in all its forms, everywhere, leaving no one behind. The final goal is the reduction oif the triple burden
of malnutrition, but the tools remind of a multidiscipolinary and holistic approach where "Creativity, Ecology and
Education" are the key words.
A "food, health and environment" point of view will be used, starting from facts and data on nutrition, reading
international guidelines and position papers, and focusing on the 6 pillars of the program:
Sustainable, resilient food systems for healthy diets.
Aligned health systems providing universal coverage of essential nutrition actions.
Social protection and nutrition education.
Trade and investment for improved nutrition.
Safe and supportive environments for nutrition at all ages.
Strengthened governance and accountability for nutrition
Describe the exam, assignment(s), presentation(s), or other evaluation tools to be used:
To be communicated during the course.
This course is part of the area “Science, Nutrition and Psychology”, so the final written paper of this area will
comprise different courses.
13Course Name: FOOD AND SCIENCE
Preliminary information:
a) Lecturer’s name and surname: Gabriella Morini
b) Lecturer’s email address for students: g.morini@unisg.it
c) Office hours for students (if applicable): on appointment
d) Affiliation (Institution, company, organization): UniSG
e) Teaching language: English
Course Content
1. Sequence of topics
What is food? Main molecules in food: macronutrient and micronutrients.
Why do we transform food? Shelf life, nutritional characteristics and palatability.
Taste sciences: chemoreception; tastants, taste receptors. Taste evolution. Taste education.
2. Specify the type of teaching used: lessons, exercises, team work, workshops, etc. and how they will be
structured.
Lectures, tasting of pure compounds
3. Describe the exam, assignment(s), presentation(s), or other evaluation tools to be used
Multiple choice test.
This course is part of the area “Science, Nutrition and Psychology” so the final written paper will comprise
different courses.
Reference texts and Teaching Material
For the course, specific didactic material was developed which does not coincide with texts available on the market
Objectives
The course provides students with scientific knowledge to understand the transformations of foods made in order
to:
a) Increase its shelf life,
b) Improve its nutritional characteristics
c) Modify its organoleptic profile and palatability.
Particular relevance will be given to the sense of taste. Bioactive components with specific taste characteristics
present in food will be described.
The influence of genetic and eating habits on taste preferences and food choice (and therefore on nutrition and
health) will be underlined, together with the need and ways to educate the sense of taste in ourdays food
environment.
This course is part of the area “Science, Nutrition and Psychology”, so the final written paper of this area will
comprise different courses.
DIPLOMACY, GEOGRAPHY AND POLITICS (MA0504)
Course Name: GASTRODIPLOMACY
Preliminary information:
a) Lecturer’s name and surname: Lorenzo Kihlgren Grandi
b) Lecturer’s email address for students: lorenzo.kihlgrengrandi@sciencespo.fr
c) Office hours for students (if applicable): by appointment
d) Affiliation (Institution, company, organization): Sciences Po Paris
e) Teaching language: English
14Course content
The course is divided into four sessions.
1st session (May 10th, 2021, 14:30 – 17:45)
- Introduction to gastrodiplomacy
- Nation branding through food
Required reading: Cusack 2004
2nd session: (May 11th, 2021, 10:00 – 13:15)
- Migration and gastrodiplomacy
- Place branding through food
Required reading: Berg & Sevón 2015
3rd session: (May 12th, 2021, 14:30 – 17:45)
- Food and conflicts
- International organizations and gastrodiplomacy
Required reading: Osipova 2014
4th session: (May 13th, 2021, 10:00 – 13:15)
- International food events: the Week of Italian Cuisine in the World
- Group presentation: a national gastrodiplomacy campaign
Please note that sessions 1 to 3 will include a debate on the required reading. A group presentation will take place
on the 4th session.
Group presentation: each group will design an original gastrodiplomacy campaign for a national government.
Further details will be provided during the first session.
Objectives
Since the appearance of the first civilizations, food has been a powerful means of supporting and enhancing
international relations.
While this is still the case, such ancient practices have recently acquired new and unprecedented characteristics.
Indeed, in recent decades a growing number of central and local governments have been strategically engaging in
gastrodiplomacy in order to boost their public image beyond their own territories, through the medium of cuisine.
By adopting an innovative approach cutting across the boundaries of traditional disciplines (political science,
history, anthropology, and sociology), the course will explore the full scope of this spreading form of diplomacy,
as well as the challenges that it raises.
Requirements/Advance readings (or other assignments)
Required readings:
Berg O, Sevón G (2015), “Food-branding places – A sensory perspective”, Place Branding and Public Diplomacy,
no. 0, 1–16 - https://link.springer.com/article/10.1057/pb.2014.29
Cusack, I (2004), "Equatorial Guinea's National Cuisine Is Simple and Tasty": Cuisine and the Making of National
Culture, Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies, Vol. 8, 131-148 - http://www.jstor.org/stable/20641706
Osipova Y (2014), “From gastronationalism to gastrodiplomacy: reversing the securitization of the dolma in
the South Caucasus”, Public Diplomacy Magazine, Issue 11, 18-22 -
http://www.publicdiplomacymagazine.com/from-gastronationalism-to-gastrodiplomacy-reversing-the-
securitization-of-the-dolma-in-the-south-caucasus/
An additional bibliography will be provided at the end of every session.
This course is part of the area “Diplomacy, Geography and Politics”, so the final written paper of this area will
comprise different courses.
15Course Name: FOOD ACTIVISM: AGROEQUITY AND ADVOCACY
Preliminary information:
f) Lecturer’s name and surname: Shakirah Simley
g) Lecturer’s email address for students: shakirahs@gmail.com
h) Affiliation (Institution, company, organization): Center for Urban Education about Sustainable
Agriculture (CUESA)
i) Teaching language: English
Course Content
• Define and discuss inequities within the U.S. food system, particularly as they relate to labor, production,
distribution and land use.
• Explore the foundations of the food justice movement in California, emphasizing the successful efforts of
local community food organizations that serve low-income and communities of color, particularly in cities.
• Empower students with tools to take collaborative action within their own communities.
• Increase connections between common struggles and knowledge across nations and cultures within the
classroom, to foster alliances that build international resilience within food system.
Teaching Methods
This course will include the following activities below.
- Interactive lecture with slides covering the learning objectives.
-“Power-Mapping” workshop where students will learn about and utilize a visual tool and framework for problem
solving through relationship building; normally used by social advocates to identify the best methods to promote
specific social change within the food system.
Assessment Method
Post power-mapping session, students will work in small groups to design and propose ideas for social action
projects around food justice that would influence change locally or in their respective home communities. Each
small group will be provided 20 minutes to present their social change projects to class in our final session. - 3
Hours.
This course is part of the area “Diplomacy, Geography and Politics” so the final written paper will comprise
different courses.
Reference texts and Teaching Material
The links to materials will be updated and sent to students.
Objectives
Over the past several years, we’ve seen international conversations and social movements building against rising
inequality. The good food movement, in upholding of values of “good, clean and fair” is also subject to these
conversations and critical lens. From exploitation of workers in our fields and kitchens, to displacement from land
and home, to inadequate access to quality food and associated negative health impacts, these factors have created
an unjust cycle for communities of color and low-income neighborhoods, all reinforced by inequitable policies and
undermining democratic and community control of local food systems. Through the lens of dense, urban
environments in California, United States, the course will tackle two large questions: how do we create a more
equitable and inclusive good food movement? How do problematize what’s on our plates, but also who’s sitting
at the table? Using real-world examples the course will focus on four solutions offered by community-based
organizations: Policy, Agency and Ownership, Movement-Building and Resiliency.
Requirements/Advance readings
Feed the Resistance: How Food Can Be a Platform for Activism, 2017
PolicyLink: Equitable Food Systems Resource Guide, 2019
Race Forward: The Color of Food, 2011
Restaurant Opportunity Center: Ending Jim Crow in America’s Restaurants: Racial and Gender Occupational
Segregation in the Restaurant Industry, 2015
16This course is part of the area “Diplomacy, Geography and Politics”, so the final written paper of this area will
comprise different courses.
Course Name: ANIMAL AND MORE-THAN-HUMAN GEOGRAPHIES: PLACES, SPACE,
ENTANGLEMENTS
Preliminary information:
a) Lecturer’s name and surname: Dr Robert Hearn
b) Lecturer’s email address for students: robert.hearn@nottingham.ac.uk
c) Office hours for students (if applicable): 12th to 16th April 2021
d) Affiliation (Institution, company, organization): University of Nottingham
e) Teaching language: English
Abstract
‘Animal and More-than Human Geographies: place, space, entanglements’ provides students with an
introduction to and elaboration of the geographical and historical study of the complex and shifting relationships
between humans and animals – and by extension nature and culture. Grounding the discipline in the context of
contemporaryb appraches to cultural-historical geography,this course will explore relationships such themes with
reference to the production and consumption of food and their geographies. Futhermore, this course with broaden
the scope of animal geographies to enmbrace a more-than-human perspective exploring the entangled assemblages
of network between the human and the non-human world
Course Content
Sequence of Topics
Animal Spaces, Beastly Places’: an introduction to the course, objectives, structure, methodology.
Zoogeography and animal/more-than-human motilities – Colombian Exchange and food patterns in new
cultural landscapes
Wild and domestic Animal Geographies and the edible animal
The interdisciplinary approach to the study of animal and more-than-human geography, straddling
disciplines; sources potential used to explore the human-animal interaction
Animals as companions and accomplices, animals in culinary leisure, animals and consumption, animals
and food culture, animal utility, animal and more-than-human food production and consumption.
A key component will focus on ‘meatification’ and ‘demeatification’ of food provision, with specific focus
on vegetarianism and veganism, and related gender studies (i.e., of meat and men)
The De- and Rewilding (i.e., wild ‘animalisation’) of foodways, with focus on hunting, and species
introductions and mobilities: identities, politics of space, encounters
Multispecies geographies and beyond the more-than-human assemblages
Animal and more-than-human geographies as geographies of (slow/fast) violence
Teaching Methods: 16 hr of didactic activities comprised of lectures, workshops, discussion, round tables etc.
Lessons in English with slides in Italian as required. Practical group exercises on case-study discussion and
presentation. Possibility to organize seminars. The final assessment is consisting of a very brief and informal in
class test during the final session.
Reference Texts and Teaching Material:
The material consists of the PowerPoint presentations (around 500 slides) made available on Blackboard ahead of
the sessions, and full digital reading list provided with specific texts either in PDF form or online. In addition to
these, in particular for classroom group exercises and case studies, the following texts are provided:
Key Reference Texts for all students:
17Gray, J. (2002) Straw Dogs: thoughts on humans and other animals. London: Granta Books.
Buller, H. (2014) Animal Geographies I. Progress in Human Geography, 38(2): 308-318.
Hearn, R., Watkins, C. & Balzaretti, R. (2014) The cultural and land use implications of the reappearance of the
wild
boar in north west Italy: a case study of the Val di Vara. Journal of Rural Studies, 36: 52-63.
Hovorka, A. (2018) Animal geographies II: hybridizing. Progress in Human Geography, 42(8): 374-384
Ingold, T. (1994) What is an animal?
Gibbs, L. (2020) Animal geographies 1: hearning the cry and extending beyond. Progress in Human Geography
44:4, 769-777.
Gillespie, K. & Collard, R-C. (eds)(2017) Critical Animal Geographies: politics, intersections and hierarchies in
a multispecies world. London: Routledge (specifically chapter on food activism, violent encounters, pain as an
ingredient, gastro-ethical encounters)
Lorimer, H. (2006) Herding memories of human and animals, Environment and Planning D: society and space 24:
4970518
Whatmore, S. (2002). Hybrid geographies: natures, cultures, spaces.
Wilbert, C. & Philo, C. (2000) Animal Spaces, beastly places: new geographies of human-animal relations.
London: Routledge.
Van Dorren, T. (2014) Flight Ways: life and loss at the edge of extinction.
Wolch, J. & Emel, J. (eds) (1998) Animal Geographies: place, politics and identity in the nature-culture
borderlands. London; New York: Verso.
A full bibliography will be circulated closer to the time and materials provided, via PDF etc. Specific bibliographies
concerning specific thematic lectures (e.g., meatification) to be released asap.
Objectives
Animal and More-than Human Geographies: place, space, entanglements’ will examine the history of
animal geographies and explore the ethical, moral and cultural issues embedded in human-animal relationships.
Working through both historical and contemporary examples the module explores how animals shape and are
shaped by our ideas about place and identity. Students will study how animals’ figure in human society and culture
in multiple ways – specifically as edible objects and subjects – exploring the numerous modalities in which the
animal body has been marginalized or reduced to commodities, production units, symbols and tools. Students will
be introduced to the theories used to explore the complex entangling of human-animal relations with space, place,
location, environment and landscape, and the complex interweaving of these with the production and consumption
of food. As such, this module presents a novel contribution to the programme at the Universita degli Studi di
Scienze Gastronomiche in that it explores the ‘animal other’ in a medium that seeks to escape from anthropocentric
accounts and embrace the intrinsically ‘more-than-human’ nature of food geographies. There is a clear difference
between the approaches to geography adopted in this module as to that adopted in others, in that these are
informed by cultural rather than historical geography.
This course will enable students to (i) assess contemporary human geographical engagement with non-human
animals and the place of that engagement within the development of the discipline of cultural geography; (ii) to
critically engage with key theoretical perspectives and concepts in the field of animal geographies and the numerous
and intimate entanglements with food geographies and (iii) to evaluate the contribution of geographical enquiry
to the broader ethical and moral issues associated with animals and animal-focused research on food and food
production and consumption.
Requirements/Advance readings (or other assignments)
Before the course it will be necessary for students to read the following articles that will be provided via email by Dr Hearn
Buller, H. (2014) Animal Geographies I. Progress in Human Geography, 38(2): 308-318.
Buller, H. (2015 Animal Geographies II) Progress in Human Geography 39(3): 374-384.
Buller, H. (2016) Animal geographies III Progress in Human Geography 40(3): 422-430.
This course is part of the area “Diplomacy, Geography and Politics”, so the final written paper of this area will
comprise different courses.
18PHILOSOPHY, EDUCATION AND PERCEPTION (MA0464)
Course Name: PHILOSOPHY, TASTE AND CREATIVITY OF PERCEPTION
Preliminary Information:
a) Lecturer’s name and surname: Nicola Perullo
b) Lecturer’s email address for students: n.perullo@unisg.it
c) Office hours for students: by appointment
d) Affiliation: UNISG
e) Teaching language: English
Course Content and Assessment Method
1.Sequence of topics
Following the dialogic vocation of Philosophy, this course is a interactive correspondence with the students.
Questions will be debated in class, through suggested readings, narratives and experiences.
Here the sequence of topics:
What is the ecological thought?
What is the ecological perception? How it entails taste framework?
The link between Aesthetics and Ethics
The creativity of perception
Haptic taste as a task
Cooking as an art
2. Specify the type of teaching used: lessons, exercises, team work, workshops, etc. and how they will be
structured.
The teaching method comprises lessons in class and interactive discussion.
3. Describe the exam, assignment(s), presentation(s), or other evaluation tools to be used
Oral evaluation in class. This course is part of the area “Philosophy, Education and Perception” so the final written
paper will comprise different courses.
Reference texts and Teaching Material
N. Perullo, Taste as Experience. The Philosophy and Aesthetics of Food
N. Perullo, Epistenology (PDF version)
Further material related to the topics - PDF version - will be provide in class according to the specific
teaching/learning experience.
Objectives
Objectives of the course are: A) to develop critical thought about food through deconstructing concepts like
quality; taste; identity; terroir; authenticity. B) To open up awareness on the creativity, both of making food and
of its perception.
Students learn how to manage with the complexity of food scene, with particular focus on taste measurement
(wine and fine dining are the examples more used).
The goal is to provide tools for conceiving gastronomy as a field interwoven with the complexity of life in the
environment.
This course is part of the area “Philosophy, Education and Perception”, so the final written paper of this area will
comprise different courses.
19Course Name: EATING, PARASITISM AND PERSONHOOD
Preliminary information:
a) Lecturer’s name and surname: Lisa Heldke
b) Lecturer’s email address for students: heldke@gustavus.edu
c) Office hours for students (if applicable):
d) Affiliation (Institution, company, organization): Professor of Philosophy and Director of The Nobel
Conference, Gustavus Adolphus College
e) Teaching language: English
Abstract
Consider this: more organisms spend at least part of their life cycle as parasites than in any other state. Yet, we
often speak of parasites as if their elimination would be both possible and beneficial. Parasites are variously
described as: pests, irritants, compromisers of health, and killers. Given these descriptors, it thus seems
unquestionable that the elimination of such organisms would be highly desirable. Parasites weaken the integrity of
those beings on whom they feed; they destroy health, they compromise independence.
What if, instead, we take our cue from the prevalence of parasites, to consider parasitism not as a problem to be
solved, but instead as the relationship in terms of which we understand others? What if we began our philosophical
reflections on human personhood, for instance, not by seeing people as self-contained ‘atoms’, but rather as
collections of interdependent organisms, some of which might kill us? How could we reconceptualize fundamental
philosophical categories, if we began our thinking not with freestanding beings, but with “chomping chompers?”
What would happen to our notions of justice and health if we conceived them through a relationship
characterized by ongoing, persistent, sometimes life-threatening dependence? What if we took parasitism as the
basal relationship?
By centering the parasite, we center relationships that involve eating and being eaten. We place eating--a very
particular, precarious kind of eating--at the very center of our understanding of personhood. What happens when
we do so?
Course Content
a. It’s chomping all the way down: the philosophical relevance of parasitism. On day 1, we explore
parasitism, mutualism, and other symbiotic relationships, as they manifest themselves in the living world.
How could gut microbes, fermented foods, and mushrooms be useful for reconceptualizing human
personhood?
b. Billiard balls or lichens? The metaphysics of personhood from a parasitic perspective. Day 2
considers one conception of human personhood that takes seriously the fact that, rather than an
independent, self-contained atomistic creature (a billiard ball), the human is a “lichen”, a complex
collection of interdependent organisms in tenuous balance.
c. Moral choice in a world of chompers: conceiving agency parasitically. Day 3 will address the
question: how do we conceive of human agency if we are in fact collections of persistently dependent
organisms, many (most?) of which are themselves endowed with some level of agency, some capacity to
“decide” for themselves?
d. From atom to microbe-filled donut: reconceptualizing health parasitically. Day 4 will consider
how the concept of health changes in light of the fact that our most basic functions are carried out by
organisms residing in us, some of which might kill us at virtually any moment.
Teaching method
Micro-lectures will elucidate ideas, when necessary; however, discussion will predominate. To the extent possible,
it will focus on student-generated questions.
Describe the exam, assignment(s), presentation(s), or other evaluation tools to be used
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