Dear Continental Directors & Presidents,
A very exciting initiative has begun in Australia through Gary Farrell and the Australian Culinary federation which our young ambassador Jessie is heavily involved with. It has been identified and picked up by many around the world of our team as something that we could use to unite our Young ambassadors in a common task and provide a valuable tool to those in need.
As we are talking to carry this globally I felt it important to write to you all at this time so as you and your association can be part of this great initiative with your young chefs.
This initiative is the first truly global task we in the YCDT have been able to develop and we need your help to make it a success and an initiative that will also sustain into the future.
The concept is very simple, it is to requests senior chefs to donate one of their old knifes and attach a small note of motivation with the knife, and a small story behind that knife, they then deliver it to their association and the young chefs club or young chef ambassador for Worldchefs and country President can decide where this knife will go, maybe it goes to a country in need, like Australia did for Vanuatu, or the knifes go to financially challenged young chefs in their own country.
The next big step will be asking all the delegates that are coming to Thessaloniki in Greece for the 2016 Congress to bring knives with them on that trip where we will be organizing the Young chefs to collect these knives and then discus where they think these knives will make the biggest impact on young chefs. They will decide and take the decision on who gets the knives and then the knives will be presented during the congress to a country president of continental director to take to where they have chosen to send the knives.
This initiative is simple and easy to coordinate and we are wanting to give the responsibility and empowerment to our young chef ambassadors to drive this forward and really make a globally difference.
The below details are what the Young Ambassadors Jessie in Australia and T.Y in Hong Kong are working through and we will be launching this very soon. The below tasks are going to be decided upon by the young ambassadors and we in the senior leadership of the YCDT will be their support along with yourselves.
Considerations that the Young Ambassadors need to decide on and take decisions on:
1. We suggest that the young ambassadors for the moment start to collect knives in their own country and each one with their Country President decide where these knives go, do they go to people out of the country and if so in their own region or further, or do they stay their own country to help the less fortunate.
2. A small simple eflyer is prepared branded with a simple knife to share logo, BGF logo and YCC logo, this is then used generically for the young ambassadors to promote.
3. Each young ambassador keeps a tally on knives collected and a record of where they go, even down to then expanding with a bit of social media marketing when knives are handed over etc, again in the hands of the ambassadors to take further and expand on with their own ideas.
4. The number of knives to be accumulated prior to distribution, 50 or 100/ what has more impact? What is news worthy
5. Where there is no Ambassador the regional young ambassadors to seek help from continental director to assist in the collection points through country associations Presidents and use their country President for support.
Chefs, this will be a great way to connect all our young chefs around the world with one common task and I am calling on all of you for your usual support.
With warm regards from all of us in the team,
Andy Cuthbert
Chairman Young chef’s Development Team, World Association of Chefs Societies
