Food and Heritage

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Food began as one of the two things man needed for survival, along with shelter. Today, the world produces 17% more food per person than 30 years ago (Oxfam, Canada). However, there are more refugees than ever before--65 million people, according to UNHCR. These refugees have lost shelter and in many cases food for basic survival. When they do settle or get temporary refuge, they cannot recreate what was torn down or destroyed or what is now far away, but they can remember—and share--their heritage through food. Food is so essential to our identity that Korean kimchi and Uzbekistan palov are two of several foods listed as Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO.

Featured Activities

THE GOLDEN HARVEST: Feature Length Documentary

Coming Soon

The Mediterranean Diet is UNESECO Intangible Cultural Heritage, and without olive oil, the Mediterranean Diet does not exist.

The Golden Harvest, a feature length documentary, chronicles the 6,000-year old love story between the people of Mediterranean and olive oil, told through personal stories.

This is a region that has known hundreds of upheavals and wars, including the current refugee crisis. But the olive tree has always been there. In olive oil, people are finding their connection to the past and from that there hopes for the future, whether that be finding an exit out of the Greek economic crisis, surviving the Israeli occupation in Palestine (where olive oil was born), rebuilding a town in Spain through olive oil production, or battling with government over the tearing down of thousand year old trees to stave off a debilitating bug invasion in Italy. These are just some of the stories viewers will encounter in The Golden Harvest.

For more on the film, visit goldenharvestfilm.org

The film is currently in the editing stage, and the filmmakers need support to finish the film. Any profits from the film will go towards The Zig Zag Center, a planned institution to teach underprivileged young people in the Middle East traditional food cultivation and the culinary arts, so that they may work in the food and nutrition industries. To donate to the completion of the film:

CIE is an Algemeen Nut Beoogende Instelling (‘ANBI’) for the purpose of the authorities of the Netherlands. Any donations give a resident in the Netherlands the possibility of a potential tax deduction

Account: 47.02.48.947

CIE Dutch Name: Stichting Centrum voor Internationale Erfgoedactiviteiten

Bank: ABN AMRO

Bank Address:

Gustav Mahlerlaan 10
1082 PP Amsterdam
The Netherlands

IBAN: NLO8ABNA0470248947

BIC: ABNANL2A

LEGAL STATUS: CIE is established as a non-profit foundation (stichting) and registered at the Chamber of Commerce in Amsterdam with number 334257403

Film Page

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Now Streaming: The Golden Harvest by Alia Yunis — This Week Only – from 8 to 15 May 2025.

We are proud to announce that The Golden Harvest, a powerful documentary by our Director of Program, Alia Yunis, is available to stream for one week only — from 8 to 15 May 2025.

Documentary | 1h 25m

Writer & Director: Alia Yunis

Editor & Producer: Jaime Estrada-Torres

The Golden Harvest is a 6,000-year-old love story that follows the filmmaker’s journey to uncover the deep and sometimes painful connection between the people of the Mediterranean and the olive tree — a symbol of resilience, identity, and shared heritage. Through a personal lens, Yunis explores this bond, including her own family’s ties to the olive groves of Palestine.

Don’t miss this moving tribute to one of the world’s most enduring cultural and agricultural legacies.

STREAM THE FILM HERE