March 2022: Food as Cultural Diplomacy – United We Eat in the Missoula Community
In part 2 of a 3 part series on Food As Cultural Diplomacy, Udo is joined by Beth Baker, program manager, and Rozan Shhib, kitchen assistant of Missoula’s Soft Landing United We Eat (UWE) Program. Beth grew up in Germany and Syria. She learned Arabic, lived in a small Palestinian village for two and a half years, and is excited to work with Missoula’s refugee and immigrant communities, combining her delight in delicious food with the joys of building community. Rozan is from Damascus, Syria, and lived for seven years in Cairo, Egypt, before arriving in Missoula in the fall of 2020. Rozan hopes her cooking will encourage people to sit down and enjoy food together. UWE provides a platform for refugee chefs to feel valued by sharing their food with their new community. UWE offers weekly international meals cooked by a rotating team of refugee and immigrant chefs, as well as virtual cooking classes.
As the United We Eat website states: “In a World Divided, we believe it is United We Eat!”
May this episode inspire the listener to discover, enjoy, and learn about international cuisine.