A Letter from Our 2020-2021 Curator

Dear Shapers,

I wanted to share a story about the genesis of this recipe book. It was a cold winter day in January 2020 when 90 Global Shapers from more than 40 countries gathered in Zurich for the Pre-Davos Summit and prepared ourselves ahead of our participation for the Annual Meeting in Davos. 

In one session, we broke up into groups and generated ideas for improving global collaboration in the areas of climate emergencies, technology governance and global health. I had chosen a climate emergency group where we were tasked with the challenge of reducing meat consumption. 

We sat around a circle and started to throw some ideas around. After much hesitation, I threw in an idea that came so natural to me – a community recipe book filled with vegetarian/vegan dishes for Shapers, by Shapers. You see, my dad is a chef and our family has always seen sharing food as a form of love. In fact, our family had our 15 minutes of fame when we brought Poke Bowls + Sushi Burritos to Atlanta for the first time through a pop-up restaurant. 

What I remember so viscerally was how this one humble idea awakened the common passions amongst my fellow Shapers. One after another, they shared stories about their unique family recipes or dishes that were special to their regions. And it became clear to us that this idea of a community recipe book had the potential of not only reducing meat consumption but also had the power of bringing a diverse group of people together to connect and share in the most human of experiences: understanding each other more deeply by breaking bread and having dialogues to better our world, together. 

This story inspired the Atlanta hub to develop the first community recipe book. While it's still in its early form, we invite you to join us in this experiment with an open mind. Invite a few Shapers from your hub, share a meal together out of this book, and discuss ways to address climate issues together. And if you feel inspired, too, pitch in a recipe with a story that brings the unique flavors of your story to life.

Judy Oh

2020-2021 Curator

Atlanta, USA Hub

View our cookbook here: Atlanta Hub Community Cookbook