Pictures taken at the 32nd ICAF conference in Leiden can be viewed on Flickr (if the link doesn't work, search for a person named MEARC)
This year's conference on the topic of 'Food in Zones of Conflict' will explore the theme of food, diet and food problems in places suffering conflicts in any geographic area of the world, regarding both the present day and the past. It will be a truly cross-disciplinary event with over 50 international participants from various academic backgrounds; social, cultural, biological and nutritional anthropologists, historians, archaeologists, agriculturalists, sociologists, dietitians, geographers, representatives of aid agencies and others.
The conference is open to the public. No fee is charged but please register in advance by sending an e-mail to MEARC with 'Registration: Food in Zones of Conflict' in the subject line.
Conveners of this conference are ICAF president Dr. Helen MacBeth and Professor Katarzyna Cwiertka, head of the modern Japan section at LIAS, Leiden University and a MEARC research affiliate.
Helen Macbeth, D.Phil. (Oxon) is President of the International Commission on the Anthropology of Food (ICAF). She is an Honorary Research Fellow in the Anthropology Department, Oxford Brookes University, having retired as Principal Lecturer in Anthropology after teaching there for 33 years. Her academic interest is in how social and cultural factors affect biological outcomes, especially in regard to their multifactorial effects on health, diet and genetics. She has written many interdisciplinary papers and chapters She has edited and co-edited several volumes on topics where it is important to include different disciplinary perspectives. She has organised and co-organised many conferences, three of which were international conferences for ICAF(Europe).
Katarzyna Cwiertka is Professor of modern Japan Studies at the Leiden Institute for Area Studies, Leiden University. Her research to date has utilized food as a window into the modern history of Japan and Korea. Cwiertka is the author of Modern Japanese Cuisine: Food, Power and National Identity (Reaktion Books 2006) and co-editor of Asian Food: The Global and the Local (University of Hawaii Press 2002). Currently, she acts as Principal Researcher of the project “Sustaining Total War: Militarization, Economic Mobilization and Social Change in Japan and Korea”, which is funded by the Dutch Research Council (NWO) and investigates the role of war in the development of contemporary East Asia.
Helen Macbeth, D.Phil. (Oxon) is President of the International Commission on the Anthropology of Food (ICAF). She is an Honorary Research Fellow in the Anthropology Department, Oxford Brookes University, having retired as Principal Lecturer in Anthropology after teaching there for 33 years. Her academic interest is in how social and cultural factors affect biological outcomes, especially in regard to their multifactorial effects on health, diet and genetics. She has written many interdisciplinary papers and chapters She has edited and co-edited several volumes on topics where it is important to include different disciplinary perspectives. She has organised and co-organised many conferences, three of which were international conferences for ICAF(Europe).
Katarzyna Cwiertka is Professor of modern Japan Studies at the Leiden Institute for Area Studies, Leiden University. Her research to date has utilized food as a window into the modern history of Japan and Korea. Cwiertka is the author of Modern Japanese Cuisine: Food, Power and National Identity (Reaktion Books 2006) and co-editor of Asian Food: The Global and the Local (University of Hawaii Press 2002). Currently, she acts as Principal Researcher of the project “Sustaining Total War: Militarization, Economic Mobilization and Social Change in Japan and Korea”, which is funded by the Dutch Research Council (NWO) and investigates the role of war in the development of contemporary East Asia.
- A pdf version of the most recent programme containing the timetable and presenters can be downloaded here.
- On the afternoon of Saturday 20 August a presentation of posters is scheduled. A list with poster presenters and topics is available here.
- List of abstracts
From Schiphol Amsterdam airport to Leiden
There is a direct train connection between Schiphol airport and Leiden Central Station (Leiden CS) which takes up to twenty minutes, with no stops in between. The Dutch train operator is called NS.The Schiphol train station is within the airport beneath the main plaza -there should be signs directing you towards the underground train platforms.
In case you have euro coin change it is easy to buy a single ticket to Leiden Central at one of the yellow and blue ticket machines. If you do not have euro coins, you can either use a bankcard with the 'maestro' logo on it or you buy a ticket at the ticket counter (with a 50 cent surcharge).
A single 2nd class ticket (without discount) will cost Euro 5,20 from a ticket machine and Euro 5,70 at the counter.
The trains leaving Schiphol for Leiden CS usually depart from platforms 5 and 6 (near the Burger King) and go every hour at these times: 11:13, 11:19, 11:28, 11:43, 11:49 and 11:58 -basically one every 15 minutes.
More information about getting around by train and timetables can be found on the NS website.
Once in Leiden
To the conference hotel Tulip Inn
(paper presenters)When you get to Leiden, please head to the Centrum exit (not the LUMC exit). From here, your hotel is a two-minute walk. When you leave the station please go left, past the taxis and a wide series of bike stalls. Past these is a busy section of road, and across the road, right after the corner of the buildings on the right, is the Tulip Inn.
All bookings are made under your last name. Please mention 'MEARC' in case your name cannot be found
NB For conference paper presenters who have requested us to book additional nights at their own expense: your booking(s) have been made. You will be in the same room throughout your stay.
From Leiden station to the conference venue
(Leiden University, Lipsius building, Cleveringplaats 1)When you get to Leiden, please head to the Centrum exit (not the LUMC exit). From here, walk down the main road (Stationsweg, later Steenstraat), leaving the bus station on your right hand, past shops, onto a square with a canal cutting through it (Beestenmarkt). Follow the road to a bridge, cross this bridge and turn right, bringing you across another bridge. Stay on the right-hand side of this road (Rapenburg) and turn right down the narrow Doelensteeg and follow it to the end to reach the Lipsius building, where the conference will be held (directions in pdf)
Other
To the conference venue from the hotel or guesthouse, please follow these links:
hotel to conference venue
guesthouse to conference venue
To the guesthouse
(poster presenters)A room has been booked for you in Pension Witte Singel, a small guesthouse in the centre of Leiden, close to the conference venue (address: Witte Singel 80, Leiden)
The guesthouse can be reached by taxi, bus or foot.
Taxi stands are located on the 'Centrum' exit side of Leiden Central train station (exit the station, taxi's are on your left hand side, above the bicycle parking). Costs should be around Euro 7,50.
The busterminal is also located at the 'Centrum' exit side of Leiden Central train station. You will find it on your right hand side after leaving the station.
Bus no 32 (direction Zoetermeer, Centrum West), leaving at .38 and .08, takes you close to the guesthouse. Get off at the stop called 'Witte Rozenstraat'.
If you prefer to walk, please follow these directions. It should take about 15-20 minutes to get to the guesthouse on foot.
Sightseeing
For those of you who are staying around a bit longer and have some time left to discover the beautiful city of Leiden, the birthplace of the painter Rembrandt van Rijn, please take a look at the Leiden Visitors Center's website.Where to eat
The conference venue is situated in the centre of Leiden so it won't be hard to find a place to eat. You will find some nice restaurant in various price ranges between the Lipsius building and the Breestraat (the so-called 'Pieterskerk' area). On the Breestraat itself you will find Eazie, a fastfood restaurant serving Aisan dishes.In the area between Breestraat and Haarlemmerstraat (Leiden's main shopping street) you'll also find some affordable fast(er)food places, including Jacketz (luxurious jacket potatoes) on the Maarsmansteeg and Moaz Vegetarian on the Haarlemmerstaat no 61.
For more suggestions, please see this list or talk to one of our conference staff on the conference days itself. We are happy to suggest restaurants that will match your budget.
FOOD SHORTAGE IN JAPAN
The banner of this page shows Tokyo residents in March 1944 growing crops on their front lawn because of war-related food shortages (© Life Magazine)
For a larger version of the image click here.
For a larger version of the image click here.
SPONSORS
This conference is made possible through the financial support of the following sponsors:
