University of Pollenzo
Cultivating Global Food Leaders for a Sustainable Future since 2004, founded by Slow Food 🌎 🐌
Cultivating Global Food Leaders for a Sustainable Future
Food lies at the heart of today’s global challenges, encompassing climate change, biodiversity loss, inequality, and malnutrition. To meet these challenges, we need diverse and committed leaders who understand how food systems operate and how to change them effectively.
At the University of Gastronomic Sciences (UNISG), we prepare those leaders.
Nestled in a UNESCO World Heritage site in Pollenzo, Italy, UNISG was founded in 2004 by Slow Food and the region of Piedmont. Built from the restoration of a flood-damaged historic site, our nonprofit university redefines food as a tool for environmental, cultural, and social sustainability.
With students and alums from more than 100 countries, we are a living example of global collaboration and shared responsibility in action.
Our Approach: Where Knowledge Meets Real-World Impact
UNISG combines academic rigor with immersive, hands-on experiences to cultivate a new kind of food leader—one who can think globally, act locally, and connect across systems. Our students gain this through:
- Interdisciplinary Degrees in Food Cultures and Sciences, Circular Economy, Food Policy, and more
- Study Trips to farms, producers, and food communities worldwide
- Research Projects on climate resilience, food quality, and cultural diversity in collaboration with international networks and local partners
Why Your Support Matters
Too many aspiring leaders from low-income countries and underserved communities are excluded from opportunities like this—not because of a lack of talent but due to a lack of access. Your contribution changes that.
Every donation enables:
- Scholarships that open doors for students who bring lived experience from the frontlines of food system challenges
- Research that fuels solutions for ethical supply chains, food sovereignty, and climate-resilient agriculture
- Collaboration with Indigenous and small-scale producers, preserving biodiversity and traditional knowledge
These students come with the vision and urgency the world needs. They leave with the tools and global network to act on behalf of their communities, ecosystems, and future generations.
Looking Forward
UNISG is scaling its impact. By 2030, we aim to equip a new generation of leaders with the tools to drive systemic change. Your support today helps us cultivate the leaders of tomorrow.
Join Us
Invest in a future where food systems nourish both people and the planet.Support a student. Advance a mission. Help write the next chapter: one rooted in resilience, equity, and abundance.
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Invest in the Future of Food. Fund a Scholarship!
Your support fosters food specialists who turn food systems into tools for equity, resilience, and global impact. At the University of Gastronomic Sciences, we empower future food pioneers from over 100 countries to drive sustainability through knowledge, diversity, and action. Your support opens doors for exceptional students who embody our values of Merit and the Universal Right to Education —but lack the means to begin their journey. The Impact of Your Commitment
Every contribution directly funds scholarships for students in any of our academic courses, enabling: ✅ Full tuition coverage
✅ Accommodation 5km close to our UNESCO Heritage campus in Pollenzo
✅ Global immersion for students from underrepresented regions Why This Matters
Our scholarships are targeted investments in individuals who are ready to lead transformation through food. Each one opens access to an education that connects science, culture, and sustainability with real-world impact. These students are selected for their potential to question entrenched models, design new pathways, and serve communities often left behind. With your support, they gain the tools to act as part of a global network committed to rethinking how food shapes the world. This is how we build long-term change. With clarity, purpose, and shared responsibility. Join Our Mission 🔹 Give today to launch a student’s journey
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🔹 Become a catalyst for equitable, abundant food systems
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