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Abu Dhabi: Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi (SUAD) and CEFAS organise a panel discussion titled ‘A taste of the Nation, Food, Heritage and Identity in the UAE’ will be held at the campus on 26 February, 2020.
Three speakers- Dr Eloísa Martín, Associate Professor at the United Arab Emirates University and Associate Professor in Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Marzia Balzani, Social Anthropologist and Professor of Anthropology at NYUAD and Ayisha Hassan Khansaheb, Researcher at Qasr Al Hosn will moderate the discussion.
Dr. Eloisa will discuss how food choices are styled and sensitised in addition to illustrating why gastronomy has been transported from the elite kitchens to a global consumer society as a fashionable commodity. Dr. Eloisa added saying that the topic currently occupies a significant place in the media, being the subject of niche publications across print, television and digital platforms. The UAE is central to this globalized trend, with professional and government entities, as well as newspapers having expressed concern for the cultural erosion and the shifting of values which are predicted to be a direct result of sociocultural changes in Emirati lifestyles. Dr. Eloisa also will discuss how this challenge was confronted by the efforts of many institutions that have taken a leading role in establishing cuisine as culturally important on three levels; as a common ground of multicultural conviviality expressed through food festival and culinary activities open to the public, local food posing as a gateway to Emirati culture and values to tourists and migrants, and as a celebrated heritage movement that requires preservation.
Ms. Balzani together with Ms. Khansaheb, will elaborate on the journey of Gahwa or Arabic coffee, and its evolution from being a pinnacle of Emirati hospitality to Emirati heritage. They will illuminate the intangible heritage associated with coffee, including its preparation, social context, and its position as an international symbol of ethnic identity. Recognised by UNESCO, gahwa has been elevated from an everyday occurrence to an event reserved for special occasions, museum performances and social history lessons.
The serving of Gahwa which has become an integral act of Emirati hospitality, requires management for it faces the threat of being reduced to an impoverished tradition that dilutes culture to routinized performances and hollow forms. The academics will also discuss the aspects of Gahwa-related heritage, such as its history, meaning, and contemporary uses that include digital applications in Abu Dhabi.
For more information on Open Day 2020, please visit sorbonne.ae.
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About Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi
Sorbonne University was established in May 2006, under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan, Crown prince of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE armed forces, and under the Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK).
Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi is an Emirati university that benefits from the 760 years of experience of the prestigious Sorbonne, with a state-of-the-art campus located on Al Reem Island that combines comfort with the efficiency of new technologies.
The methodology, education and degrees adopted by Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi follow the French Education System. Sorbonne University and Paris University issue the diplomas and the Ministry of Education in the UAE accredits all.
Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi is immensely proud to continue a remarkable heritage of academic excellence that has been nurtured since the 12th century, and the same pursuit of perfection that has made our mother institution in Paris one of the world’s most prestigious beacons of enlightenment.
More than 2000 students from over 90 countries have graduated from Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi.
Visit Sorbonne Abu Dhabi’s website: http://www.sorbonne.ae
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For any queries or requests, please do not hesitate to contact:
Dana AlHorani
Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi
Phone: + 971 54 34 242 00
Email: Dana.alhorani@sorbonne.ae
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