About the Journal
Harvest is an open access interdisciplinary journal dedicated to publishing original research, analysis, and creative work that deepens our understanding of the complex and evolving world of food. We provide a platform for critical engagement and diverse perspectives that span global contexts, with a particular emphasis on the unique challenges, cultures, and innovations found within Aotearoa New Zealand and the wider Pacific region.
We welcome contributions from scholars, practitioners, activists, and writers whose work fosters dialogue across disciplines and communities. We welcome submissions written in clear, engaging language that speaks to both academic and public audiences.
Current Issue
Kete Aronui
1. (noun) Basket of knowledge of aroha, peace, and the arts and crafts, which benefit the Earth and all living things—one of the three baskets of knowledge. This basket relates to knowledge acquired through careful observation of the environment. It is also the basket of ritual, literature, philosophy, and is sometimes regarded as the basket of the humanities (maoridictionary.co.nz).
In other words, the perfect basket in which to place our first volume.
This new journal aims to showcase the incredible diversity of knowledge, cultures, and experiences that come together within AUT's gastronomy programme. It pulls together some of the amazingly innovative, critically focused, and just downright interesting work our students have produced over the last year or so. All of the pieces are distinct, with students responding in their own unique ways to the various assessment sets across our range of gastronomic courses. Each piece of work, though, is highly reflective of that individual student—their backgrounds, perspectives, and interests. As lecturers we are privileged to watch our students’ learning journies as they take on new knowledge, learn to critically reflect on it, and then contextualise it through their own world lens. It’s something we strongly encourage: positionality. What is your opinion? Why do you see it this way? Tell us, show us, and, of course, support it with evidence.
We encourage creativity, originality, and bravery in our students’ assessment submissions, and so it has always felt, to me at least, a shame that many of the great pieces of academic work submitted for assessment are not shared beyond the grading lecturer. That the effort put in by the student is not more widely celebrated.
So, that is the ethos behind this first issue. It’s not a classic academic journal, nor is it meant to be. And we implore you not to judge it as one. Simply enjoy the work, some of it critical, some of it introspective, but all a part of our students’ journey through food.
Rob Richardson, Co-Editor
N.B.: All of these articles have been published here with permission.
