A Slow Food Primer
With the advent of our new group, slowfood.gather.com, questions have come up about the nomenclature, the structure of the organization, and its goals and aspirations. Here are some terms all should be familiar with as we embark upon these discussions.
Slow Food – (1) proper noun: A movement, embodied in an international charitable educational organization (a "501(c)3" in the US), which seeks to reinvigorate the kitchen and table as centers of pleasure, culture and community, and to protect endangered flavors from the onslaught of industrial standardization. (2) Adjective: describing any food that is raised with care, prepared with passion and served with love, e.g. "That meal of heritage turkey and Manoomin rice was a true Slow Food dinner."
Convivium – (pl. Convivia) The Slow Food Movement's name for a local chapter, the convivium is the basic unit of the movement. A true grass roots organization, Slow Food's activities are guided by its membership. From the Latin meaning "To live together."
Ark – One of the core projects of Slow Food, seeks, first and foremost, to save an economic, social and cultural heritage - a universe of animal breeds, fruit and vegetables, cured meats, cheese, cereals, pastas, cakes, confectionery, and more that are in danger of extinction form the torrent of standardization. Practically speaking, the Ark is an academic exercise, a catalog that seeks to define and describe important endangered foods.
Presidium – (pl. Presidia) A more proactive stance in defense of especially precious Ark-listed foods, the Presidia are active interventions to support and promote particular foods, such as hand harvested Manoomin wild rice, bourbon red turkeys, or the Delaware bay oyster. Using the concept of conservation through consumption, Slow Food helps create markets for these foods, believing that if there is demand, then the products can survive. Slow Food takes no money for this work in support of farmers, fishers and other food artisans.
Salone del Gusto – From the Italian meaning roughly "Hall of Flavor," The Salone is Slow Food's flagship event. Held in October of every even-numbered year in the Olympic City of Torino, the Salone showcases the best, most interesting, most endangered, and most delicious foods in the world. 5 days of taste workshops, seminars, samplings, dinners and hundreds of exhibitors. It is sort of the "Haj" of the Slow Food movement – all members who are able should make the pilgrimage at least once.
Terra Madre – A relatively new undertaking, Terra Madre is a world gathering of food communities. The brainchild of Slow Food's founder, Carlo Petrini, it seeks to create a global network of sustainable communities. Contemporaneous with the Salone, Terra Madre convenes 5000 farmers, fishers, brewers, winemakers, cheesemakers, beekeepers, goat herders, shepherds, chefs, academics, etc. for a conference to help make this network a reality. Recently much of Terra Madre's efforts have been centered on helping the communities affected by the Asian Tsunami and Katrina.
UNISG - Università di Scienze Gastronomiche: The University of Gastronomic Sciences. The University of Gastronomic Sciences, a truly unique academic institution, was founded by Slow Food in conjunction with the regional authorities of Emilia-Romagna and Piedmont. The objective is to create an international research and training center, working to renew farming methods, protect biodiversity and maintain an organic relationship between gastronomy and agricultural science.
The Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity – 75% of European food product diversity has been lost since 1900. 93% of American food product diversity has been lost in the same time period. 33% of livestock varieties have disappeared or are near disappearing. 30,000 vegetable varieties have become extinct in the last century, and one more is lost every six hours. The mission of the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity is to organize and fund projects that defend our world's heritage of agricultural biodiversity and gastronomic traditions. We envision a new agricultural system that respects local cultural identities, the earth's resources, sustainable animal husbandry, and the health of individual consumers.
For more information:
Of course there is an enormous amount of information in an organization this large. Here is a list of resources, local, national and international, which will provide all the information you need.
Local Convivium Websites:
Slow Food Asheville – http://www.slowfoodasheville.org
Slow Food Baltimore - http://www.grapeevents.com/slow_food_baltimore.htm
Slow Food Bella Berkeley - http://www.food-culture.com/bella
Slow Food Boston - http://www.slowfoodboston.com
Slow Food Chicago – http://www.slowfoodchicago.org
Slow Food Denver – http://www.slowfooddenver.com
Slow Food Eugene - http://www.slowfoodeugene.org
Slow Food Flagstaff – http://www.environment.nau.edu (homepage of Convivium Director Gary Nabhan)
Slow Food Houston - http://www.slowfoodhouston.org
Slow Food Iowa – http://www.slowfoodiowa.org
Slow Food Kansas City – http://www.slowfoodkansascity.com http://www.slowfoodkansascity.org
Slow Food Los Angeles – http://www.slowfoodla.com
Slow Food Madison – http://www.slowfoodwisconsin.org
Slow Food Marin – http://www.slowfood-marin.com
Slow Food Michiana – http://www.slowfoodmichiana.com
Slow Food Monterey Bay - http://www.slowfoodmontereybay.org
Slow Food New Orleans – http://www.neworleansslowfood.com (currently non-functioning)
Slow Food Outer Banks - http://www.outerbanksslowfood.com
Slow Food Central Pennsylvania – http://www.slowfoodcentralpa.com
Slow Food Philadelphia - http://www.slowfoodphiladelphia.org or http://www.slowfoodphilly.org
Slow Food Pittsburgh – http://www.slowfoodpgh.com
Slow Food Portland - http://www.slowfoodportland.com/
Slow Food Puget Sound – http://www.sfps.us
Slow Food San Francisco – http://www.slowfoodsanfrancisco.com
Slow Food Santa Cruz I (It's About Thyme)– http://www.slowfoodsantacruz.com
Slow Food Santa Cruz II (Bountiful) – http://www.slowfoodsantacruz.org
Slow Food Seattle - http://www.slowfoodseattle.org
Slow Food Silicon Valley – http://www.slowfoodsv.com
Slow Food Tucson – http://www.slowfoodtucson.org
Slow Food Washington, DC – http://www.slowfooddc.org (apparently non-functioning)
Slow Food Wisconsin SE – http://www.slowfoodwise.org
Slow Food Yolo - http://www.slowfoodyolo.com
Slow Food U.S.A. National Office
20 Jay St, Suite 313
Brooklyn, NY 11201
718.260.8000
www.SlowFoodUSA.org
Slow Food International Office
Via Mendicità Istruita, 8
12042 Bra (CN) - Italy
Tel 39.0172.419.611
www.SlowFood.com
international@slowfood.com
Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity
Via della Mendicità Istruita, 14
12042 Bra (Cn) – Italy
39.0172.419.701
The University of Gastronomic Sciences
Terra Madre
Via della Mendicità Istruita, 14
12042 Bra (CN)
Italy
39.0172.472911
www.terramadre2004.org
http://forum.terramadre2004.org
Other National Offices
Australia
1800 009684
0800 281 141
www.hundlinger.at/slowfoodaustria/
Belgium
0800 79329
Canada
1 8662 666 661
1800 553930
Spain9009 86946
0800 022 7794
United Kingdom0800 917 1232
You are encouraged to join the movement!
Slow Food maintains all people's right to taste - and gains its momentum through its members' hands-on dedication to change. We currently have over 80,000 members, in 100 countries, spreading the word and changing the world! Your participation and your voice make our message stronger.
As a member, there are many ways to get involved and be heard. Your local Slow Food group is the first point of contact - joining you to a larger international movement of people dedicated to protecting taste, culture and the environment as universal social values. You will have an opportunity to participate in all our programs and attend all local, national and international events. Here is a sampling of member benefits:
- A personal membership card
- Four issues of the international magazine, Slow
- Four issues of the newsletter, the Snail
- The right to attend all events organized by the Slow Food movement around the world
- Discounts on all Slow Food publications and merchandise
When you join or donate to Slow Food, your funds directly contribute to our movement to change the world. Your helping hand makes an enormous difference, as we reach across cultures, continents and out to new people to educate the world about the Slow life. You are making these programs possible:
- Ark & Presidia
- Slow Food in Schools (including the School Garden Projects)
- Terra Madre
- The Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity
Corporate Matching Gift Programs
Many companies offer matching gift programs to their employees and will match charitable contributions to eligible organizations. Matching gifts can double or even triple your donation to Slow Food USA! To find out whether your company supports a matching gift program, contact your Human Resources department. Your matching gifts administrator will give you a form to send along with your donation. We'll take care of the rest!
For more information, please contact Deena Goldsmith, Membership Coordinator at (718) 260-8000.
Slow Food U.S.A. is a non-profit organization.
An individual membership is $60.00 per year and a couple's membership is $75.00 per year. Your membership dues are tax deductible, except for the $15 allocated for the journal.
For information on membership, donations or starting a new convivium, please contact Slow Food U.S.A.'s National Office at 718.260.8000
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