Hunger in Your Community

Hunger is an international problem that is the result of many other social issues. Hunger is easily related to poverty. Interestingly enough, poverty is tied to an impressive amount of society's other problems.

            Some Causes and Consequences of Poverty

Notes on Poverty, Globally and Locally

While poverty and hunger are very prevalent issues in society (even in America!), idealists like myself are here to say, "There is hope! We can make a change!" You can create positive social change in your community, and we can create positive social change in the world. This is a fact. Now, If you're not interested in coffee table economics and sociology, and you're more interested in seeing how you can fight to end something like hunger in your own community, go ahead and scroll down a couple paragraphs. 

Global banking organizations, such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have a lot of potential to help people in struggling parts of the world. Unfortunately, they have not met this potential, and have been used in the past as a means to financially control developing countries in ways that satisfy the interests of the rich. This is what we call a social structure - it's "the way things have been done" and it's tied intricately into the politics and functioning of everyday society. School systems, taxes, and lines (like what you wait in at banks), and even the banking system are things created and maintained by society. 

Social structures are not all bad.  But, because social structures are so intricately tied into tradition, they are often difficult to change. Difficult - not impossible. Often it may seem difficult, even daunting to try to confront these issues, but as I've said, I like to advocate a small-world approach to creating large-world progress.

So How Can You Create Change in Your Community?

To one degree or another, I've been involved with community service organizations both in leadership and follower-ship positions since I was twelve. I'm no expert, but you can learn some things in ten years. 

Here are a few tips to help you get started.

1.) Do some research. Find out what organizations, churches, or other groups in your community are fighting for causes similar to yours.

2.) Once you've done your research, get involved! 

3.) If no one is fighting for your cause, find a flexible organization that you can get involved with which you can tailor to your cause. For example, you can start a local support group, or a group of advocates at a church or an after-school program. Take charge! Change is made by leaders who are brave enough to persuade people to fight along side them.

4.) Once your cause is well established in the community, look for partners. Teamwork makes the dream work. Ideally, you can create a network of local organizations dedicated to fighting your cause. Someone at a church group I go to told me about a community that was dedicated to ending poverty in their zip code. This kind of stuff is not easy, but it's possible! In the end, my advice is this.

Positive social change occurs slowly, but if you're willing to take your time, and keep up the hard work, eventually you will convince other people to join your cause. One organization, two, five, ten organizations later... and you can do amazing things for your community and the world. By setting an example for small-world social change, you are creating a model for the rest of humanity. It all starts with you. Go get 'em, Champ.