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Clark University
Integration and Belonging
close up of 2 prepared dishes

Food is central to shaping identities, building communities, and fostering belonging.

The Food and Belonging cluster examines how migrants use food practices as strategies for adaptation, resilience, and sustainability, while also cultivating a sense of home in new environments. Through these practices, food becomes more than sustenance—it serves as a medium for connection, cultural continuity, and emotional well-being.

We explore how food fosters integration by encouraging dialogue around the intersections of local, national, and global culinary traditions. Our focus is on how these interactions shape belonging, identity, and social cohesion, enriching both personal relationships and public spaces.

Our People

Jude Fernando

Jude Fernando

Susan Beth Rottman
Susan Beth Rottman

Anita Fabos

Anita Fábos

Courses Offered

Cultures of Exile – Cultures of Exile is a course offered at Clark through the Sustainability and Social Justice (SSJ) Department, taught by Prof. Anita Fábos. This course explores both the concept and context of exile in the contemporary world from the perspective of those who experience it, create cultural artifacts about those experiences, and contribute to transformations–small and […]
Forced Migration and the City – Places of displacement  Cities have long served as “places of displacement” where forced migrants found safety, built livelihoods, dealt with risks and marginalization, and identified opportunities. In the contemporary era, the humanitarian system of aid agencies, intergovernmental organizations, local charities, and other actors have followed forced migrants to these places of displacement to deliver aid […]
Refugees, Forced Migration, and Belonging – Students in the course were asked to choose a “People on the Move” – people who were forced to move due to conflict and are now present in at least two “places of displacement” outside of their country of origin. Throughout the course, the students were asked to study them from different perspectives and in […]

Our Outputs

food and migration research Susan Beth Rottmann’s Food and Migration Research Team in Istanbul, Turkey – Through in-depth qualitative research with Syrian women, the project endeavors to understand migrant homemaking activities and specifically how food practices change and are involved in integration.
illustration of people in a large gathering Belonging Talks Series on Food and Migration – A Belonging Talks series presenting the role of food and cooking in mobile homemaking and for sustainable societies.
Contact Information

Integration and Belonging Hub

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