The current food system in the world is unjust. This system perpetuates food insecurity and reinforces the already existing paradox of “globesity”: for the first time in history, there are the same number of people who are malnourished in the world as those who are overweight and obese. This is sickening and it has to stop. According to experts, there is enough food in the world (there are enough calories in the world) to feed everyone. So, why do we have this problem of continuing and rising food insecurity? There is a maldistribution of resources in the form of money and food, resulting in wealthy people becoming wealthier, poorer people becoming poorer, hungry people continuing to suffer from hunger, and obese people continuing to get more than their fare share of food.
The Problem
The current food system in the world is unjust. This system perpetuates food insecurity and reinforces the already existing paradox of “globesity”: for the first time in history, there are the same number of people who are malnourished in the world as those who are overweight and obese. This is sickening and it has to stop.
According to experts, there is enough food in the world (there are enough calories in the world) to feed everyone. So, why do we have this problem of continuing and rising food insecurity? There is a maldistribution of resources in the form of money and food, resulting in wealthy people becoming wealthier, poorer people becoming poorer, hungry people continuing to suffer from hunger, and obese people continuing to get more than their fare share of food.
The Problem
The First Step
"I remember wondering,
Why is he doing this?
Why isn’t he getting a job and worrying about making money like everyone else?"
-Terrence Rogers '79
Student-led efforts to confront the problem of world hunger started at Notre Dame with the initiative of an incredible man named Alan Sondej. During his undergraduate years as well as beyond graduation, Alan developed a reputation “the big guy who collected money for the hungry outside the dining hall,” by standing outside the dining halls with a milk jug to collect donations from passersby. His goal was to collect $25,000.
His desire to confront hunger head-on took him as far as Bangladesh and Guatemala. Through his exeperiences and work with Father Hesburgh, he was able to solicit even greater donations from larger groups and broaden his impact
Tragically, Alan died in January of 1988 while serving as a volunteer firefighter, however, his legacy lives on in the lives he inspired directly and in the mission in our group. You can read more about Alan's incredible story here.
The Movement Today
The World Hunger Coalition’s main fundraiser is the Wednesday Lunch Donation, a sustainable, yearlong fundraiser in which participants sign up to forego their Wednesday lunch swipes in the dining halls throughout the semester. Notre Dame Dining Services then gives the money they save by preparing fewer lunches to the World Hunger Coalition. Our collaborative efforts allow us to raise over $20,000 every year that we donate to domestic and international hunger-relief organizations performing important and worthy work. We also run a number of other fundraising events such as blood drives throughout the year.
Be sure to follow our Facebook Twitter and Instagram activity for updates as well as our events calendar found here.
