Poverty is not only the lack of income and resources that make it difficult to maintain livelihoods but also exists in hunger and malnutrition, inadequate access to education and other basic public services, social discrimination and exclusion, and inability to participate in decision-making.
In 2015, more than 736 million people lived below the international poverty line. Before the pandemic broke out, about 10% of the world’s population was living in extreme poverty, and the most basic needs such as medical care, education, water, and sanitation could not be met.
The ratio of men to women in poverty between the ages of 25 and 34 is 100:122, and more than 160 million children may still be living in extreme poverty by 2030.
Although the global poverty rate has fallen by more than half since 2000, the COVID-19 pandemic may increase the global poor by 500 million people, accounting for 8% of the global population.
In April 2020, the United Nations issued a framework for immediate response to the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 and established the Secretary-General’s United Nations COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund.
Inspires from individuals in Hong Kong
There is a special restaurant in Hong Kong where no price on the menu and it’s all free pricing decouples food. According to its founder, the idea of this restaurant is that poor people may not always have to eat the food they “can afford”.
“We will cook dishes from all over the world so that the poor will also have access to these foods. In our society With only some money, you can only afford to eat certain foods, and free pricing is to subvert this economic model.”
They hope that those who are able can pay a little more (or a lot) so that people who can hardly pay any money need not feel embarrassed. That is a kind of community power, not only the staff have involved in helping poor people, every customer can offer a hand.
There may be some unhappy behaviours, but they all have very good things. For example, the elderly in the nursing home above may not be able to eat the nutritious and delicious meal they find, and they often come to eat a few times a week. , You can sit down at ease, eat happily, and set a lower price they can afford. Everyone knows everyone and remembers what the other person is like.
The various things that appear and gather around in this restaurant help people understand the relationship between what we are doing and the world. Every individual can make a great difference to remove poverty and see each neighbour live elegantly and peacefully in a small town.
Ways we can do
Even we don’t have such creative ideas to reduce poverty, we can still join in the process through daily actions. Best child welfare programmes in india.
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Get rid of one bad habit and donate the money you saved on that
Take smoking as an example. It is a bad habit with extreme harm to people’s health and also costs a lot of money. After deciding to quit smoking, you can donate the money you would spend on it and give yourself credit. You can also use this method as a reward when you want to build a good habit.
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Shop wisely
An easy way to reduce undesirable expenditure is to buy less. Pay attention to how much you usually throw away, and try to adjust your grocery shopping plan accordingly. To do this, you can plan your weekly diet and buy only what you need.
Pay attention to special offers and buy one get one free activity. If you can’t store extra things, ask yourself if you end up throwing them away.
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Reduce food wasting
When it comes to poverty, we cannot ignore the severe situation of hunger. An authoritative report points out that 1.3 billion tons of food are wasted globally every year, of which about 50% are fruits and vegetables. The uneasy preservation of fruits and vegetables makes them easy to be wasted, and these wasted foods can feed 3.6 billion people.
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a) Store food efficiently
Usually, if the food is stored in the wrong way, the food will spoil before it expires, or the shelf life will be shortened. Taking time to store food effectively can reduce waste and make money more worthwhile.
- Freeze fresh food that is not urgently needed for future use.
- You can freeze leftovers, such as soups, stews, and pasta.
- Be sure to place all storage containers safely and always keep them under proper air temperature conditions.
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c) Make the most of leftovers.
Another good way to reduce food waste and use ingredients is to make full use of leftovers. You can turn leftovers into extra meals or snacks, or use them to make broths or stews. Check the recipe and use the remaining ingredients for cooking. Set the goal to use up all the food you make. You can find some leftover recipes online.
- Store excess fruits and vegetables or put them in cans.
- Be sure to use leftovers safely. Store them in an airtight container and put them in the refrigerator or freezer.
- Use the leftovers within two days and do not reheat the food multiple times.
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Volunteering or joining related organizations
The participation of individuals is essential to achieving this development goal. Everyone should be more involved in this development process and realize that people are not only a target group but also initiators, participants, decision-makers, and leaders.
Their participation should be regarded as a useful resource for social change, and higher education institutions should also play their vital role here.
For example:
- Akshaya Patra
- Green Shoots Foundation
- Oxfam
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