The inaugural International Cookbook Research Symposium was held at CQUniversity Noosa Campus recently.

Co-convened by Professor Donna Lee Brien from the School of Creative and Performing Arts and Dr Adele Wessell from Southern Cross University, the conference attracted delegates from almost every state and territory in Australia (the ACT, NSW, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria) as well as international presenters from New Zealand and the UK, and Noosa-based staff and postgraduate students.

LINK also to 'A cookbook in a day' on agenda in Noosa

Delegates gathered for a delicious weekend that included fascinating paper presentations, lively discussion and production of a cookbook in a day!

The group met to disseminate their latest research into cookery books, and to workshop chapters in a forthcoming book edited by Professor Brien and Dr Wessell, The Cookbook Book: Sources for Reading and Writing Cookbooks, which surveys methodological approaches of using cookbooks in research.

Paper topics discussed cookbooks as historical sources, as well as how they can be used in social and cultural research. Presenters provided rich material for discussions as varied as the use of cookbooks in Colonial Australia and by men in the Otago goldfields; the search for an Australian cuisine, and cookbooks' role in fighting obesity; as well as how cookbooks provide a professional career path for writers, editors, publishers and booksellers. Cookbooks as the inspiration for performance art as well as manuals for feeding our pets were also deliberated.

Of course, there was also a focus on sharing Noosa's delicious cuisine. The conference lunches were sourced locally and included just-caught local prawns and the delights of nearby bakeries, while the welcome dinner at the Noosa Yacht and Rowing Club and conference dinner at Trios restaurant at the Noosa Marina (following a breathtaking sunset river cruise) both featured local foods. Convenors also made the event as environmentally sustainable as possible by accommodating all delegates within walking distance of the campus and the evening events and, with delegates helping with the lunch washing up, keeping disposable items to an absolute minimum.

A number of delegates stayed on after the conference, with Noosa Campus hosting a number of related projects and other research meetings the following week.

Outputs from this symposium will include two edited books. Lynn Taylor, a prize-winning photographer and alumni of CQUniversity Noosa Campus (Graduate Certificate in Creative Industries), documented the event.