If we can feed the world, why are millions starving? Drought destroys food crops. Wars disrupt farming and turn whole populations into refugees. Some countries have policies that discourage successful agriculture. In these reports, the United Methodist News Service looks at ways the world could do better. All the people we talked with care about hunger. For many of them, it is their faith that drives their efforts.
Audio Stories
Hungry People
One in ten households in the U.S. lives with hunger, or is at risk of hunger. Around the world, almost a billion people go hungry. Listening to their stories opens the door to understanding. In this report, Tina talks about being homeless and hungry in Tennessee, Juanita and Helen visit a Nashville food pantry, Whitney Louis struggles to teach hungry children in Haiti, and Robert Kisubi discusses hungry children in the streets of Kampala, Uganda. (5:02)
Gleaning
One way to increase the food supply is to grow locally and try not to waste crops. This technique can be applied anywhere around the world. Libby Fitzgerald visits gleaners in a Virginia field, and The Revs. Ken Horne and Mike Waldmann of Big Island, Va., talk about ways to advocate for food security. (5:12)
Biotechnology
Sometimes people think they can improve on nature. Biotechnology promises more hardy plants, more harvests per year, and more nutritious foods. But are those promises fulfilled? Bonita Nichols grows experimental crops in Mississippi, Jaydee Hanson advises the U.S. government in Washington and Shivaji Pandey and James Butler promote biotechnology solutions from their office in Rome. (5:14)
Reasons for Hope
Failure to deal adequately with hunger means death for many. And a growing global population makes a solution even more difficult. Is there a good word to be heard? Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University is a leading voice in alleviating hunger, and David Beckman is head of Bread for the World in Washington. Both see reasons for hope. (5:37)
Bible and Ethics
Faith matters in fighting hunger. Suzanne Scholz, a Bible scholar at Perkins School of Theology in Dallas, says God cares about hungry people. Miguel de la Torre, an ethicist at Iliff School of Theology in Denver, provides a theologian’s perspective. (5:02)
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