Bread Houses Network, part of the International Council for Cultural Centers

The Bread Houses Network, www.breadhousesnetwork.org, is the network of culinary-cultural arts centers within the global International Council for Cultural Centers, www.international3c.org. Both I3C and BHN were conceived and founded by Dr. Nadezhda Savova, anthropologist from Princeton University working on community arts and social change. The Bread Houses Network works to inspire people and communities to discover and develop their creative potential and cooperate across gender, age, ethnic, and religious background through the uniquely unifying methods of collective bread-making and accompanying art forms. BHN strives to create community "Bread Houses" throughout the world that act as culture, art, and community centers where members come together to make and create bread and art. As many participants can attest, bread-making is an art form in and of itself, often passed down through generations, and during baking time groups can collaborate on art projects from music to storytelling to theater or share their own work through poetry readings or displays. BHN recently launched a new program based on a social innovation tool for community outreach, the Mobile Bread House, http://www.breadhousesnetwork.org/our-programs/the-mobile-bread-house/. The long-term mission of the Mobile Bread House is to travel to neighborhoods and their public parks, schools, YMCAs, etc. and host community events / mini festivals where children and adults and people of all ages will be encouraged to participate in collective bread-making and earth oven-building as methods of community-building that we have already proven successful in various countries. From Princeton, the Mobile Bread House is planned to go global and be built in the countries where the BHN already works.