Is U.s. Aid Effective?

Is U.S. Aid Effective?

The semester quickly moves on, and WHE-AC has a few new projects for March. We will be working with OXFAM America once again with the annual Tools for Peace and Justice campaign. This year the focus s on U.S. aid and its effectiveness in promoting development, and its use as a weapon against developing countries. Currently the fraction of money allocated for relief work and development work accounts for only a tiny fraction of the U.S. budget. This campaign will focus on educating the U.S. public and on raising much needed funds for development work.

WHE-AC has planned a bucket drive for March 28th and 29th. The money raised will be sent to OXFAM America. Sandra Steingraber will be showing slides and talking about Sudan (tentatively scheduled for March 28th or 30th - watch for fliers with details). WHE-AC will be offering some other educational activities during the week of March 27 - 31; further information will be posted around campus prior to the event. In early April there will a benefit concert to end our Tools for Peace and Justice campaign, but we will tell you more about this next month.

To keep you up to date on the outcome of the Oxfam Fast money, WHE-AC has sent money to the Mt. Nebo Resource Center, House of Hope, House of Love, and the United Sisters of Charity - all of which are in Detroit. We are in the process of distributing the money which was allocated for the Ann Arbor area and next month we will list the organizations to which we sent donations. In addition, we recently sent our final check to the Overseas Development Network project in the Philippines, thus fulfilling our commitment to the farmer's co-operative which we adopted in September.

Many new people have joined WHE-AC in the past few months, and we would like to see even more new faces. Our meetings are held in room 4202 Michigan Union every Monday at 6 pm. If you are interested in learning more about WHE-AC and/or would like to learn about what you can do to help locally or internationally with hunger related issues please attend our meetings or cali 930-6944.

The World Hunger Education Action Committee (WHE-AC) is a campus based organization whose focus is on educating the community on the causes of world hunger and on the solutions to world hunger. Our goal is to understand the complex social, political, economical, and environmental forces that both create and promote world hunger. We recognize that true development can only be achieved by empowering people on a grassroots level. We organize projects with this perspective in mind. Consequently, we work with Oxfam America, Overseas Development Network, and the Institute for Food and Development Policy (IFDP).

WHE-AC, 4202 Michigan Union, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, 930-6944.