February’s speaker is Joris Lohman. He is the chairman of the <32 Slow Food Youth Network and a member of the Executive Committee of Slow Food International. He also co-founded the Food Film Festival in 2011. Joris will talk on the global theme “Climate”. Make sure to get your (free) ticket for the event on the 20th at Rockstart! Get to know our speaker as he answers our short interview below:

1. What is your creative profession?

As a member of the Board of Director of Slow Food International, and chair of the <32 Slow Food Youth Network, I coordinate and manage a global network of young change makers in the field of food and agriculture. We bring together people from different disciplines, from chef to farmer, policy maker, designer and journalist, to tackle the issues that surround the food system.

2. What will you be sharing with the CreativeMornings community on Friday 20 February?

I’m fascinated by how the food system works. Food is something so close to all of us, we eat three times, every day, and the way we eat defines us culturally. At the same time, almost everything about the way we organized our relationship to food is wrong: farmers don’t earn living wages, food production destroys the environment, and the food we eat is in many cases bad for our health. I feel like we are in a transition towards a different way we organize our relation to food, and we need the new generation of creative entrepreneurs to create new businesses and projects that provide key solutions to fix the food system.

3. How is Amsterdam and its creative scene special to you?

I am Amsterdam born and (partly) raised. I feel very much at home in the city. I know a lot of people say this about their home town, but I really feel Amsterdam might be one of the best places in the world to live in. Not due to the weather, but because the Netherlands is such a well networked, rich and not hierarchical country. If you want something, you get in touch with almost everyone, at any level. Also, Amsterdam is a small city but with a rich, internationally oriented culture. I think the Amsterdam creative scene provides fertile ground for innovation and new projects.

4. If stuck in a creative rut, what’s your trick to get free and let loose?

If I’m stuck, instead of backing down, I ‘flee forward’. I make as many appointments with as many people in a short period of time possible. I try to look outside of my scene and network. Most of the times this creates new ideas for projects that are stuck.

Thank you Joris for this interview! We look forward to your talk on “Climate” on Friday the 20th. The ticket release is on Monday at 9am - do not snooze on this one!