THE AWARD
Created by The Julia Child Foundation for Gastronomy and the Culinary Arts in 2015, the Julia Child Award is given to an individual (or team!) who has made a profound and significant difference in the way America cooks, eats and drinks.
The Foundation presents the annual award in association with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History at a gala event held each fall in Washington, D.C.
Each year, the recipient receives a uniquely designed award engraved with his/her name and year of honor. In addition, the Foundation makes a $50,000 grant to the food-related non-profit of the recipient’s choosing.
The Foundation created the Award to:
- Encourage people to cook for themselves, to better understand where food comes from, to value eating and drinking and the importance that both can play in improving the quality of life.
- Expand public awareness and understanding of the recipient’s accomplishments and agenda.
- Help further the impact of the recipient’s objectives by providing a grant to a food related non-profit organization of the recipient’s choosing.
- Educator: The recipient will demonstrate educational contributions as a teacher, advocate and/or food or cookbook writer.
- Communicator: The recipient will be an effective communicator and motivator in bettering public perceptions and practices related to cooking, eating and drinking.
- Innovator: The recipient will have demonstrated innovation in America’s food world by pioneering a new path and/or fostering a significant shift in the thinking, production, cooking or development of how Americans eat and drink.
- Mentor: The recipient will have a demonstrated track record of mentoring others in food and wine and/or related professions.
- Integrity: The recipient will have demonstrated a commitment to excellence in their work and have exhibited a high level of personal integrity in both their public and private life.
- Bridge builder: The recipient will have conducted themselves as a bridge builder within the national food community.
- Independence: The recipient will have a demonstrated ability to act independent of conventions or the status quo to convince the public to change its thinking towards cooking, eating and drinking.
- Public-spirited: Through active efforts and support of charitable organizations, the recipient will have demonstrated significant contributions towards the greater good.
Through incomparable collections, rigorous research and dynamic public outreach, the National Museum of American History (NMAH), located in Washington D.C., explores the infinite richness and complexity of American history.
Several of NMAH’s extensive collections explore food and its place in our society both historically and socially. One of the museum’s most popular installations is Julia Child’s original kitchen from Cambridge, Massachusetts.
This is but one reason why the Julia Child Foundation presents its annual Julia Child Award at the gala that kicks off the annual Smithsonian Food History Program at the NMAH. The activities and the accomplishments of the Julia Child Award recipient are featured in future NMAH programming.
For more information about the American Food History Project, please visit here. For more information about the museum, visit here.
Award Director
Tanya Steel
In her role as Award Director for the Julia Child Award, Tanya oversees the planning for and presentation of the Award but has no voting privileges.
Learn More
Tanya Steel
Tanya Steel, a global leader in food, health and wellness, is the Executive Director of the Careers Through Culinary Arts Program. Most recently she was the Executive Director of the International Association of Culinary Professionals. She initiated Canada’s Kid Food Nation, as well as the Healthy Lunchtime Challenge & Kids’ “State Dinner” with First Lady Michelle Obama. Steel’s third book, Food Fight: A Mouthwatering History of Who Ate What & Why Through the Ages, was published by National Geographic Kids in 2018. As CEO of Tanya Wenman Steel LLC and Cooking Up Big Dreams LLC, she created multi-platform media initiatives that focus on food and wellness.
Previously, Steel was the Editorial Director of Clean Plates, and for eight years was Editor-in-Chief/Editorial Director of Epicurious, which she, with many talented colleagues, turned into the most award-winning digital lifestyle food brand with the most award-winning food app; after stepping down she served as Special Projects Contributor. Under her tenure, Epicurious won 3 ASMEs, including one for General Excellence; 2 James Beards; 11 Webbys; and a New York Emmy. In 2011, Steel was appointed Editor-in-Chief of Gourmet.com and Gourmet Live, which was named MIN’s Digital Magazine of the Year.
Earlier in her career, Steel was an editor at Bon Appétit, Food & Wine, Mademoiselle, and Diversion, and wrote for many publications, including The New York Times from 1994 to 1998. Steel won a personal James Beard Award for Magazine Restaurant Review as well as a World Gourmand Cookbook Award for Children for Real Food for Healthy Kids, which she co-authored. Steel’s second book, The Epicurious Cookbook debuted on The New York Times’ best-seller list in November 2012.
In 2011, with First Lady Michelle Obama, the White House, Epicurious, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Education, Steel created and produced The Healthy Lunchtime Challenge & Kids’ “State Dinner,” a national recipe contest with winners attending a special event at the White House. More than 1,500 news outlets carried coverage of the event where Steel delivered her remarks in the East Room before Mrs. Obama and President Obama took the stage. Kids’ State Dinners have since been held every year through 2016.
Steel is on the advisory board for Share Our Strength’s Cooking Matters; is a member of Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History’s Kitchen Cabinet; an avid supporter of Feeding America; and serves on the Culinary Council for the Food Bank For New York City. She worked closely with the Food Bank of Delaware and 9-year-old Braeden Mannering to create the first-ever hunger conference for and with kids.
Ms. Steel appears frequently on national news and entertainment programs, including TODAY, Good Morning America, The Early Show, Dr. Oz, CNN, Fox & Friends, Hell’s Kitchen, MasterChef, Iron Chef and Access Hollywood; she was also the host of ABC News’ “Chef’s Table” from 2011 to 2012. She has identical twin sons and lives in Connecticut with her family.