“It’s history. It’s the small, everyday acts of care that keep us going.”
There’s something electrifying about walking into a room full of changemakers—chefs, activists, thinkers, and doers, all gathered under one roof to push the conversation forward on food, innovation, and justice. Parabere Forum 2025, in its 10th edition, was exactly that: a space filled with intelligence, passion, and drive.
But if I’m being completely honest, my favorite part of Parabere actually happens outside of Parabere—in the in-between moments, over dinners, chance meetings, and shared stories. That’s where the real magic is: in the way women support women, in the friendships that form, in the solidarity that lingers long after the event ends.
The Talk That Hit Home
The forum opened with an open mic session—“What does food design and innovation mean to you?”—which quickly set the stage for a discussion far deeper than just aesthetics. This was about power, privilege, access, and control. It was about the dichotomy between profit and purpose, big food chains and small farmers, legislation and lived experience.
There were many powerful voices this year—Cristina Martinez speaking on immigration and resilience, Karen Washington tearing through complacency, Ruth Reichl laying bare the failures of our food systems—but for me, it was Jess Murphy who stole the show. Jess didn’t sugarcoat anything. She spoke about reverse mentoring, about the importance of listening to the younger generation instead of just guiding them, about how they keep us all young and push us to evolve. It was raw, honest, and something I could deeply relate to.
As a chef, I know that the loudest conversations don’t always happen in the spotlight. They happen behind the scenes, in kitchens, in quiet moments where we uplift and challenge each other. Jess’s words felt like an anchor in a sea of high-level discussions—real, lived experience over lofty ideals.
I think about this a lot—how in our industry, chefs are often put on pedestals, but at the end of the day, our kitchens are only as strong as the people we nurture and learn from. The best leaders aren’t the ones who talk the loudest; they’re the ones who listen the hardest.
A Forum for Whom?
One thing I always find myself grappling with at Parabere is who the conversation is truly for. Yes, the room is diverse, and yes, it’s inspiring to hear from some of the biggest voices in food. But so many of the talks are still framed through a very Western perspective.
As someone from India, I often wonder: how much of this actually applies to chefs and food advocates in the Global South?
The challenges we face—the way we have to navigate broken supply chains, informal economies, and governmental indifference—aren’t the same as those in Europe or the US.
The same rules don’t apply.
While talks about policy change are crucial, many chefs and food entrepreneurs in third-world countries don’t even have access to policy makers, let alone influence over food laws. How do we bridge this gap? How do we ensure that forums like Parabere don’t just invite diverse voices but actually let them shape the conversation?
Hearing Katherine Miller say, “True systems change requires policy change”, I couldn’t help but think about the small-scale farmers I work with. Policy change for them is a distant dream—they’re just trying to make it to the next harvest. They don’t have the luxury of lobbying or even being heard. So where does that leave them?
If we want true inclusivity in these conversations, it’s not just about representation; it’s about relevance.
The Real Power of Parabere
That said, the true power of Parabere—for me—has never been just the panel discussions or the big-name speakers. It’s the conversations that happen in between, in stolen moments over coffee or late-night drinks, in laughter that turns into vulnerability, in stories that don’t make it onto a stage but matter just as much.
This year, some of the most unforgettable people I met were Chef Narda Lepes, Chef Alex Raij, Shruthi Basappa, and a few others. These women weren’t just colleagues for a weekend; they were a reminder of why we do what we do.
We spoke about things that never made it onto the official agenda—the exhaustion of being a woman in this industry, the constant balancing act between passion and survival, the quiet moments of self-doubt that no one sees.
We spoke about how food isn’t just innovation or design—it’s identity, resistance, survival.
And that’s what Parabere 2025 was for me. Not just a conference, not just a forum—but a space to build connections that matter, to find people who remind you why you started, and to ask the hard questions that need to be asked.
What Happens Next?
As I left New York, I kept thinking about something Tracy Chang said:“We specialize in making things tasty and throwing a good party. We can use those skills to change habits.“
That, to me, is the real challenge. How do we take everything we’ve heard, everything we’ve felt in this room, and turn it into something actionable? How do we make the conversation accessible beyond this space, beyond the people who already have a seat at the table?
I don’t have all the answers, but I do know this:
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We need to make these spaces more inclusive—not just in who attends but in whose experiences shape the agenda.
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We need to amplify the voices of those working at the grassroots, whose struggles aren’t theoretical but daily realities.
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And we need to remember that food is more than policy or innovation—it’s people.
It’s history. It’s the small, everyday acts of care that keep us going.
Parabere 2025 left me with more questions than answers. But maybe that’s the point.
The work continues.
About Chef Radhika
Radhika Khandelwal, chef-owner at Fig & Maple and Ivy & Bean, started her culinary career in 2008 in Melbourne.
The initial years of her career in Australia helped shape her culinary beliefs of local, sustainable and seasonal cooking, giving her the opportunity to lead the conversation on these practices in New Delhi.
She started Ivy & Bean in 2013 and Fig & Maple in 2016, which helped translate her culinary thought process onto the plate. With a huge influence on farm to fork, zero waste, biodiversity and an advocate for the sustainable development goals, Fig & Maple was put on the culinary map in India’s capital city.
Chef Radhika is a long-time Chefs’ Manifesto #foodchampion, and is a part of Scaling up Nutrition and EAT Foundation, through which she often advocates and represents zero waste food techniques, ancient grains, and a celebration of the planet’s biodiversity on panels across the world.
In 2019, Conde Nast Traveller named Chef Radhika a 40 Under 40 Star Chef in India because of her significant contribution to the country’s zero hunger and sustainable food movement. She has actively brought together and nurtured thriving networks of regional food producers and frequently highlights their contributions through her menu at Fig and Maple.
She also spearheaded Delhi’s first digital Zero Waste campaign in the F&B industry in 2019, which became an immediate success on social media.
Follow Radhika on Instagram @pandoodle.
Images from Parabere Forum and Chef Radhika.
