University of NSW VGroup Receives Honorary Degree in "Rocking Famine"

The 40 Hour Famine at UNSW took off with a blast! The stall was set up on the library walkway and in the quadrangle, two high traffic zones that kept enthusiastic members signing up. Over 100 people signed up over the first four days!

The VGen team took great effort into preparing the 40 Hour famine in order to sign up as many people as we could. Our campus was decked out in colourful posters, and some of the execs showed their creativity.

We’d have to say that over the two weeks in which the stall was held, it was quite an attraction. The 40 Hour Famine banner/sail in particular, got quite a few second glances. Our volunteers, with their funky blue Famine shirts looked awesome as well!

Our aim was to spread the message about poverty, addressing the key issues surrounding the global food crisis. Our volunteers made sure that everyone who signed up [or happened to be passing by] knew a little extra about the global food crisis than they did before. Our volunteers and execs had a fantastic time getting to know each other, working as a team and sharing a common passion of making a difference through VGen and the 40 Hour famine. Last year, Vision Generation UNSW raised over $5000, we want to see if we can beat that this year!

This year the entire executive board participated in the 40 Hour famine, many of us giving up food for the first time! We can’t wait to hear some of the feedback from participants. A majority of participants, (including members of the exec at UNSW) found that participating in the 40 Hour Famine allowed them to empathise with those in third world countries who go without food everyday, as well as become more appreciative of things that are often taken for granted here in Australia.

We look forward to hearing some great stories about the Famine at our ‘Famine Achievers’ night which will be held in the next few weeks. Thanks to everyone who got involved in the 40 Hour famine at UNSW, we hope you had a fantastic famine weekend!

The VGen team at UNSW

Brisbane Boys College VGroup Leader meets with his Federal MP!

With the 40 Hour Famine weekend now finished and with Youth Decide coming up fast, some QLD VGenners from the Ryan electorate thought that it was an ideal time to pay their Federal MP Michael Johnson a little visit! Present at the meeting were Ryan Drake (Vision Group Leader of the Brisbane Boys College VGroup), Tess Evans (Ryan's VGen Coach) and Steph Carter (VGen QLD State Director). The VGenners spent almost an hour with Michael, discussing the 40 Hour Famine and the Global Food Crisis, Ryan's Vision Groups plans and activities and had a good chat about climate change and the impending Youth Decide online youth vote which Michael was very interested in. Ryan impressed Michael with his plans for the school VGroup, even handing over a detailed document for Michael to read through, while Tess challenged him with her knowledge of climate change!

As a Grade 10 student attending his first MP meeting (and with a Federal MP no less!), Ryan certainly held his own and provided Michael with some follow up actions points for the next few months such as attending some of the VGroup activities at Brisbane Boys College. The meeting was a largely positive one and ended on a good note- afterall, what better way to make a lasting impression on an MP than to have a Vision Group Leader named after their electorate!

Astronaut inspiration for pioneering VGenner!

That's me in the front!

Hey guys its Dan here from VGen NSW! This year has been my first doing the 40 Hour famine. I gave up food and I’m not going to lie, it was difficult. After attending the NSW Vision Group training day on the Global Food Crisis in July, I knew I had to go back and get my whole school on board, so I did just that!

This has been the first time my school has done the 40 Hour famine in a few years. The famine has been a great success. Around 100 students and even a teacher had participated. Getting feedback from various students I can see a lot of money will be raised. Some raised $10, some $50, some $200-300.

My motivation for the famine was a quote by astronaut Buzz Aldrin, “If we can conquer space, we can conquer childhood hunger”. 1 billion people are affected by the Global Food Crisis; this quote inspired me to not give up hope. One day we will conquer hunger, just like we conquered space.

So everyone good luck in your endeavours and keep doing what you’re doing!

Coolum State High VGroup spreads the famine fever!

Well it was a jam-packed day when Steph and Jess from the VGen State Team joined the Coolum State High School Vision Group on the Sunshine Coast to share in their famine launch on Friday 21st August! The group were spreading the famine fever to all corners of their school, holding a 'White Faces' day. The group facilitated interactive workshops focused on the GFC with various grade 8 and 9 classes throughout the day, held a BBQ during lunchtime to raise funds, were busy painting faces (with white paint of course) and even had some of the VGroup members dress up as 'Kiss' for the day- the idea behind this was to 'Kiss Poverty Goodbye'!

The group did a fantastic job of raising awareness about the 40 Hr Famine and in educating other students (and teachers who joined in!) about the Global Food Crisis and even signed up more students at lunch for the famine. The school was covered in famine posters for the day and the Kiss band certainly attracted a lot of attention. On the weekend, the school's chaplain opened up his property for students doing the famine to come along and join in for some fun games and activities- pumping up the famine atmosphere over the weekend!

Well done Coolum SHS!

A day of silence for the 'silent tsunami': Upwey Vision Group does us proud

-- From Jasmine Zapka, Vision Group Coach in Victoria 22/8/09

Today the Upwey Vision Group held a mime day to mark the start of this years 40 Hour Famine. They got permission to dress as mimes and remain silent for the whole day in an effort the put a spotlight onto the Global Food Crisis and the millions of people who remain voiceless in society. Dressed in black and white, with painted faces and cardboard signs draped over them, they stood strong in their school despite a very mixed response from fellow students.

They had their local paper come in and take a photo agreeing to do a story, so we wait in anticipation for the article next week.

They got up on stage with at lunch time and explained what they were doing and why. After the presentation their fellow students then understood what the group was trying to achieve with their silent protest. They received a standing ovation and round of applause from all their fellow students and teachers.

Such an amazing moment.

At the end of the day we had a chance to debrief and talk about the day and how they felt. It inspired me beyond words. Although they were scared of rejection and a lot of students did reject them initially, they knew that they were getting a taste of what it is like for others who don't have the freedoms we do. Others feel that way everyday of their lives.

They collected donations all day and managed to raise over $500!!

We were all so proud. This just reminds me of what it's all about. Being local activists, not being afraid to stand up when others sit down, not being afraid to speak out when everyone else is silent or, in their case, to listen when everyone else ignores.

Turning a town upside down: biting back at hunger!

Around 4 odd hours out from Melbourne you'll find a town called Warrnambool. It's known for its maritime museum, whale watching... and its pumping Vision Groups! Jacki McLeod, our gutsy VGenner, has been rallying young people around her to do something real about the poverty and injustice in our world. More often than not, young people in such regional towns have a bad rap for binge drinking and causing mayhem, but Jacki has a real vision for the leaders in her community to see what great things young people are capable of and can accomplish!

We are so proud of her and the Warrnambool girls - have a read of what they have been up to first hand!

From Jacki McLeod -

Can eight teenage girls teach their community an important lesson? You bet! On Friday July 31st, 130 students, teachers, church leaders, principals and community leaders gathered to learn about the Global Food Crisis, at Warrnambool's "Bite Back at Hunger!"

After splitting the guests into "rich" and "poor", and waiting upon the rich with maison and chocolate slice, the unfair nature of poverty really struck a chord with the crowd. Following on from this simulation, Robert Waddell from World Vision spoke to us about the Global Food Crisis, before we took to the stage and introduced Vision Generation and our aim to educate, empower and inspire our peers to fight against poverty and injustice! We had a heart-warming performance of "We are the World" by Holiday Actors, and then taught the audience how to be everyday activists by making simple choices in their schools and workplaces.

For supper, we served Fairtrade coffee, hot chocolate and tea, and had Fairtrade choclate taste testing. We had stalls by a Fairtrade friendly store, Enique, and a Fairtrade raffle of chocolate, coffee and Etiko sneakers! Along the way, we raised $433, which will all go to the 40 Hour Famine. This amazing night has generated a big buzz in Warrnambool for the 40 Hour Famine, and we're planning to make it the biggest yet!

So, if your VGroup has big ideas like we did, don't be scared to put in the hard yards to bring your plan to fruition. With the right planning, guidance and dedication, you'll be amazed at the difference you can make in your community!

PRODUCTION: quality and quantity

So what's the problem?
Poor countries are struggling to grow enough food because of inefficient farming techniques and a lack of funding for farming research projects. How will everyone get fed if we don’t grow enough on our land??

Farmers in poor communities are often unable to produce enough on their land because of limited access to new technologies and equipment. A lack of agricultural research and development has meant that productivity has been slowing over the past 20 years. Both developed and developing countries need to spend much more on improving farming techniques to increase food production. Poor farmers often turn to exploitation or child labour when they can’t make ends meet.

How can you be a part of the solution?
--> THIS WEEK <-- Commit taking on one or more of these actions. Make sure you tell people what you are doing a why! (Thanks to VGen QLD for sending these through!)

1. Make sure you keep spreading the Fairtrade message.
Fairtrade means farmers, third world producers, are getting a fair price for their produce and have a better chance of being able to purchase things to increase their production. The Fairtrade 'premium' is invested back into communities which can help to increase production and aid sustainable practices as well.

2. Around the world a lot of people are moving to cities to find work and no longer are producing their own food or farming.
This drives up the price of food. Being inspired to start your own veggie garden - how exciting to eat food that you've grown yourself!

3. Invite a local food producer/farmer along to an event to talk about the complexities of growing food - particularly in harsh climates - and the need for more investment in agricultural research and development.
Highlight/create awareness about why people are going hungry due to farming production methods/lack of funding for projects etc.

4. If you're super keen - continue your research and encourage our government to invest more aid in the area of agricultural research and development - it's urgently needed to help alleviate the effects of the Global Food Crisis and to start thinking about sustainability with an ever growning world population.

PEOPLE: thinking about sustainability

So what's the problem?
The world’s population is growing, more people are moving to the city and well-off people are demanding more resource-hungry food (like meat and dairy). We want more and better food, but where’s it going to come from??

Countries like China and India have been growing quickly in wealth. People in these countries (who are just like you and me) are now able to buy more food, especially resource-hungry meat, fish and dairy. This is great – millions are better off – but as more people haggle for food, the price goes up. This kind of growth is causing hunger for millions of people left behind in poverty!
'Urbanisation' is also an issue for people living in poverty.

Living in the city is great – it’s easy to get to schools, doctors, entertainment venues and all the other things you need and enjoy. More than half the world’s people now live in cities or towns. The problem is, most people who live in cities don’t grow their own food. They must buy their food in shops or markets, and if prices rise they have no choice but to pay more to survive.

And the world’s population just keeps growing. This makes the issues around urbanisation even worse. Last year there were 75 million more mouths to feed around the world.

How can you be a part of the solution?
--> THIS WEEK <-- Commit taking on one or more of these actions. Make sure you tell people what you are doing a why! (Thanks to VGen Vic for sending these through!)

1. If the world's population is growing and everyone is to have their basic needs met, we need to think about how much we are consuming as individuals, as families, and even as a nation.
   Set yourself some goals to live more simply this week.
   Think about how much you consume: foods, petrol, luxury items, new clothes... and how much you waste: rubbish/what you throw out, left over food...
   - May be keep a tally to challenge the way you and your household live.
   - Think about sharing, borrowing and lending
   
   
2. We've learnt that meats and dairy products are 'resource hungry' food. This means it takes a lot of energy and food just to produce/feed/care for that cow, pig or chicken before it ends up on your plate. That food could go much much further if it was eaten by people instead of the duration of the animal's life. Maybe you want to look at how much meat you consume in a week, cut down, or even go vego? (make sure you explain to people why!)
   
   
3. Watch Silent Tsunami from the 5 mins 30 sec mark to get a visual representation of the link between 'People' and the Global Food Crisis. Share it round.
   

Key statistics and phrases:
1kg of beef requires 7 kgs of grain (which the cow consumes) – if 500 million people replace a meal of rice or grain with meat 3 times a week what will happen to the price of grain?

If everyone in the world consumed as much stuff as we do in Australia – we’d need 4 Earths to sustain us.

FUELS: Re-think Biofuels

So what's the problem?
Biofuels are chewing up precious food supplies so people can fill up their cars with plant-based fuels instead of petrol. This makes the remaining food supplies more expensive. In the meantime, oil prices are rising, making food and fertiliser production more expensive. How are poor families going to pay for food when it doubles in price??

Oil is a finite, natural resource – so one day it will run out! Oil prices have risen sharply in the past couple of years. We use oil to transport food and make fertilisers which are used on farms. When oil is more expensive, food is more expensive too! And don’t be fooled by changeable petrol prices – oil prices will continue to rise in coming years. One solution to the oil problem? Use renewable plant-based resources instead! We can also make energy from plants, like corn and canola, but unfortunately there’s a big problem with that. Farmers are now selling this food to energy producers – not for people to eat. This means there’s less food available AND the food prices are higher. One estimate found that filling the tank of the average car with biofuel uses as much corn (Africa's main food source) as one African person consumes in an entire year.2 The bottom line? The poor are starving so the rich can fill up their cars.

How can you be part of the solution?
--> THIS WEEK <-- Commit taking on one or more of these actions. Make sure you tell people what you are doing a why!
(Thanks to VGen SA for sending these through!)

1. A lot of people don't understand the negatives of using biofuels like ethanol. Educating people is the first step. There is a great section in the 'Silent Tsunami' clip that explains how we are feeding our cars what should be feeding humans (from the 4mins and 20secs mark). You can find the clip here.
Post it on your Facebook, embed the video in an email and send it round to lots of people to educate them.

2. Talk to people about biofuels this week, bring it up in conversation to ask people what they know - share with them what you have discovered

3. The music video 'Running On Empty' presents a literal example of taking food from the poor to put int your cars. Circulate this clip as well!

4. Organise a 'mini flash mob' in your school / uni during lunch break.
Use the 'key statistic' below get creative with some corn (ask you Vision Group Coach for left-overs from the GLCs) and demonstrate visually how much corn it takes to fill a fuel tank. Make some signs/pictures and have handouts to give people to re-think biofuels.

Key statistic for use:
It takes 232kgs of corn to produce one full tank of biofuel – that’s as much corn as an African person consumes in an entire year.