Nazli Parvizi's work and passion often resides at the intersection of government, food & hospitality, and the arts. As President of MOFAD, Nazli joins a team of incredibly dedicated culinary historians, chefs, writers, food and museum professionals joined together under the mission of using food as a lens to explore and learn more about the world we live in.

At the venerable Commander’s Palace in New Orleans, there is no such thing as a head sommelier. Dan Davis, the man who oversees the impressive 2,600-bottle list, is instead simply known as the “Wine Guy”—a moniker that embodies the restaurant’s philosophy of making sure guests enjoy every aspect of their dining experience without intimidation.

Chef Rich Rosendale is known for his culinary expertise, remarkable achievements, and groundbreaking contributions to the culinary world. Rosendale is recognized as a leading authority on sous vide cooking. He has mastered this precision cooking technique and has been instrumental in promoting its benefits and applications within the culinary industry. Chef Rosendale's name is synonymous with culinary competitions. He has competed at the highest level, including representing the United States at the prestigious Bocuse d'Or, where he served as the U.S. Culinary Team Captain and helped guide the team to their first gold medal win. As the Chief Vision Officer of the Rosendale Collective, Chef Rosendale shares his extensive knowledge and expertise through culinary workshops, consulting services, and customized training programs. He helps aspiring chefs and culinary professionals elevate their skills and achieve excellence.

Kyle Connaughton is a chef, culinary educator, and cookbook author. He and his wife Katina Connaughton opened SingleThread Farm-Restaurant-Inn in Healdsburg, California in 2016. The restaurant received a perfect 4 stars from The San Francisco Chronicle in March 2017 and a James Beard Foundation Restaurant Design Award in May 2017. It was awarded Two Stars in the 2018 Michelin Red Guide, one of only a few restaurants to earn the rating in its first year. The restaurant then received Three Michelin Stars just a year later in the 2019 Red Guide. SingleThread is also a member of Relais & Chateaux, an international organization of the world’s top restaurants and hotels. In 2018 SingleThread received the Miele “One to Watch” award from Worlds 50 Best Restaurants and in 2021 was ranked “#37 Best Restaurant in the World”. In 2020 SingleThread was awarded Forbes Five Stars and AAA Five Diamonds.

Frauke Galia is a smell coach, aromatherapist, podcaster and founder of The Smell Gym, the place to exercise your sense of smell. After spending over 20 years in and around the fragrance industry, her current aim is to get people to use their sense of smell more purposefully and to harness it for health and wellbeing.

Olivia Jezler is a design strategist and smell expert who consults on the Future of Smell, merging research and olfactory-based technologies to develop human-relevant products and experiences. She has consulted for global clients and worked at global fragrance and flavor companies, at Brazilian multinational Natura & Co, and in academia at SCHI Lab at the University of Sussex and Parsons School of Design.

Danielle Fleming is the founder, CEO and olfactive "nose" behind Noteology a Boutique Perfumery and Custom Studio with its flagship location in the heart of downtown Scranton, PA. She is also the CEO of Olfactif a niche fragrance subscription box service and discovery platform.

Alyssa Heidt, the Beverage Creative Director at Four Seasons Hotels, draws inspiration from her extensive global travels to craft imaginative beverages that weave their compelling narratives. With a passion for hospitality that knows no bounds, Alyssa's creative journey has taken her to renowned establishments worldwide, where she has honed her craft and developed a deep understanding of cocktail culture.

Born and raised in Norway, Odd Strandbakken has spent the last years defining Scandinavian cocktail culture at his previous bar HIMKOK in Oslo. On his journey to define his own style of cocktails he found a love for local produce and house-made products that replace manufactured products to reflect the local and unique terroir. Odd is always striving to create tasty, minimalist and clean cocktails using culinary techniques gathered from around the world. His goal to sample the world’s best hospitality and cocktails has brought him to 42 countries and given him experience in distillation, fermentation, brewing and preservation of produce.

Dr. Kevin Peterson has a background in physics, culinary, and engineering. He has been studying perfumery for more than 15 years, and has been the Nose of Sfumato for the last 10. Using natural ingredients and culinary ingredient combinations, Kevin has developed Sfumato's product line, as well as launched projects ranging from scent-paired dinners, scented raves, and a fragrant soundtrack for The Wizard of Oz.

Morgaine looks at food and eating from a social, cultural, economic, trend, branding and geo-political perspective. Her work involves running ideation sessions, consulting to food companies, developing new products and ideas; writing articles/ trend reports for PR and ad agencies; giving public, university and corporate lectures on specific food trends, developing new ideas for food-related TV and radio programs and doing research on all elements of the eating experience from mouth-feel and texture to olfactory perception.

“After writing my first book, Za Za's Scent-Sational Super Power, I had the fortunate opportunity to meet individuals with a variety of smell disorders who educated me on their experiences. In writing my second book, I felt strongly that adults and children have tools to help further conversations around the exploration of the senses. I especially love how the World Taste & Smell Association highlights the importance of our senses and makes the time for focused education,” shared Alexis.

Originally from Nashville, TN, Josh's background is in visual arts, music and performance. After high school, he studied painting and drawing at The Art Institute of Chicago before moving to NYC where he worked as an actor in TV and film.

Gabrielle Marks is a World Taste & Smell Day steering committee member and Marketing Project Manager at Trendincite LLC. Prior to working at Trendincite LLC. Due to a severe head injury as a child, she has anosmia. Gabrielle recently joined the WTSA Events Committee and is looking forward to supporting the WTSA’s mission to educate, celebrate, elevate, and support the two senses. With the events committee, she plans to create inclusive, exciting, informative, and experiential events that are sure to awaken the senses.

Carla Seipp is a fragrance, fashion, and arts journalist. She is also Editor at online publication BeautyMatter and a former writer for trend forecasting agency, The Future Laboratory. Seipp co-edited The Essence: Discovering the World of Scent, Perfume and Fragrance, published by Gestalten. Seipp has written on the subjects of fashion, fragrance, and art for publications including Dazed & Confused, Dazed Digital, A Shaded View on Fashion, Twin, and Vestoj.

Brad Barnes, is a 48-year veteran of the professional kitchen, a Certified Master Chef, and President of Pure Food Consulting, He specializes in strategic business development, serving a multitude of food businesses internationally.

Jenifer is among the founders of both the Smell and Taste Association of North America and World Taste and Smell Day.

Valentina Parma, Ph.D., is an accomplished researcher and Assistant Member at the Monell Chemical Senses Center. She specializes in understanding the neural and behavioral mechanisms underlying taste, smell, and chemesthesis, particularly in the context of food preferences and consumption. Her research is guided by a multidisciplinary approach, which integrates psychophysics, neuroimaging, genetics, and cognitive psychology.

Rachel Herz, Ph.D. is a neuroscientist and world-leading expert on the psychological science of smell. She is a professional consultant, on the faculty at Brown University, and a TEDx speaker.

Ariella Halperin is the Founder & Creative Director of Storied Senses and a steering comittee memeber for World Taste & Smell Day events.