Ending hunger. For life.
Each year over 9 million people die of hunger-related causes. There are a lot of good solutions waiting to be implemented, they just need to be funded. OnePlate has spent a lot of time researching the best projects to maximise donor impact. For this reason, OnePlate is committed to sponsoring food projects that are sustainable and that provide long-term solutions.
Sustainable
“‘Sustainable farming’ means that there are consistent yields of crops across a period of time,” said Dr Don Van Cooten, CEO of World Relief Australia and OnePlate Partner.
“So, you are not using up the soil’s nutrients, and the environment is not affecting you as it changes from season to season,” he said.
By growing and maintaining a sustainable farm, the community not only has enough to eat during ‘fair weather’ but has an ongoing food source that is resilient to poorer weather conditions.
OnePlate is partnering with seasoned agricultural specialists, who will work with us to make the projects sustainable – planting for season, space and durability.
Long term
OnePlate is also passionate about support projects that are long-term.
While short-term emergency programs (such as food handouts and emergency funds) are useful, reliance on this aid leaves the community vulnerable – to donor fatigue, to resources drying up, or to a bigger crisis elsewhere.
While long-term solutions have a smaller initial impact, they initiate lasting and exponential change.
“For example,” said Don “if we raised $100 and fed 100 people at $1 per meal. What was the effectiveness? Yes, they were all fed. What’s the impact? 100 people fed at $1 each. That is very efficient. But if you measure the next day, there are 100 people starving again.”
“A broader strategy needs to be worked out … if we can wait four months and grow the food, then we’ll have 100 times the amount, and we can feed many more people,” he said.
“A corn crop only takes four months to grow. So, if you give out a kilo of grain you feed four or five people, if you plant the kilo of grain you have 100 kilos in three or four months,” he said.
As well as a higher yield, long-term solutions also provide the community with the skills and education to run the projects themselves. This breaks the cycle of poverty.
Sustainable farms will not only generate food, but jobs. Around this will spring entrepreneurial projects such as restaurants, cooking classes and other skills.
By funding projects that are both sustainable and long-term, OnePlate hopes to give impoverished communities the opportunity to thrive, for life.
We hope you can join us.
“Give a family a kilo of food and you feed them for a day, teach them how to grow the food and you feed them for a lifetime.” – Don Van Cooten.