This past summer I had the privilege of being an intern here at the Federation of Virginia Food Banks where I did advocacy work. Prior to this position, I had minimal experience in the world of food insecurity. As far as I was concerned the tiny food pantry near my house was a full-fledged food bank (a food bank acts much like a business with its main goal being to help supply their designated food pantries with food for distribution to the community). Truly a rookie mistake.
Through this opportunity, I felt I was able to go a mile wide and an inch deep into hunger policy and initiatives. This is something I find quite valuable because it gives me the foundation and context to not only be able to learn more about food insecurity in the future, but also to have the expertise to educate people in my own life about hunger.
However, my biggest takeaway from this experience was recognizing just how robust and deep-rooted food insecurity is as a problem. What I mean by this is food insecurity is not a stand-alone issue, in fact, the patterns in our food system are a result of every other system that continually keeps the same people in poverty. Food insecurity would not exist if everyone had access to quality healthcare, education, and housing. Food insecurity is a reflection of every other inequity that exists in our society. Because of this, it is more crucial than ever that partnerships be formed between the charitable sector and key policymakers to foster systemic change that will eradicate poverty at its root.
Overall, the Federation of Virginia Food Banks greeted me with a small yet mission-driven group of capable people who were knowledgeable of food insecurity and its many intricacies. To the person reading this: if you have any interest at all in food insecurity let this be your sign to not hesitate to get out there– volunteer at your local food pantry, learn more about food insecurity and advocate to your elected officials, or even apply for an open position at a hunger-related organization. After all, food insecurity impacts everyone everywhere, even a college student just like me.
