Hatay: Post-earthquake stories from the field kitchens

On 23 February 2024, we welcomed Dr. Erhan Akarçay from Anadolu University and Dr. Anna Maria Beylunioğlu from Nehna platform to listen to their precious field-driven insights into how people built field kitchens in Hatay after Feb 6 earthquakes in Türkiye. At the beginning of the event, Assoc. Prof. Susan Beth Rottmann introduced the project to the audience and talked about her field visit to Hatay. Rottmann talked about how Syrian migrants were affected by the earthquake, with a focus on culinary life and culture after the disaster. Then Erhan Akarçay gave an elaborate and comprehensive speech on his personal field experiences in Hatay as part of a volunteering field kitchen initiative to provide food for earthquake survivors. Akarçay was followed by Anna Maria Beylunioğlu who also shared precious insights and anecdotes from her own experience in Hatay from right after the quake till now. She talked about how quake survivors in Hatay (particularly the Christian community) organized around food and culinary practices. She also mentioned the commemorative significance of cultural food to maintain belonging and identity in Hatay. The event concluded with a Q&A session, where the audience and speakers shared ideas and experiences to understand the significance of food for people in Hatay to foster solidarity & survival in the traumatic post-earthquake period.