Cooking in Peace, with Love, for Earth

A story that sheds a ray of hope for the future at a time when hope is in short supply. The younger generation who once led the way in climate activism is beginning to lose the hope that fuelled their determination to change the world. The covid-19 pandemic placed new barriers to travel never before seen in living memory. Global economic issues put the divide between rich and poor wider than ever and travel seems like a luxury that some may never afford.

 

Seyoung's is a story that must be shared to spark hope in a generation that needs to be aware of an alternative to what they anxiously see ahead.

 

Seyoung was born and grew up in Korea, living between Seoul and Busan. She dropped out of High School, but learnt Japanese and was successful in getting a Scholarship for Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, where she obtained a BA in “Peace Studies”. Since graduating she has worked for various NGOs promoting peace and food democracy. She has also spent time traveling and collaborating with friends and colleagues in the global eco-village network(GEN) and NextGEN.

Seyoung at her restaurant - Gypsy Soul Food Community Kitchen (Mokpo City, South Korea)

 

NextGEN consists of the next generation of the global eco-village network. It is a community by and for the next generation. At its center are young people from all over the world, some of which were born and raised within eco-villages or similar communities, and others who have become inspired by that way of life, traveling the world and realizing their dreams through creating communities.

The ways of life that Seyoung witnessed and the lessons that she learnt are the thread that binds the recipes of this book together. Each chapter expressing a different encounter that had a profound effect on her and her philosophy towards life, each chapter ending with one or two of the recipes referenced in that stage of her journey. Recipes with easy-to-follow and illustrated instructions, with suggested substitutions for some of the more exotic ingredients and most importantly, with the warmth and love of the stories and people with whom they were first learnt or tasted.

 

The Nomadic Kitchen, published in 2021 by independent publishers, Yeolmaehana, was Seyoung's story until then. It compiles Seyoung’s travels and philosophies and introduces vegetarian recipes that feature in each chapter. Often examples of the soul foods of the people who appear in that chapter. It was a highly acclaimed bestseller, with Seyoung first traveling across Korea to promote it, then again to meet her readers, answer questions that they might have and discuss the emotions and ideas that her book inspired. Very few copies of the original publication remain available. Yeolmaehana (meaning ‘one fruit’) is restoring ecological sensitivity in Korea and publishing books about alternative ways of life. They hope their books will become bright fruit in the hearts of readers who are developing their lives.

And now she's going international.

 

But doing it differently. Inspired by GEN collaborator, Manish Jain, who is running the school ‘Ecoversities’ in India. He shared how to connect with people by sharing lived experiences in the form of writing, drawing or just meeting and talking amongst other activities. One of his ideas was “Copyleft” which is a concept and platform in which all people have the right and freedom to access information for inspiration and learning at no monetary cost.

Seyoung has decided that she would like for this story to be distributed for free in the same manner initially with the potential for it to be added to an ebook platform in the future, available for a small cost that would go towards making sure it continues to be easily available. It will also be available to download from a range of websites associated with GEN, NextGEN and other eco-villages’ online communities.

 

The timing of the initial release of this book was important. In 2021, right in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, travel was the last thing on many people’s minds. This book allowed people to dream and showed them that travel could be truly possible again with the right attitude and determination. It also inspired its readers to cook in a way they hadn’t before. The recipes are just as nomadic as the writer, so varied in ingredients, method, taste and culinary discipline, they drive readers to new horizons and alter perspectives towards cooking.

 

The translation and adaptation of the book don't go without cost. Seyoung is collaborating with artist and designer, Sun, who is also involved in NextGEN Korea and practicing self-sufficiency based on permaculture, helping people have deeper encounters with nature and animals. They intend to not only recreate the feel and format of her book, but digitalize it in a way that makes it just as enjoyable, and more accessible to readers than it was a physical book. This, along with the cost of translation, will cost around 5,000,000 Korean won.

 

Please help make Seyoung's vision possible, for those all over the world who can take inspiration from her story. Pledge as little as you want, and don’t hesitate to reach out to Seyoung to collaborate and/or wish for your support. She loves to travel and wouldn’t hesitate to meet her donors to cook together or just share stories. At the heart of Seyoung’s book and worldview is the passion for connecting and bringing people together. This will be her special way of saying a big thank you to all who supported her.

Sincerely,

Translation team & NextGEN Oceania&Asia