PRESS

Born Global hosted a private, full-day scholarly salon at the Raffles to mark the launch of the Myrrh Ethiopia Expedition, led by Dr. Anjanette DeCarlo. Designed as an intimate academic convening, the event brought together prominent scholars, educators, and practitioners whose work spans Ethiopian field research, sacred forests, women’s ecological knowledge systems, migration, and ancient trade routes.

Rather than a single keynote, the program unfolded as a curated sequence of talks and conversations, allowing participants to engage deeply with Ethiopia as both a living culture and a historical nexus of ecology, spirituality, and commerce. Particular attention was given to frankincense and myrrh—resins whose medicinal, economic, and symbolic roles link Ethiopia to ancient Mediterranean civilizations and to contemporary global supply chains.

Central to the gathering was a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony, structured around the ritual cups of Abol, Tona, and Baraka, symbolizing arrival, dialogue, and blessing. This ceremony grounded scholarly exchange in cultural practice, reflecting Born Global’s belief that knowledge is most powerful when scholarship, ritual, and human presence are held together.

The salon was attended by more than 20 participants from institutions including Babson College, Boston College, and Boston University, and exemplified Born Global’s expedition-based learning model—uniting research, culture, and community in service of long-term understanding and regeneration.