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Course Stories, Season 2, Episode #7: Slow It Down: Sustainable Food Practices Through Project-Based Learning

In this final episode of Season Two, we come together to enjoy great food and engage in even better conversation about the Mediterranean lifestyle. ITA 350 explores local food cultures in Italy and challenges students to examine their relationship with their local food and communities.

Associate Professor, Juliann Vitullo, and Teaching Professor, Chiara Dal Martello, are joined by Instructional Design Associate, London Skiles, to share how they utilize project-based learning to help students analyze the Mediterranean diet in terms of relational values, especially food justice and sustainability, and then apply those sustainable food practices within their own communities.

A tavola! Come and eat!

S02 E07 Slow It Down – ITA 350 Food and Culture The Mediterranean Lifestyle in Italy

In this Episode:

Juliann Vitullo

Juliann Vitullo is an Associate Professor of Italian studies, a Senior Sustainability Scholar, and Co-director of the Humanities Lab at Arizona State University. She has written on various aspects of medieval, early modern, and contemporary Italian culture with emphasis on the relationship between textual traditions and the material world, including economics, gender, and food studies. Both her research and community-based teaching emphasize the importance of preserving the cultural and ecological knowledge of traditional and Indigenous foodways, including those of the Southwest where she lives and teaches, for a more equitable and sustainable future.

Chiara Dal Martello

Chiara Dal Martello is a Teaching Professor of Italian studies at the School of International Letters and Cultures. Italian by birth and passionate about the language and culture of her native country, Chiara Dal Martello has been teaching Italian language and culture courses at Arizona State University since 1996. Chiara is highly motivated to help students develop cultural awareness through language, experience, and exploration. She has led students to Florence and Sicily for summer study abroad programs so they can experience for themselves the history, culture, and cuisine of Italy. Chiara has been successful in creating innovative new courses that include sustainability, human migration, natural disasters and their effects on culture.

London Skiles

London Skiles is an Instructional Designer Associate with EdPlus at ASU Online where they assist instructional designers and faculty in the design and development of online courses and course materials. Prior to her role as an instructional designer, she worked in higher education as an academic support specialist and coordinator for ASU and as adjunct faculty, primarily teaching composition and literature.