Thursday, June 28,
2012
It was a slightly overcast evening in Chicago and guests
came into The Chicago Club. People enjoyed drinks and some conversation before
the impending presentation by Senior Fellow for global agriculture and food
policy, Roger Thurow. The former journalist of The Wall Street Journal wrote ENOUGH:
Why the World’s Poorest starve in the Age of Plenty, which won him and his
colleague the Action Against Hunger’s Humanitarian Award. The crowd of about
one hundred includes a mix of established members of The Chicago Council,
concerned citizens and students filled the chairs with introduction of Thurow.
“Do we know who the
small farmers are?”
Thurow asks his audience members if we know who struggles
with hunger every day, hungry farmers of Africa. He describes the conditions of
four farmers he followed for a year in Africa. Three of the four farmers are
women, representing the amount of women farmers in Africa. All the farmers are
ignored by the government. And without the insurances, guarantees and backing
of the government, farmers can starve. Unfortunately, when farming fails,
people die in Africa. Thurow hones in on this point. However, this scare grows
when accounting for the future of the world. With continuously growing
population, the strain on current resources will grow. According to economic
and agricultural advisors around the world, the population cannot be sustained
without African agriculture by 2025. Without these small farmers, people will
die.
Each small farmer represents a unique and humbling aspect of
these difficulties: the obscenity of hungry farmers, the deepest form of
misery, the privilege of using “and”, and the desperation of either feeding
family or giving kids an education.
Fortunately, following these farmers after a year ends with
success and hope. A special organization, One Acre Fund, puts small farmers
first, where governments and policy continues to crawl. Using a model to
support, educate and invest in farmers, One Acre places full interest in the
future of agricultural independence of Africa. It creates sustainable farming
with seeds that require less water to provide more food and gives farmers
insurance. Africa must succeed. Programs for microfinancing and microcredit are
keys to success in Africa.
Thurow paints a grim picture of the future, especially for
small farmers. With strength in positivity and faith in people, Thurow reminds
us we can paint a better picture for the future. We can raise awareness. We can
raise funds. We can educate each other. We can enforce better food policy. We
can invest in these farmers. After all, investing in these farmers is an
investment in people and our future.
