There’s so much to learn from the traditional ingredients, recipes and techniques which form so much of the intangible heritage of Ireland West and Europe’s regions, but sometimes they need a little twist to make them relevant to today. That’s what the Erasmus+ project Cook It Forward is all about: helping vocational students to use their culinary heritage to build their future careers.
BIA Innovator Campus is delighted to work with educators and expert partners in Lithuania, Spain, Ireland and The Netherlands for the next two years to make that happen, after being awarded funding under the EU’s Erasmus+ programme. The project officially started in November 2020 and will finish in October 2022.
Cook it Forward is primarily aimed at vocational school students in hospitality and cooking, as well as their teachers. The project will also reach out to the world of work, building alliances with the restaurants, food companies, caterers, farmers, producers and local authorities who can truly impact the world that students will graduate into.
The project will develop a number of practical tools to help vocational colleges and regions on their way. A teachers’ guide will equip educators with the framework they need to help their students discover culinary heritage, alongside learning materials for students. The project will also create a toolkit for food companies to help them connect with vocational talent, plus a guide for vocational colleges on how to set up Regional Culinary Heritage Alliances to make sure their work really connects with their region.
Although the impacts of the project will be felt on a regional level, the project is truly European: partner organisations and students will learn from each other, with examples and inspiration being drawn from across the continent. Cook It Forward will also offer students and teachers the chance to connect on a European level. Teachers will travel to Friesland in the north of the Netherlands to learn from one another and an international learning week will bring students together with us here in BIA Innovator Campus, Athenry, Galway.
Culinary heritage, innovation, practical skills and students from across Europe working together: in the coming years we hope to prove that Cook It Forward is a real recipe for success.
Full list of project partners:
- KSPMC vocational college, Kaunas, Lithuania
- Kaunas CCIC, Kaunas, Lithuania
- Friese Poort vocational college, Friesland, The Netherlands
- Slow Food Youth Network Fryslân, Friesland, The Netherlands
- IES Hospitality and Tourism vocational college, Orellana la Vieja, Spain
- EOLAS, Badajoz, Spain
- Bia Innovator Campus, County Galway, Ireland
- Momentum, County Leitrim, Ireland
- Open Education Community, Brussels, Belgium
