Taking part in the conference are Zeinab Jeambey, an expert on health sciences and food heritage, and Suraia Abud Coaik, an anthropologist who specializes in the culture of foods.
Presented and moderated by Nuria Medina, Casa Árabe’s Culture Coordinator.

On the occasion of International Mediterranean Diet Day, which will be celebrated for the first time on the upcoming date of November 13, Casa Árabe proposes a journey through the characteristic flavors and knowledge of Lebanon, through its landscapes and including testimonials in villages (with video interviews and photographs), as well as the foods served at our tables, bearing in mind the seasons and the way foods are prepared throughout the entire year.

Sour tastes, so greatly appreciated and varied in these lands, will be given special attention, as well as the variety of nuts, the different ways they are used in cooking and the diversity of methods for preparing wheat. These are foods common to the Mediterranean Basin, but they are prepared, consumed and shared in different ways, depending on the region of the Mediterranean where they are used. The conference will include video screenings, testimonials and music, as well as a sampling of ingredients and cooking methods.

Zeinab Jeambey lives in Beirut and is a project manager at the Lebanon Mountain Trail Association (LMTA). She also has a diploma in Nutrition and Health Sciences from the American University of Beirut (AUB), as well as a Master’s degree in Food Heritage from the University of Barcelona. She developed the first culinary route with the Food Heritage Foundation of Beirut. She also worked in Canada in the food and care sector, and in Syria developing promotional strategies in the heritage sector.  
 
She will be presenting LMTA as an entity that promotes rural tourism in Lebanon, developing projects that work with local communities from north to south, and promoting all local culture, including the food heritage dimension. Once per year, a walking tour is givenalong a large hiking trail that represents not only a way to get to know Lebanon better, but is also a large contributor of knowledge about how rural communities are empowered, placing a highlight on the local economy of towns.

Suraia Abud Coaik lives in Madrid. She is a chef, anthropologist and researcher on cultural aspects related with foods. She carries out research on migrations, the construction of identities and memories involving food and food production, which has led her to travel to Lebanon on many different occasions, and to cooperate with rural projects, placing a highlight on the different flavors and knowledge about such topics.

In Madrid, she is a member of the group Cocinar Madrid - Poéticas del Gusto (Madrid Cuisine - Poetics of Taste), the main goal of which is to highlight culinary practices through the use of mobile kitchens in public spaces, proposing cooperative cooking activities to create a map of real-life experiences involving foods.