CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE · CULINARY DIPLOMACY · INTERNATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS
Where Food, Culture & Diplomacy Become Conversations That Matter
Through interviews, field research, and conversations across borders, Yvonne Maffei explores the people, traditions, and ideas that shape international relationships through food, culture, and diplomacy.
Featured In
- The New York Times
- Forbes
- The Chicago Tribune
- CNN Eatocracy
- Epicurious
- U.S. Department of State
- The World Bank
- Islamic Development Bank
- Mediterranean Diet Roundtable
- Yale University
- Cornell University
- NYU
- CGTN
WHAT I DO
Four perspectives. One cultural framework.
Each engagement draws on a distinct lens, yet all begin with the same question: what does this mean, and to whom?
Cultural Intelligence
Reading the codes, values, and unspoken logic that shape how people across cultures perceive, decide, and belong.
Culinary Diplomacy
Using food, heritage, and the shared table as instruments of soft power, cultural exchange, and international understanding.
Global Conversations
Helping embassies, universities, tourism boards, NGOs, and institutions navigate cultural context with greater confidence and clarity.
Research & Insight
Grounding every insight in scholarship, field study, long-form editorial, and two decades of accumulated cultural knowledge.
CULTURAL HERITAGE PROJECTS
Projects & Initiatives
Medterra
A living archive of Mediterranean culture, food diplomacy, and belonging.
Oil of Anatolia
A storytelling platform for single-origin olive oil rooted in Anatolian heritage and cultural memory.
Scents of Sicily
Cultural storytelling translated into a tangible product and brand experience.
A Taste of Saudi Arabia
A cultural heritage initiative exploring Saudi Arabia's culinary traditions through food, diplomacy, and storytelling.
Global Perspective. Cultural Depth.
Proven Impact.
Two decades of researching how food, culture, and diplomacy shape people, places, and international relationships.
Interviews, field research, essays, and long-form storytelling that bring complex cultural ideas to a wider audience.
Bringing together voices from diplomacy, culture, education, and heritage through interviews, moderation, and public dialogue.
Creating initiatives that celebrate heritage, strengthen cultural understanding, and inspire international collaboration.
FROM THE ARCHIVE
Where the thinking lives.
01 / READ
Featured Writing
Long-form writing exploring food, culture, diplomacy, and the ideas that shape international relationships.
02 / ADVISE
Cultural Advisory
Helping organizations navigate culture, food, heritage, and international relationships through research and insight.
03 / WATCH
Global Conversations
Interviews, discussions, and conversations exploring diplomacy, heritage, food, and the people behind them.
04 / SUBSCRIBE
Newsletter
A thoughtful monthly dispatch exploring food, culture, diplomacy, and the Mediterranean world.
WHERE THE WORK RESONATES
Engaging institutions shaping global conversations.
- Governments & Ministries
- Diplomatic Missions
- Tourism Boards
- Food Producers
- Universities
- NGOs
- International Organizations
NEWSLETTER
A monthly dispatch from the Mediterranean and beyond.
“Food is our common language.
Stories are how we understand one another.”
— Yvonne Maffei