What an Incredible Experience!

Nauset Regional High School Culinary Arts instructor Norma Jean Anderson today announced that she and a group of 4 Culinary students recently returned from Milan, Italy where they attended the EF Global Leadership Summit on the Future of Food.  Our students worked at various fundraising activities for about 8 months to help pay for this unique experience.  EF Educational Tours Summit Series aims to unite American high school students with their peers from around the world, while helping them build critical leadership and “real world skills” by responding to a project challenge related to a pressing global topic – in this case, the future of food.    

“We were incredibly excited to attend this year’s EF Global Student Leaders Summit,” said Group Leader Norma Jean Anderson, Culinary Arts Instructor.  “These are issues of great importance to us all and I try to introduce them to all of my students to encourage their awareness and to get them thinking in terms of solutions.  The Summit was an incredible opportunity to immerse our students into each destination’s cultural cuisine and to collaborate with other students to respond to a learning challenge focused on the future of food.  From tackling the challenges of eating locally and organically to the importance of composting to the need to farm sustainably and more issues, the Summit encouraged students to create innovative solutions for global food challenges.”  In addition to the immersive, educational travel and project based learning work, Summit attendees heard from keynote speakers like the host of CNN’s No Reservations Anthony Bourdain, award-winning writer, activist and academic Raj Patel and educator, innovator, social entrepreneur and urban farmer Stephen Ritz. 

Our group combined with a group from Texas and a group from North Carolina and spent most of our time in Spain; Madrid, Barcelona & Toledo as well as a couple of days in the Provence region of France, staying in the heart of the old Roman city in a charming 17^th century building in historic Orange, visiting Avignon, the Roman Amphitheatre at Nimes and the awesome Roman aqueduct at Pont du Gard, where students cooled off with a swim in the clear waters. Highlights for us included a workshop in molecular gastronomy ( students made instant ice cream using liquid nitrogen, learned spherification technique for making “pearls” and “caviar”, emulsification to make foams and airs and gelification techniques.  We also enjoyed a cooking class in Barcelona where we learned how to make the classic Paella and split into small groups to have dinner with local residents.  The Boqueria Market in Barcelona was a big hit with students and educators alike.

 At the summit, 114 teams of students from around the world were given food related challenges to tackle employing an approach called “design thinking”.  Only 8 finalists were chosen to present their ideas on the “big stage” to all of the summit attendees and Mssrs. Bourdain, Patel and Ritz.  Nauset student Mitchell Lynch was the only member of our combined travel group to make it to the big stage with his team to the finals.  Congratulations, Mitchell!  After the finals and announcement of the winning team, summit attendees were bussed out to a gorgeous historic villa outside of Milan to enjoy a farewell party and many delicious examples of local cuisine!  Fresh pastas, Risotto alla Milanese, made to order individual pizzas and gelato & ices made the perfect parting feast in this stunning setting!

EF Educational Tours is a part of EF Education First, the world leader in international education. EF Tours is a pioneer in experiential learning, leading students abroad to encounter new cultures and languages while building real world skills such as critical thinking, creativity, communication, and citizenship.  For more information about EF Tours and the EF Global Leadership Summits visit www.eftours.com.  [AB1]