Nadezhda Savova from Bulgaria shared her initiative wich revolves around food.

She currently lives in New York, studying and teaching at Princeton University. She comes to culture futures as president of the International Council for Cultural Centers which tries to connect communtiy art centers involved in the voluntary/amateur arts.

Her project, Bread Houses Network,  started with the 1st bread house in her great grandma’s house in Bulgaria since then, there are now bread houses in Italy, Peru, Korea, South Africa, Croatia, and she is currently working on one in “Bethlehem” which translates itself to house of bread.

The fundamental principle is that food brings people together, it is absolutely universal and bread and the process of making bread is especially engaging, it is almost like sculpting and engages all the senses.

For many cultures it is crucial to reconnect with the senses and with food sources. The tactile experience of making bread, people coming together to make bread can bring about change. The hand engagement stimulates certain parts of the brain that cannot be stimulated any other way. This unleashes the possibility to create things…from making to doing…. this is the first step to sustainability.

If we want to engage it is crucial to understand how the people related to each other and connect…this is true also in city communities, public space in cities can be animated through food. How street food to be cooked and sold…social capital and cultural capital…disintegration of social relations.

Bread is loved by all people all over the world, by all cultures. In Bulgarian the word for ‘bread’ literally translates as peacemaker. While the bread is being baked there is an opportunity for artistic activities, poetry. In the project in Brazil, ‘Theatre of the Oppressed’ ,a Brazilian tradition, recreates frustrations among the community. The bread house offers a great way to engage community in important issues.

Spiritually, bread connects to the deepest values people have. Th process of being together and making it is the most important aspect of this fantastic project.