“There’s unity through our diversity,” says Paul Castiglione, the founder of Open Kitchens Project and risk taker of epic proportions. On this episode of Move Forward Anyway, host Jeff Meyer talks with Paul about his amazing project, which seeks to form communities across racial, ethnic, economic, and political lines through food. Paul talks about his organization, which coordinates pop-up dinner salon events to connect event organizers with Black and immigrant chefs to eat and facilitate conversation. Or, as their mission says: “Meet new friends, try new dishes, learn about other cultures, explore interests, network, and maybe even discover romance at an Open Kitchens event.” He also shares his journey of leaving behind a $10,000 a month salary in corporate America to start this project, and how it changed his idea of what he really needs to be happy.
In this episode, Paul shares inspiring stories about “ah-ha” moments that came from Open Kitchens events. He also talks about how he is still learning to pivot in the aftermath of Covid-19, which shut down all his live events and forced him online. Paul’s story is one that can inspire anyone with a dream that is deeply valuable, but seems hard to monetize.
Learn more about Open Kitchens, community building, and what it means to really dive into a dream on this episode of Move Forward Anyway.
Quotes:
- “There’s unity through our diversity” (3:10-3:16)
- “How can we create other ways, other systems, new ways of finding our value, our voice, and bring it to the world.” (22:11-22:27)
Links:
Website: https://www.openkitchensproject.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/openkitchensproject.com