By Douglas Esser
An expert from the 56吃瓜网 on the culture, economics and politics of chocolate, Kristy Leissle is currently living in West Africa to conduct field work with cocoa growers for her next book on Africa鈥檚 contributions to chocolate.
In her 15 years of research, writing and teaching about chocolate, Leissle has looked deeply into a subject with which many people feel a personal sensory attachment. Think of a cookie. Now think of a warm, chocolate chip cookie.
鈥淲e鈥檙e so emotionally attached to chocolate because of the associations we have created between chocolate and love, chocolate and romance,鈥� said Leissle, an affiliate faculty member.
The foremost Valentine鈥檚 Day gift, chocolate also is associated with other occasions and holidays such as anniversaries, Halloween and Easter that bring special meaning to the small cocoa bean.
Taste and enjoyment, however, are only a part of chocolate鈥檚 story.
A taste for teaching, research
In her last book, 鈥淐ocoa,鈥� Leissle wrote about politics within the chocolate industry. She says she has an additional perspective now, working with cocoa growers who have a 365-day-a-year commitment to farms they hope to leave to their children.
Her grasp of history and economics 鈥� plus flavor tastings at almost every class meeting 鈥� made Chocolate: A Global Inquiry a popular course at 56吃瓜网 Bothell where Leissle taught from 2009 to 2017 in the School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences. It was an ideal class for Discovery Core, the series of courses that introduce first-year students to scholarship and research through interdisciplinary topics.
Students loved the experiential learning, she recalled. The course culminated in the 56吃瓜网 Bothell Chocolate Festival, a final exam where students presented their research 鈥� yes, and chocolates 鈥� to visitors who asked exam questions such as 鈥淲hat is white chocolate?鈥� or 鈥淲hat is fair trade?鈥�
鈥淚t put the students in the position of being experts and showing off their knowledge in an interactive way. We had a lot of fun,鈥� said Leissle, who also taught other courses to majors in Global Studies.
Since 2018, Leissle has been living in Accra, the capital of Ghana, one of the world鈥檚 biggest producers of cocoa beans.
鈥淟iving here, I can go into the bush any time I want and talk with farmers I know, people doing the everyday work,鈥� Leissle said. 鈥淚 have such an opportunity living here to understand the industry more profoundly.鈥�
On the ground
Africa is the foundation of the chocolate industry and has been for 100 years, Leissle said.
鈥淲hen you live here,鈥� she said, 鈥測ou see everyday reality. There is a lot to be celebrated or at least respected.鈥�
Leissle is directly involved as the co-founder of a nongovernment, nonprofit organization, the Cocoapreneurship Institute of Ghana. Historically, the country has mostly exported its cocoa beans. The institute supports people who ask, 鈥淲hy not keep cocoa in this country and make something out of it here?鈥�
More Ghana businesses are making chocolate 鈥渇rom bean to bar鈥� or adding value with innovations, she said. The institute offers support in ways such as holding the African Cocoa and Chocolate Expo and bringing a U.S. manufacturer of cocoa machinery to a local event to meet with entrepreneurs.
鈥淗aving that face-to-face interaction and feedback had never happened before. CIG was able to make that happen,鈥� Leissle said.
Leissle also teaches courses at the institute, including a 鈥淢ade in Ghana鈥� session dedicated to local industries.
Transnational 鈥榙e-expert鈥�
Leissle became deeply interested in chocolate when she was a doctoral student at the University of Washington and applied for a to study chocolate in different parts of the world. She was awarded the fellowship for four months of travel. Her adviser suggested she make the transnational investigation of chocolate her thesis.
Over the years of writing books, blogs and articles and giving talks, Leissle eventually became known as 鈥淒r. Chocolate,鈥� the expert. 鈥淚 shared my expertise and told people what I thought,鈥� she said.
But when she moved to Ghana, she realized she had to become like a student again. She needed to see the situation among farmers and chocolate makers with fresh eyes and not rely on what she already knew.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a very interesting journey for me as a researcher to 鈥榙e-expert鈥� myself when I鈥檓 in the field,鈥� Leissle said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not my job to tell them their relationship with cocoa or chocolate. I鈥檓 in the position of learner now, getting to know people themselves and to bear witness to their reality.鈥�
Finding interdisciplinarity where you are
Her experience has taught Leissle that many simple pleasures, such as chocolate, are actually quite complex. If she were teaching at 56吃瓜网 Bothell today, she鈥檇 urge students to see that complexity in more things.
鈥淲hat I鈥檝e done with chocolate, you can do with anything, like the eyeglasses I鈥檓 wearing, the dress I鈥檓 wearing, this ring, all the books on the shelf behind me,鈥� Leissle said in a video interview. 鈥淭hey all have their economics. They all have their politics. They all have their cultural aspect, their psychology even. Some of them have agricultural roots that we don鈥檛 even see. If you鈥檙e wearing cotton, it was growing from the ground at some point. This bookshelf was a tree.
鈥淚 would like for students to remember that the way I research and write about chocolate 鈥� coming at it from all these angles 鈥� we can actually do for anything,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 would hope that every student would find that thing that sparks their passion for research, their passion for knowledge, in the way that chocolate did for me.鈥�
Leissle wants them to learn nothing is one-dimensional.
鈥淓verything comes from this hugely interconnected, often international, supply chain,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e have opportunities for endless learning about anything we care about.鈥�
