Become expert gastronomes and bring about a profound and necessary change for our planet. This is the objective of the first University Master’s Degree in “Sustainable territorial gastronomy and food policies” born in 2023 from an idea of the municipal administration of Melpignano (the town in Grecia Salentina known for the Notte della Taranta) and created thanks to the collaboration between the University of Salento, the University of Gastronomic Sciences of Pollenzo, Slow Food Italia and the Està Association.
A unique training path, which connects the gastronomic excellences of Salento and the Langhe, with the aim of creating new territorial economies and adopting sustainable practices: orienting the processes of social and technological innovation to make production less impactful on the environment; create local networks for the transformation of land products and their distribution; promote “system building” between businesses, institutions, associations, traders, so that tourism can create wealth and enhance “artisanal know-how” and the connection with the territories.
The goal is to train people capable of understanding the profound value of food as a cultural symbol and tool for a new healthy and sustainable development. Gastronomy is a multidisciplinary science, a challenging journey to explore the food system as a whole between history, botany, anthropology, food policies and ecological innovation.
Registrations are open until October 31st, 2 are available5 places reserved for graduates of any faculty and 50% of the registration fee is covered by the funding of “Melpignano promotes culture”, winning project of the public notice “Local Projects for Cultural and Social Regeneration PNRR – LINE B”, which aims to combat the abandonment and depopulation of small municipalities, with investments in cultural, material and immaterial heritage to rebuild a tourist attraction who walks alongside the well-being of the local inhabitants.
The first level University Master takes place within the beautiful Marquis Palace of Melpignano, on Fridays and Saturdays, starting from November 15th and lasting one year: 1500 hours, for a total of 60 credits and a multidisciplinary approach, ranging from theoretical to practical, through lectures, but also seminars, workshops, internships, educational trips and an internship with final project work.
“The first year was very successful – declares the Rector of the UNISG of Pollenzo Nicola Perullo, also member of the Scientific Council of the Master and teacher of the first edition – We believe that this result is important for Salento and therefore ours is an invitation to renew the choice for this path aimed at young people and professionals who want to work for innovation in production food and the valorisation of the food and wine heritage of their territory”.
The master’s degree is divided into three educational modules that concern the history, culture and landscapes of the Italian gastronomic identity, moving from food planning and policies to skills relating to quality agri-food products and supply chains. The objective is to develop new productions and forms of employment around “food”.
“We need to train skills that are able to enhance local food and wine supply chains, but also to promote sustainable nutrition, operating at the same time on both the supply and demand fronts.to. Food policies may in fact prove ineffective without the involvement of those who operate within the supply chains involved and the local communities directly involved. As UniSalento we have developed interesting studies on the topic of nutrition and we participate in projects at a national and international level. I trust that we will soon be able to combine our scientific commitment with new educational paths. In this sense, the master’s degree should be read as a first step in this direction”, he maintains Fabio Pollice, Rector of the University of Salento.
The users of the Master will be the next actors in the world of food with an important mission: to share virtuous behaviors to have a significant impact.
Second Carlo Petrini, the founder of Slow Food, “We are in an epochal historical phase, we are passively witnessing an irreversible climate change with unimaginable damage: the food system is responsible for 37% of CO2 production, we throw away 33% of the food produced, we waste billions of liters of water, we have problems of waste disposal, while 800 million people suffer from malnutrition and 20 million die of hunger. The resources on our planet are not infinite and the hyper-productivist system of industrial society is no longer acceptable. We must change our lifestyle, ways of producing, distributing and travelling. We need to encourage the ecological transition and create a circular economy: favor local and seasonal products, consume less ultra-processed foods and less water, reduce meat, waste, refuse single-use plastic. We must defend the gastronomic heritage of the territories, focus on products that give them identity and on tourism that preserves the happiness of residents, increasing cooperation”.
The Municipality of Melpignano has always placed food at the center of the cultural, social and economic debate, as a paradigm of a new way of healthy development for the territory and the entire planet on which we can all think together. Thus in the scenic Piazza San Giorgio with the porticoes erected at the end of the 16th century to welcome merchants from all over the Kingdom, for years the Market of the Righteous a small organic agriculture market, enriched by collateral cultural events, such as talks and debates dedicated to the most urgent issues of our time, so dear to the municipal administration which also wanted the mensa scholastic bio-ethics at km 0 e the birth of the university master’s degree.
“Starting again from the earth, guardian of our roots, is the key to redesigning the future of our small communities”, says the mayor Valentina Avantaggiato. “The Master analyzes the socioeconomic impact of the “Food System”, training figures capable of actively contributing to the eco-compatible rebirth of territories, enhancing local supply chains, biodiversity and the circular economy. It is an invitation to become custodians of our gastronomic heritage and to build a better future, made of conscious and sustainable choices”.