On Day 7 of the 21 Days for World Hunger, I’d like to focus on the epidemic of hunger that is occurring much closer to home. Five Conducive Chronicle writers are eating a diet similar to the world’s hungry (about 1000 calories a day). Are you familiar with the term “food desert”? A food desert is any area that lacks access to adequate–and affordable–sources of nutritious foods like fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and low-fat milk. “Lack of access” may describe either a dearth of neighborhood markets offering healthy food choices or an absence of easy methods of transportation to grocery stores outside the immediate area. The closest many of these areas have to a supermarket is a corner convenience store that stocks sodas and snacks–certainly not nutritious fare by anyone’s interpretation.
Will Allen and Growing Power, Inc.
Former NBA draft pick and MacArthur Foundation “Genius Grant” Fellow, Will Allen has devoted his life to improving access to healthy foods in these urban food deserts. Recognizing that a diet consisting mainly of convenience-store and fast-food fare leads to health issues such as diabetes and obesity, Allen developed the holistic farming model of food cultivation and efficient urban food distribution that led to establishing the non-profit organization Growing Power, Inc. Employing farming techniques such as raised-bed agriculture, aquaculture, vermiculture (worm composting) and using compost to heat greenhouses, Growing Power is able to produce large quantities of food all year round at its two-acre site in the city of Milwaukee. Allen and Growing Power have also expanded their reach beyond Milwaukee by entering into partnerships with organizations and programs in other urban and rural areas. Growing Power’s programs teach teenagers and young adults–many of them immigrants and people of color–to cultivate their own healthy foods and advise community leaders wishing to develop urban farming initiatives in their own cities.
Foodlink’s Urban Produce Stands Are Springing Up in Rochester, NY’s Poorest Neighborhoods
Foodlink, a Rochester, New York-based food bank, recently implemented an urban produce stand pilot program in one of the city’s most troubled neighborhoods. Each Sunday this summer, a Foodlink representative has been manning the stand on a street corner that he shares with teens. And, each week, neighborhood residents ignore the teens and stop by to look over the stand’s offerings, many of which are intended for use in the residents’ traditional dishes. As in other areas, Rochester’s inner city neighborhoods do not contain any large grocery stores that carry a variety of healthy foods. Offering produce at reasonable prices at corner stands greatly improves access to the food that urban children need to grow into healthy adults. Obesity rates among the city’s poorest youth have climbed dangerously high in recent years, partly because convenience store owners cannot afford to purchase smaller quantities of produce at the prices set by suppliers. Urban farm markets can help turn those rates around by making healthy food affordable and accessible to hungry, poor families. Instead of walking to the corner store for chips and soda, these children can walk to the refrigerator for carrots and celery when they need a snack.
Efforts such as these can help stem the tide of urban hunger and empower even the poorest of the poor to take control of their lives by learning to grow their own food. All it takes is a few seeds, some land, and a dream.
21 Days for World Hunger
Day 2 Focus on Hunger: Interview with Vandana Shiva
Day 3 Cambodia: Portrait of Hunger
Day 4 A Mindful Approach to Food Fosters Compassion for the World’s Hungry
Day 5 How Does Mindful Farming Help Solve World Hunger
Day 6 Sustainable Vegan Farming Practices Empower the World’s Hungry
Day 7 Food Deserts and Urban Farm Markets
Day 8 Vandana Shiva and the Navdanya Farmers Network
Day 9 World Hunger: From GMO Chemistry Set to Table?
Day 10 The Generational Consequences of GMOs
Day 11 How to Avoid the GMO Bad Nasties
Day 12 What do GMOs have to do with world hunger?
Day 13 Why do People go Hungry in The Big Apple?
Day 14 Hunger in New York City: Meeting the Victims
Day 15 The Urban Hunger Problem: Causes
Day 16 Becoming a Leader in the Hunger Battle
Day 17 The Psychology of Activism
Day 18 Hunger in Africa: One Small NGO Making a Big Impact
Day 19 One NGO Fighting Against World Hunger
Day 20 Tools and Support for Getting Your Activist Activated
Day 21 Conducive Chronicle World Hunger Writers on Activism
Consider purchasing a World Hunger: Be the Solution Tee. Proceeds from the shirt will go to Navdanya, the Small Planet Institute Fund the International Fund for Africa. All tees are sweat free and available in organic cotton. To see the selection of World Hunger tees at Conducive’s Humanitarian & Human Rights Tee store, click here.
A native of western New York State, Elizabeth holds a political science degree from the State University of New York Empire State College. After over twenty years in the legal profession, Elizabeth decided to turn her extensive writing, editing and proofreading experience into a freelance writing career. During that same twenty years, Elizabeth and her husband opened up their home and their hearts to numerous mischievous cats and three loveable dogs, all rescues. Elizabeth’s love for animals led her to pursue veterinary technology studies and training as an animal Reiki practitioner. Her deep love for the Earth and belief in the interconnectedness of all things informs her desire to write on green living and environmental issues.
Elizabeth’s articles have been published on eHow.com and in Animal Wellness and Veterinary Technician magazines and Animal Reiki Source’s newsletter complication Tails From the Source. She has also written a children's book about the antics of her dog Simon for her granddaughters.
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