Defining the Field of Culinary Diplomacy

Some students study global affairs – others shape them. When Sam Chapple-Sokol F12 began studying law and diplomacy, he didn’t expect to change how they were studied, but a course with Alan Henrikson led diplomats and academics alike to rethink the power of food on the global stage.

“I've always just been motivated by food, by storytelling around food and by the cultures that lead to what dishes are created,” he said. “Learning the etymology behind a dish is what excites me.”

“When you think of any food you're eating, there is an origin story,” he added. “We don't ever think about those origin stories, or whether there was a single person or a community or a movement behind that dish. Each of those stories has value to be told.”

Global Cuisines Intersect with Diplomacy

During his time in the Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy (MALD) program, Chapple-Sokol found an opportunity to study these questions surrounding food in the global and political context that intrigued him. Amid his studies of negotiation, mediation and conflict resolution, Chapple-Sokol took Henrikson’s Diplomacy: History, Theory and Practice course.

“I had never studied diplomacy per se, so it was very eye-opening for me to look at the history of diplomacy and how it progressed,” he said. “What I loved about the class was that Professor Henrikson encouraged us to take diplomacy in our own direction.”

For a research paper, Chapple-Sokol cooked up a fresh idea – how did the story of diplomacy intersect with global cuisines? Thus, he decided to study “culinary diplomacy.”

“It was a really novel topic at the time,” he said. “And Alan was incredibly encouraging. He said, ‘You've uncovered something new and made it your own.’”

With Henrikson’s support, Chapple-Sokol submitted his paper to The Hague Journal of Diplomacy. The article, which discussed Chapple-Sokol’s findings on how food can be used as a tool of diplomacy, was accepted for publication.

The Pillars of Culinary Diplomacy

Chapple-Sokol identified three pillars of culinary diplomacy: how heads of state use food, how governments use food to project soft power (also known as gastrodiplomacy) and how food connects individuals. 

Following his time at Fletcher, Chapple-Sokol saw the first pillar at work while serving as a pastry chef in The White House from 2012 to 2014.

“I worked at a state dinner between President Obama and President Hollande of France,” he said. “I saw Executive Chef Cristeta Pasia Comerford build the menu to honor this historic relationship – rooted in American cooking, but with beautiful and meaningful tribute to the importance that French cuisine plays all around the world.”

A beef dish used a blue cheese sauce with Bayley Hazen Blue cheese from Chapple-Sokol’s home state, Vermont.

While he got a behind-the-scenes look at how the first pillar is executed, Chapple-Sokol sees that the second is much easier for people to observe in their communities. He pointed to the number of Thai restaurants in Washington.

“The Thai government put millions of dollars into a program to train chefs and increase exports,” said Chapple-Sokol. “The number of Thai restaurants in America compared to the number of Thai-Americans is one restaurant for every 55 Thai-Americans, whereas the number of Mexican restaurants for Mexican-Americans is one to 650.”

We’ll Do Better for Our Communities

While Chapple-Sokol’s work has taken him to kitchens across the world, including with the nongovernmental organization, World Central Kitchen, today he shares all that he’s learned about the field at George Washington University. Through his work with José Andrés Group and the Global Food Institute, Chapple-Sokol teaches an undergraduate course on culinary diplomacy.

The Global Food Institute aims to integrate food studies across the university – a mission that, for Chapple-Sokol, hearkens back to his first realization at Fletcher that he could study the power of food globally. 

“I think that that epiphany is still happening for a lot of students,” he said. “They realize, ‘I'm studying IR, I never thought I could connect it to food.’ Or, ‘I'm studying agriculture. So many people don't think about what the food on their plate actually connects with immigration, national security, diplomacy or public health.’”

“It’s all very interconnected,” he continued. “If we can start connecting those dots, we'll have a much better understanding of the world, and hopefully we'll do better for ourselves, our communities, our country and the world.”  

Read more about Fletcher’s Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy degree program.