Farewell, 2022, and hello, 2023! As we look back on another year of exciting new endeavors, we’re so thankful for our creative, passionate team at Oldways, and for our wonderful partners, collaborators, and the community of food lovers we get to interact with every day.
This year, we made new strides with our African Heritage program, celebrated the return of our culinary travels, expanded our webinar series-and so much more. Here’s a look back at some of our favorite moments and proudest accomplishments of 2022, and what we’re most excited about in 2023.
1. New accomplishments for Oldways’ African Heritage program
This year, our program A Taste of African Heritage celebrated many new milestones. In February, health results from the 6-week cooking & nutrition curriculum were published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, showing that participants experienced improvements in blood pressure, waist circumference, and weight, as well as higher intake of fruit, vegetables, and whole grains.
This year, the curriculum was also admitted into the SNAP-Ed Toolkit, making it even more accessible than ever before.
In December, we took time to reflect on the 10-Year Anniversary of A Taste of African Heritage, and created a special 10-Year Report on the growth and successes of the curriculum over the past decade. We are forever grateful for the A Taste of African Heritage Ambassadors-a network longtime of teachers and supporters-as well as all of the advisors, teachers, and program managers whose passion and dedication has made the past 10 years possible.
2. The return of culinary travel & a new newsletter
This year, we resumed our worldwide culinary tours for the first time since 2019! We started with a group tour to Turkey, exploring the Mediterranean city of Antalya and, of course, Istanbul, with Chef Ana Sortun. In April, we brought a group of travelers to Portugal with Chef John DaSilva, exploring Lisbon, Porto, and touring wineries in the Douro Valley. In October, Naples & Amalfi was our destination, with Chef Michael Lombardi teaching a hands-on pizza cooking class, and presenting a seafood cooking demonstration.
In early 2022, we also launched (Always) Hungry for Travel, our Substack newsletter. Whether you’re traveling with Oldways, or a travel lover, or a travel daydreamer, you’ll love our monthly newsletter chock full of travel stories, tips, and recipes-and you have the chance to weigh in with your own stories and suggestions in the comment section!
3. A big year for whole grains
2022 was a great year for whole grains! If it seems like there are more whole grain options available in the grocery store aisles today-that’s because it’s true. Research conducted by the Whole Grains Council team and published in January in Nutrients demonstrates just how much progress there has been in making whole grain options more accessible. Read four key takeaways from the study.
We also celebrated Whole Day for Whole Grain in March, asking our readers and followers to complete fun whole grain challenges. It was a great chance for us all to learn a little more about whole grains, and share this knowledge on our social media accounts with friends, family, and followers.
4. Webinars, interviews & learning online
This year, we expanded our CPEU webinar series with webinars on topics including whole grains and diabetes, the health benefits of cooking with olive oil, and expert tips for crave-wothy food photography.
Over on Instagram and Facebook, we interviewed some of our food and nutrition heros, including Reina Gascon-Lopez of The Sofrito Project, cookbook author Nicole Taylor, and Ciao Italia host Mary Ann Esposito.
5. All of the wonderful people we work with & the supporters of our mission
As always, a highlight of our year is all of the wonderful people who support Oldways’ our ambassadors, partners, collaboraters and friends. In addition, our blog readers, social media followers, and email subscribers play a huge role in making our work possible. Thank you!
And now, looking ahead to 2023?.
1. A fun challenge to start off the new year
Ready for a fresh start in 2023? #ChooseYourChallenge and jump start your healthy eating goals with us!
Choose one of our 4-week meal plans-Mediterranean, Whole Grains, or Vegetarian/Vegan-and start following the plan on Monday, January 9th. Follow us on social media for inspiration and encouragement, and don’t forget to post yourself and tag us @oldways_pt. Each week, we’ll randomly choose a winner among the people who post on social media to win a $50 Visa giftcard!
Follow us on Instagram to join our online community
2. Reaching even more people with our heritage diet curricula
This year, we’re focusing on bringing A Taste of African Heritage, A Children’s Taste of African Heritage, and A Taste of Latin American Heritage to even more communities across the country! Think you’d like to teach one of these curricula in your community? Learn more here.
If you’re looking to learn more about African heritage cuisine at home, check out our e-course for online learning options.
3. New culinary tours to Spain, Turkey, Costa Rica, Switzerland and more
Our 2023 tours are not to be missed! Join us in Spain, Turkey, Costa Rica, or Switzerland as we discover culture, cuisine, and traditions from these incredible destinations.
Traveling on your own timeline? Learn about our custom experiences we can create for you in Italy and Greece.
4. The 30th anniversary of the Mediterranean Diet Pyramid
In May, we will celebrate 30 years since we unveiled the Mediterranean Diet pyramid with the Harvard School of Public Health! Stay tuned for a monthlong celebration during Mediterranean Diet Month in May.
5. More opportunities to connect with all of you
In 2023, we can’t wait to reach even more people than ever before! Follow us on Instagram and TikTok, connect with us on LinkedIn, sign up for a newsletter (below), or join us on a culinary tour. We can’t wait to talk about heritage diets & good food with all of you!
Plus, stay tuned and keep your eye on the Oldways website. We have an exciting surprise to unveil in 2023!
Leave a comment