Michela Siuni

Michela is a multilingual researcher with a strong academic record and professional experience across Europe and East Asia. 

She holds a MA (Hons) in International Relations and Management Studies from the University of Aberdeen, a MA in Global Communication from The Chinese University of Hong Kong and a MA in Anthropology of Food from SOAS. She also completed a specialist diploma in Public Affairs (Level 7, CIPR accredited) in the UK.

People-oriented and culture-sensitive, Michela presented at youth conferences on diplomacy and international affairs and was sponsored to attend a number of leadership programs around the world. Over the years, she have worked in internationally projected communications roles across the non-profit sector with a focus on social and environmental justice. She has also written articles for digital publications on cross-cultural communication, place branding, DEI, digital marketing and food. 

Her latest MA dissertation on Korea gastro diplomacy in the UK was awarded “Best Master’s Thesis of the Year 2023” by GAFS, the largest interdisciplinary community on food studies. Recognised for her extensive volunteering and pro bono work, Michela is now based in London. Passionate about cultural relations, media, and the role of food and sports as cultural bridges, she is currently undertaking a PhD at SOAS in the Department of Anthropology. Her research focuses on the multisensoriality of Korean food abroad and different notions of taste.

Anchored to anthropological discussions around Korean foodways and sensory experiences, Michela’s research explores how Korean migrant entrepreneurs have been contributing towards shaping the taste of and for Korean food around Greater London. 

Building from her previous studies on Korean food governmental campaigns in the UK and her keen interest in culinary activities, this research puts under review what we often think of as taste. By seeing migrants involved in the preparation, cooking, and selling of food as active agents of change and cultural intermediaries instead of victims or outsiders, her work proposes to reconceptualise the tangible and intangible ways through which migrant food entrepreneurs can be seen as potential tastemakers in multinational urban contexts. 

By concentrating her attention on the sensorial experiences that food elicits, Michela aims to shed light on the importance of the senses in transnational food practices, and the multi-sensoriality of Korean food. Findings from her research will be of key interest to food and migration scholars, and contribute to discussions around taste, multisensory anthropology, and the links between class, gender, ethnicity, and age in the aestheticisation of food.

michela siuni