DMLL Senior Instructor of Italian, Denise Caterinacci, represented CWRU as a delegate to Terra Madre Americas in Sacramento, CA, September 26-28, 2025. She spoke to delegates representing Slow Food International from around the world, which included legendary Slow Food school gardens pioneer Alice Waters. The focus of Professor Caterinacci’s talk was the development of a university-level modern language curriculum and collaborations surrounding the worldwide Slow Food movement and the sustained success of the CWRU model, which began with a special topics course in Italian in 2012.

Plans for greater expansion, especially in collaboration with the CA university system, have now begun. The first edition of Terra Madre Americas in Sacramento was tested as a trial in 2024 and will now continue in alternate years that do not compete with Terra Madre held in Italy. This year’s attendance was over 165,000, an increase over the 2024 debut.