What does poverty look like? Many people in wealthy areas of the world imagine poverty as something remote, confined to drought-ridden farms or the slums of Third World cities. However, on October 16th, 2011, participants in a World Food Day event in the Canadian city of Winnipeg, Manitoba saw another side of poverty. The Human Library for World Food Day highlighted the role of rising food costs in poverty, not only in the Third World, but also in Canada.
Food Prices and Increased Poverty
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization’s website, World Food Day 2011 was dedicated to the theme of “Food Prices—From Crisis to Stability.” As the website notes, almost seventy million people worldwide were pushed into extreme poverty in 2010 and 2011, largely because of the rising cost of food. In areas like Africa and Asian, millions of people go hungry every day because they are unable to afford the basic necessities of life.
In countries like Canada, social assistance programs ensure that most people are sheltered from the worst effects of hunger and poverty. However, many people still struggle to find good, nutritious food to eat. This struggle was one of the issues highlighted at the World Food Day Human Library event at the Millennium Library in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
The Hunger Challenge and Living on Welfare
According to the Canadian Foodgrains Bank web page on the Hunger Challenge, one of the features of the Human Library event was giving library patrons the chance to hear four people share their experiences of temporary poverty. The challenge, as the website states, was to live for six days on the food budget given to Employment and Income Assistance (welfare) recipients in Manitoba, which amounts to just under $4 a day per person. Four participants in the challenge shared their experiences of searching for inexpensive sources of nutrition, while representatives of organizations such as Oxfam Canada and Winnipeg Harvest spoke of the growing needs of poor Manitobans and people from around the world.
The four participants in the Hunger Challenge included a magazine editor, a Canadian Foodgrains Bank director, a DJ who maintains a blog on food, and a local artist. Some of the participants also kept blogs of their experiences of searching for inexpensive but nutritious food.
Starting Conversations on Food Equality
According to the Manitoba Alternative Food Research Alliance's web page on the Human Library event, the idea behind the challenge was not to solve the problems low-income Canadians face, but rather to start conversations about issues related to food security and access in Manitoba. Although participants in the six-day challenge knew that their poverty was only temporary, it gave them a starting point to speak with others about the difference food prices make in the lives of the poor.
Using one day to focus on food or even taking a week to eat like the poor might do little to solve the problems of poverty and the impact of rising food prices. However, if the Human Library event in Winnipeg helped inspire even a few people to take action on poverty in their own city, it achieved its purpose.
Sources:
Canadian Foodgrains Bank. "Winnipeggers Try to Eat on Welfare Budget: $4 a Day."
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. "World Food Day, 16 October 2011."
Manitoba Alternative Food Research Alliance. "World Food Day Human Library."
Susan Huebert - My name is Susan Huebert, and I'm a writer and editor from Winnipeg, Manitoba. I've always enjoyed words, and I graduated with a Bachelor ...
