Featuring Keynote Speaker Ambassador Tony P. Hall, Three Time Nobel Peace Prize Nominee
Issues of hunger in our local and global communities will be the focus of the state-wide conference, the First Annual Ohio Hunger Dialogue, to be held at Walsh University, September 26-27, featuring Keynote Speaker U.S. Ambassador and Alliance to End Hunger Executive Director Emeritus Tony P. Hall. Based on the models of dialogues already held in Kansas and North Carolina, Ohio will be the third state to host a state-wide meeting devoted to seeking hunger solutions. This event is open to the general public. Attendees and presenters will include regional community organizations, Ohio university administrators and faculty members, as well as Ohio college students. Registration is required by September 22.
With nearly one in six households in the state facing food insecurity, Ohio’s hunger problems rank as one of the worst in region with one of the most alarming rates in the country. Worldwide, an estimated 1.2 billion people suffer from hunger and malnutrition.
"The goal of this dialogue will be to seek ways that Ohio’s colleges and universities, though our teaching, research, and service activities, can help to find solutions for hunger in Ohio and the world," said Dr. Douglas Palmer, Hunger Dialogue coordinator and Walsh Assistant Dean of Academic Innovation.
The Saturday luncheon will feature Keynote Speaker Ambassador Tony P. Hall, a native of Dayton, OH, who served Ohio for more than 20 years as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Ohio’s Third District. Hall served as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Missions on Food and Agriculture and is now the Executive Director Emeritus of the Alliance to End Hunger, a policy and advocacy group based in Washington, DC. Ambassador Hall was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for 1998, 1999 and 2001 for his humanitarian and hunger-related work.
Sessions will include presentations by Hiram College, The Greater Cleveland Area Foodbank, the University of Akron, Otterbein University, Xavier University, Case Western Reserve University, Stark County Hunger Task Force, Kent State University, Ohio State University, the Akron Zoo, Wittenberg University, Catholic Migrant Farmworker Network and the Akron Canton Regional Foodbank.
Hunger Dialogue participants will also be invited to attend a pre-conference Farm to School Workshop hosted by the Ohio State Extension Services on Friday, September 26, from 9 to 3 pm. The Dialogue will officially kick-off that evening with an 8 pm screening of the film "A Place at the Table."
On Saturday, participants will be able to choose from more than 15 session topics including:
- Greater Cleveland Area Foodbank "Food Stamps: Removing the Stigma and Misconceptions"
- Stark County Hunger Task Force "Growing Tomorrow’s Hunger Fighters"
- The Akron Zoo "Conserving a Food System through Community Gardens"
- Springfield, Ohio, Mayor Warren Copeland and Wittenberg University "Initiating Hunger Advocacy in our Communities"
- Sr. Karen Bernhardt, Catholic Migrant Farmworker Network "Migrant Communities, Labor Trafficking and the Impact on the Food System"
- Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank "Creating a Vision for a Hunger-Free Community"
Saturday's Keynote Address will also include the presentation of the Tony P. Hall Student Advocacy Award, which seeks to recognize the campus or campus program that is demonstrating impact and addressing hunger in innovative and effective ways in Ohio. The winner will receive $1,000 to support travel and participation in an Advocacy Day experience with Ambassador Hall in Washington, DC. Winners will be chosen based on video contest entries.
The Hunger Dialogue is sponsored by the Walsh Office of Global Learning and the Office of Service Learning, in conjunction with Ohio Campus Compact.
For more information, visit the Hunger Dialogue webpage or contact Dr. Douglas Palmer by email at dpalmer@walsh.edu or by phone at 330-490-7043.