Plant Eaters: The Origins and Evolution of Modern Vegetarianism in Latin America (1900–Present)

This project, "Plant Eaters: The Origins and Evolution of Modern Vegetarianism in Latin America (1900–Present)," investigates a central research question: How has the historical tension between adapting foreign "civilizing" dietary ideals and reclaiming native foodways shaped Latin American vegetarianism as a tool for social and environmental critique? Using an unexplored archive of cookbooks, journals, and art, the study argues that "plant eating" in the region functions as both a pathway to modernity and a rejection of Western-centric notions of progress. The project directly engages with the Kellogg themes of Democracy and Human Development. It explores democracy by analyzing how marginalized groups—including women, Indigenous, and Afro-descendant communities—have used dietary choices to contest colonial power structures and advocate for intersectional social reforms. Regarding human development, the study examines how Latin American vegetarianism historically served as a mechanism for self- regulation and bodily reform, linking individual health to broader projects of national development and environmental ethics.