World Hunger // Current

World hunger

Today in Rome started the FAO summit, the UN organization which has its international... more

hyperion74
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9 days ago
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1 comment

Launch introduction - The COPENHAGEN CLIMATE CHANGE - WORLD HUNGER STRIKE

This December world leaders will gather in Copenhagen to come up with a global... more

GreenhouseNeutralFoundation
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In the time it took me to type this 3 more people have died of hunger.

Climate change will result in the deaths of many of the world children over the coming... more

GreenhouseNeutralFoundation
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1 month ago
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A VIABLE SOLUTION TO WORLD HUNGER?

It takes Silverman a minute to get to the punchline, but it's worth the wait. Brilliant!

Betico
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1 month ago
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Sarah Silverman’s Plan To End World Hunger: Sell The Vatican

Last night on HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher she debuted what appears to be her new... more

atomiclegion
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1 month ago
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4 comments

Dear Big Ag: World Hunger Is Not for Sale

What a beautiful article:

"The objectives of this week's Global Harvest Initiative symposium, which focused on coordinated efforts to address world hunger, were compelling. World hunger already affects 1 billion people and the numbers are projected to climb. Unfortunately, thanks to big agribusiness sponsors ADM, DuPont, John Deere and Monsanto, the event ultimately amounted to nothing more than glitzy green packaging for the same old unnecessary gift of chemical dependence for the world's farmers."

More:
"By framing global food security in terms of "not enough food," the Global Harvest Initiative seems stuck on doing the same old thing harder and faster, citing technology and high-input dependent systems as the solution to world hunger.

What was Einstein's definition of insanity? Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. The GHI seems to be ignoring this wisdom--more food alone won't help starving people until the global agricultural system radically shifts its focus to address the barriers of poverty (the inability to buy food) and distribution (getting food to where people are)."

More excerpts:
"As demonstrated by 30 years of research in our Farming Systems Trial, organic and near-organic techniques offer robust, biodiverse, productive and regenerative systems that can out-produce chemical approaches in drier and wetter seasons.

Organic restoration is true conservation -- a focus of yesterday's symposium -- that does not require us to choose between areas that will be protected and areas that must be sacrificed to our agricultural destruction. Well-managed organic systems actually increase biodiversity throughout farmed land at every level of the food chain.

And while the GHI mission calls for more money, attention, research, trade and policy support for chemically dependent farming systems, it ignores the findings of many of the world food study groups, who maintain that organic and ecological production systems are the best hope for transforming the "feeding the world" challenge."

The last passage is what I loved the most, I dream... :
"In the midst of all this big-ag hype, the true agenda of the GHI symposium is clear: more money for chemical agriculture systems. But no amount of money can offset the true cost of these systems -- to our environment, and to our health. I want hungry people to be fed, farmers to prosper, ecosystems to thrive while farming improves, wildlife to flourish, and whole bio-regions to develop sustainable economies. That's why I demand organic agriculture be front and center on the global food agenda."

Join Organic:
http://current.com/groups/organicgreen/What a beautiful article: "The objectives of this week's Global Harvest Initiative... more

lookatmypix
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2 months ago
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Letter of Support to Legalize Cannabis Sativa

Dear Neighbor, August 20, 2009

I really think that now is an important time to stand up the global lifting of the prohibition of cannabis sativa [or marijuana, abbreviated CS in this letter]. Friend, this plant is a potential tool in addressing several key issues we are all facing today.

 The War on Drugs: Used by corrupt governments for economic manipulation & demonization of cultural & religious practices around the world. Statistical disproportionate numbers of arrests & killing of minority cultural peoples, ethnic peoples & poor humans [economically challenged]. Time & time again, a constant theater of human rights violations.
 The American Prison Complex: With a prison system that has over 2 million of its own citizens predominately for non-violent drug offences, is it any wonder that it is also the same country in the international spotlight for human rights violations and war crimes, allegations primarily centered on U.S. torture in its detention centers around the world.
 Dangerous Levels of Carbon in Air: The fibers of CS, which were used for 1,000s years previous to the last the century, are high density cellulose which require large amounts of carbon for development. Thus CS, has developed C4 photosynthesis, characterized by accelerated extraction of carbon particles from the air. In short, CS can function as a natural, totally renewable, air filter.
 Petrol-Plastics: Produced from combinations of: carcinogenic binders; toxic dyes and +1,000 year shelf life in some cases. These components, along side widespread improper disposal practices, have lead to contamination of our waters, food, wildlife creature, air and even our bodies. CS fibers provide viable alternatives, bio-plastics, that are already being manufactured in small quantities by mainly small, private businesses. A global collaboration to significantly reduce the production of petrol-plastics, while increasing the production of bio-plastic, primarily of CS, will ensure large scale cultivation.
 Medications/Treatments: Not only is CS already being utilized for medical treatments addressing conditions from: coping with the adverse effects of chemotherapy; to helping children diagnosed with ADD/ADHD concentrate and improve their school performance, while providing a 100% safe alternative to popular medications, such as Ritalin [.0017% of children who take Ritalin are at risk for death- Anthony Kane, MD/ADD ADHA Advances]; CS in all applications (including recreational) has been proven safe with no record of anyone, ever, losing their life as a result of ingestion/inhalation and other side effects [respiratory disorders; loss of brain cells; inhibited motor skills; antisocial behavior] have never been linked to any serious reported medical cases, unlike pharmaceutical medications which account for over 100,000 deaths each year [http://current.com/1ddgu4c] according to the FDA.
 Global Hunger & Malnutrition: CS seed protein provides a rich supply of amino acids, both essential & nonessential, boasting the plant world’s most efficient protein for the human body. CS seeds also contain the highest levels of essential fatty acids, far exceeding that of flax seed & evening primrose. Essential fatty acids contribute to: balanced cholestrol levels; joint mobilty; a healthy circulatory system; proper brain function (including emotional stability, concentration/focus & cognitive functions).

CS’s ease of cultivation make it a realistic resource thats easily accesible to peoples of all economic climates.
Friend, please consider advocating repealing the prohibition of CS and the establishing of a global CS cultivation movement?

Sincerely,

x ____________________________Dear Neighbor, August 20, 2009 I really think that now is an important time to... more

kingfugazi
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3 months ago
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15 comments

Pelosi says Jackson resolution unnecessary

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi shut the door Thursday to a resolution honoring Michael... more

unimatrix0
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5 months ago
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35 comments

Saying no to soy: the Campesino struggle for sustainable agriculture in Paraguay

This seems to be the pattern: more and more land being bought up and used after... more

JanforGore
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5 months ago
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3 comments

Plant-Based Hunger Solutions: Feeding More with Less

[Full Article at Link] Part 1: Let's Be Reasonable ... The benefits are so... more

animalia_libero
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9 months ago
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2 comments

A Willy Wonka who wants to feed the world

Ask America's foremost molecular gastronomist about the Willy Wonka comparisons, and... more

lvp
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11 months ago
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4 comments

King Corn: you are what you eat

Behind America’s dollar hamburgers and 72-ounce sodas is a key ingredient that... more

covelogibbs
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11 months ago
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3 comments

Really Want to Help People? Trash the Send-an-Animal Catalogs

I imagine many of you have received catalogs in the last month offering to send live animals to impoverished people in need, on your behalf, for what seem like bargain prices: $20 for a flock of geese or $120 for a goat or one of the "season's hottest gifts," a "farmer's flock" of one cow and two sheep for the low, low price of $150.

A bargain indeed, except not for the animals and, actually, not for the human recipients either. How this is not so great for the animals should be obvious. But read on to learn about what it means for the human recipients (and their environment and natural resources) too. If your goal is to sincerely help people, these animal-giving programs are not the way to achieve that goal.

Two years ago, Andrew Tyler of Animal Aid had a commentary titled "Don't Follow the Herd and Give a Cow for Christmas" published in The Independent. Here's a selection from that piece (which I recommend you read in full for a more complete understanding of the issue):

"The message might bring comfort to the target audience, but such schemes, sadly, are not a good thing. They serve only to increase not diminish poverty. Why? Because farming animals is an inefficient, expensive and environmentally destructive way of producing food. All farmed animals require proper nourishment, large quantities of water, shelter from extremes of weather and veterinary care. Such resources are in critically short supply in much of Africa. In fact, the wide variation in prices asked by the donor agencies testifies to this reality: arguments have broken out between Send A Cow on the one hand and Christian Aid and Oxfam on the other, as to the "quality" of the animal delivered and whether the many supplementary costs are covered in the asking price.

Sceptical readers might,at this point, accuse me of dressing up a concern about animal welfare as a concern for the world's poor. Let's be clear that there are major animal welfare issues involved in sending animals to, for instance, the Horn of Africa where, earlier this year, up to 80 per cent of cattle perished in a drought and many of the remainder were washed away in the floods that followed. But this is not about cows taking precedence over people.

The reality is that animal gift schemes are, in the words of the conservation charity World Land Trust (WLT), "environmentally unsound and economically disastrous". In a statement last week, WLT declared: "Now that the grave consequences of introducing large numbers of goats and other domestic animals into fragile, arid environments is well documented, WLT considers it grossly irresponsible ... to continue with the schemes ... as a means of raising quick money for charities over the Christmas season"."
...
[Full article at link]
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Photo: AP Photo/Eugene HoshikoI imagine many of you have received catalogs in the last month offering to send live... more

animalia_libero
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11 months ago
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World hunger now close to 1 billion people

The food crisis has pushed the number of hungry people in the world to almost 1bn, in... more

AwesomeJosh
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12 months ago
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Hungry in Zimbabwe: If you rest, you starve

MHANGURA, Zimbabwe – Katy Phiri, who is in her 70s, picks up single corn kernels... more

middle_east
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1 year ago
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Could 4% of bailout end world hunger?

World hunger seems like one of those grand unsolvable problems – the perennial favorite wish of beauty pageant queens. The truth is, it's not unsolvable at all.

The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) stated that it would only take $30 billion a year to launch the necessary agricultural programs to completely solve global food insecurity. (Severe hunger afflicts 862 million people annually.)

$30 billion sounds like a lot of money, but considering we've just bailed out Wall Street to the tune of nearly a trillion, it's trifling. After I did a little digging, all I could think was...really? $30 billion is all we need to end world hunger? That's it? I thought such a major goal would require some unreachable, vast sum. Here are six things I learned we're doing with that money instead.

Global military and arms trade expenditures hit high at about $1 trillion annually. Approximately $540 billion is spent by the United States alone. (I don't mean to single out defense here, but...wow!)

The United States Department of Energy spends $23.4 billion yearly just to develop and maintain nuclear warheads.

How could we forget the recent $700 (and growing) billion housing bailout bill? In other words, 4% of the Wall Street bailout would end world hunger.

The U.S. Congress has approved $44 billion of U.S. funds for Iraqi construction projects (meanwhile, 39% of bridges in the United States have been deemed structurally deficient – but that’s another story. Am I being partisan?)

$30 billion was spent on Homeland Security in 2008, and they’re requesting $35 billion for 2009.

Lest we pick on ourselves only, residents of the United Kingdom waste about âÂ¤20 billion worth of food every year. That translates to about $31.7 billion U.S. dollars.

You’ll notice that the big spenders are on corporations, defense and military organizations, but in my research I didn't intend to focus on this. It's just what we spend on! I can't help but think that if we could channel even a few of those war dollars into peace spending (like helping alleviate world hunger), there might not be much left to fight about in the future. This idealist believes it’s worth a try. What do you think?World hunger seems like one of those grand unsolvable problems – the perennial... more

iloveravi
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1 year ago
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73 comments

Stop World Hunger

A PSA about world hunger i made.

jimenagamio
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1 year ago
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3 comments

Scarcity Hits Hardest On The Women of Africa

"A man can never sit at home. They are always out somewhere," Lingani said. "They don't do anything. They don't help." (from article)

With very little work and very little pay, the women in Africa are left to feed their families. Meanwhile, they barely have any food left to feed themselves. The men believe that it is a woman's role to feed the family while the men got out to work. This is very common in the African culture.

'Zorome, Lingani's husband, said that men don't help with shopping and cooking because "that is the job of women." Like many men interviewed here, he said African culture clearly defines roles for men, who work outside the house, and women, who manage children and meals.' (from article)

Msnbc.com/Washington Post's 3 page article tells the story of a woman named Fanta Lingani and her struggle to take care of her family.

Here's an excerpt-
"Mealtime conspires against women-
In poor West African nations such as Burkina Faso, mealtime conspires against women. They grow the food, fetch the water, shop at the market and cook the meals. But when it comes time to eat, men and children eat first, and women eat last and least.

Soaring prices for food and fuel have pushed more than 130 million poor people across vast swaths of Africa, Asia and Latin America deeper into poverty in the past year, according to the U.N. World Food Program. But while millions of men and children are also hungrier, women are the hungriest and skinniest. Aid workers call malnutrition among women one of the most notable hidden consequences of the food crisis.

"It's a cultural thing," said Hervé Kone, director of a group that promotes development, social justice and human rights in Burkina Faso. "When the kids are hungry, they go to their mother, not their father. And when there is less food, women are the first to eat less."

A recent study by the aid group Catholic Relief Services found that many people in Burkina Faso are now spending 75 percent or more of their income on food, leaving little for other basic needs.

Pregnant women and young mothers are forgoing medical care. More women are turning to prostitution to pay for food. And more families are pulling children -- especially girls -- out of school, unable to afford fees and clothes.

But perhaps the most pervasive effect of the growing global crisis is the ache in the stomachs of millions of poor women such as Fanta Lingani. "

To read the full article click at the link above!"A man can never sit at home. They are always out somewhere," Lingani said. "They... more