September is a very important month to me. And this year has been particularly significant for two reasons -- the 10th Anniversary of September 11, and this month, we are unveiling our national awareness campaign about the issue of hunger to everyone who will listen.
As a New Yorker, September 11 holds special meaning to me. I lost several classmates in the World Trade Center. As a transplanted Washingtonian I witnessed the devastation four miles from my office. Ten years out, like many others, I believe we should pay tribute by transforming this day into one of good will and service, and I offered a call to action along those lines.
September is also Hunger Action Month. My friends at Feeding America have done a wonderful job of bringing national awareness to a serious problem that our local Meals On Wheels programs around the country are challenged with every day. For me, for us, Hunger Action Month is every month of the year.
Yet the other day, my friend asked me a question that hit me hard. He asked, "It's great that we have Hunger Action Month but how exactly do you plan to end hunger?"
He's right. How do we plan to end hunger? What steps are we taking?
I know that the organization I lead, the Meals On Wheels Association of America (MOWAA), is trying to end senior hunger by taking a multifaceted approach that involves: serving as a national voice and advocate for our local Meals On Wheels programs, empowering them by providing the support and tools they need to deliver nutritious meals to more people in need, and undertaking quality research that will help us understand the true scope of the problem.
Our approach could help us fulfill our pledge of ending senior hunger by 2020, but that is only a segment (albeit, rapidly increasing and often invisible) of those who face the threat of hunger.
If we can't be all things to all people, and no organization should claim to be, how do we end hunger?
I think the keyword here is we. We can end hunger if we come together.
More often than not and when resources are limited, we are pitted against one another. Children against Seniors against ____ (you fill in the blank). The word is hunger and the condition on its own, doesn't discriminate based on age, gender, race, religion or any other way we choose to identify ourselves.
We need to take broad strokes and maybe we need to start by getting together to have some very open, honest, and hard discussions.
They might involve talking about proper nutrition for everyone.
And discussing why nutritious food is not accessible and affordable to everyone.
It could also include thinking about if, as a nation -- even and especially in tough times, if it makes more sense to support effective programs and groups that are addressing this issue now, or paying a greater price for not doing so later?
Many of us recognize the need to begin this dialogue. In fact, on our end, I have joined with the leaders of Feeding America and the AARP Foundation to begin a dialogue that we hope to continue, to move closer to ending hunger. We must work together to combat the scourge of hunger -- all hunger, not just one segment of our society. When one person is hungry, aren't we all? I mean the problem of hunger manifests itself onto and into everything and everyone we hold dear. That's why our slogan is, We are Meals on Wheels... After all, we are all in this together, aren't we?"
So, while I don't have a clear answer to my friend's question, I can say that with awareness campaigns like Hunger Action Month, more support on the ground to the folks that are actually feeding those who are hungry, and more dialogue and collaboration to address the issue as a whole- we are working on it.
And if in fact, we are more powerful together, greater than the sum of our individual parts, then maybe just maybe, we will have an answer and a day when no one goes hungry.
Enid Borden is the President & CEO of Meals On Wheels Association of America.
Follow Meals On Wheels on Facebook. www.facebook.com/mowaa
Follow Meals On Wheels on Twitter. www.twitter.com/_mealsonwheels
Follow Enid Borden on Twitter: www.twitter.com/enidborden
Anyone who presents to a restaurant can eat there, regardless of the ability to pay. The cost will be passed on to the folks who can afford to eat there.
I agree with you completely.
Thanks for sharing Karl
This drives up the cost of corn for staple foods across the entire hemisphere, but doesn't end there. It drives up the cost of beef and pork, as corn has been one of the ingredients typically used for feed stock. It also drives up the cost of water, as each gallon of ethanol requires several gallons of water to produce. Further, recent studies suggest that the environmental benefits of using ethanol compared to straight gasoline in automobiles are about zero at best and possibly worse.
It would make a big difference if we could end the corn madness, but that would mean somebody campaigning in Iowa would have to advocate a policy that will drive down the price of corn.
It should be illegal to sell foodstuffs for fuel.
- Ensuring that war participants allow food distribution to civilians
- Free food for the poor
For an example, take a look at the population of Palestinians over the past half century. The Palestinian populations began to explode shortly after the 1967 war, when they effectively began receiving vast amounts of food aid from the UN. No jobs, free food, lots of spare time - it took just 30 years to go up by a factor of 5. (Note that while the Jewish population has also grown by almost as much, it's taken over 50 years and relied on massive immigration.)
Some people work, but are still poor.
***For an example, take a look at the population of Palestinians over the past half century. The Palestinian populations began to explode shortly after the 1967 war, when they effectively began receiving vast amounts of food aid from the UN. No jobs, free food, lots of spare time - it took just 30 years to go up by a factor of 5. (Note that while the Jewish population has also grown by almost as much, it's taken over 50 years and relied on massive immigration.) ***
The Palestinian population has had a lot to deal with over the decades. That's why their economy and infrastructure has suffered.
As for the Palestinian's problems, they further prove my point. In 1970, the UN had about 1 million refugees to feed. Today, it's 5 million. If the UN hadn't stepped in and started their permanent refugee feeding, the population wouldn't have been able to grow any faster than the abysmal economy. Basicall, the cost to the world of providing "free" food went up by a factor of 5 in 30 years due to population growth with no commensurate ability for them to provide for themselves.