Fall 2008 International Exchange Forum

The Mediterranean Diet
Refreshing your understanding. Translating it to the plate.

Program Facilitators

Nikki Rose

Amanda Archibald

 

Nikki Rose, Founder and Director of Crete's Culinary Sanctuaries, is a Greek-American professional chef  and writer.  She is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and has worked in fine dining establishments and cultural-culinary education in Paris, San Francisco, New York and Washington, DC.  She explored Greece for over 10 years before settling down in her grandmother's homeland of Crete in 1998 to form Crete's Culinary Sanctuaries.

Nikki has designed and hosted distinctive culinary arts preservation seminars since 1996, featuring chefs from The White House, The Culinary Institute of America, Johnson & Wales, the International School of Confectionery Arts, Grand Rapids Community College, the Belgian Embassy in Washington, DC, The Ritz-Carlton, and premier restaurants.  Her programs are approved by the American Culinary Federation for Continuing Education credits and have been professionally videotaped for educational purposes.

Nikki was assistant cookbook editor at the Culinary Institute of America, working on professional and commercial cookbooks, including “Techniques of Healthy Cooking.  She contributed to “Thirty Secrets of the World’s Healthiest Cuisines” (John Wiley & Sons).  Her published articles, upcoming book and documentary focus on traditional cuisine, culture, sustainable agriculture and environmental issues.  Articles have appeared in Slow Food, Athens News, Responsible Travel.com, Sustainable Travel International, the Center for the Advancement of Foodservice Education, Greek Circle Magazine, and Stigmes (Crete) Magazine, among many others.  CCS worked with Television New Zealand on their culinary travel series "Taste Takes Off."  

About Crete’s Culinary Sanctuaries

Crete's Culinary Sanctuaries (CCS) programs cover the whole picture of Crete: culture, natural beauty, organic food and gardening.  “Intensive cultural immersion experiences,” is how Nikki defines the programs.  A decade ago, Nikki developed these “on location” seminars where classes are conducted in residents’ kitchens, gardens, olive oil factories, vineyards or ancient sites.  Presentations are by local experts who have a proven track record in cultural preservation projects and sustainable tourism action programs.  Over the years, CCS has expanded its all-local network to include 40 small businesses and individuals throughout the island.  CCS is a benchmark for best practices in sustainable travel (aka responsible travel) by international conservation and humanitarian organizations, including the World Tourism Forum for Peace and Sustainable Development and the World Travel and Tourism Council.  

Nikki frequently speaks about eco-agritourism (aka sustainable travel or responsible travel) at international conferences and is an advisor for start-up programs, authors and researchers on the inter- related topics of responsible travel as a means to help solve social and environmental issues.

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