Sean Sherman
North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems
Minneapolis, MN USA
"If we band together, especially as people of color, we can be so much stronger in making these systems really work and happen."
Career Roadmap
Sean's work combines: Food, Entrepreneurship, and Upholding a Cause and Belief
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Day In The Life
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
I grew up in South Dakota on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
2.
I started working in restaurants when I was 13 years old.
3.
After graduating college, I moved to Minnesota with intentions of going to art school, but quickly realized that art school was out of reach financially for me.
4.
I continued to work in restaurants and was able to work my way up into a chef position.
5.
As a chef, I worked in many different styles of food, including Spanish, Italian, French, and Japanese restaurants.
6.
A few years into my career as a chef, I realized the complete lack of Indigenous presence in the restaurant industry.
7.
I’ve since made it my mission to build awareness and revitalize Indigenous food systems.
8.
In that vein, I founded North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems, a nonprofit focused on re-establishing Native foodways to address the economic and health crises affecting our communities.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Society in general:
Chefs create restaurants as ego projects.
How I responded:
I feel like you typically see restaurants as ego projects for chefs. For me, however, this work is way bigger than me and it always will be. It's not about me. It's about changing the narrative, getting food out there, and showcasing what's possible. I'm trying to model that anyone can do this.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
It's a personal struggle because I feel like I have so much work in front of me and so much passion, but only have X amount of years to accomplish it. I also want to make sure I'm enjoying my life, family, and hobbies. I'm consistently working on it.