Farmers' market outreach this weekend

We'll be at the Inner Sunset Farmers' Market on Sunday (9am-1pm)!

We have info about the GROW campaign and placemats/recipes to share for you to host a Sunday dinner on World Food Day (Oct. 16).

Come stop by our table!

Call-in day of action to save foreign aid

Life-saving funding is on the line – and your call could be the one to save it!

Congress is threatening to cut support for poverty-fighting foreign assistance, including for programs that:

• Feed more than 46 million of the world's poorest people,
• Prevent more than 114,000 children from being born with HIV,
• Save 3 million lives through immunization programs, and
• Help poor people lift themselves out of poverty.

It's up to us to speak up for those whose lives are changed – and saved – by this funding. Congress is about to finalize the budget for next year and years to come. Before they do, we need you to make a quick call to send them a clear message: don't cut poverty-fighting foreign assistance.

Here's how to make your call:

1. Call the Congressional switchboard at 202-224-3121 and tell the operator your name and where you're calling from. Ask to speak to your Senators – the operator will connect you.
2. Tell the staffer: "I'm calling to oppose cuts to poverty-focused foreign aid. Reducing funding for these programs won't help our national deficit, but it will have a terrible impact on life-improving and life-saving programs. We must continue to make these investments and give people the tools they need to lift themselves out of poverty – too many lives depend on it."
3. When you're done, you can call your Representative through the switchboard and ask for their support as well.
4. Once you've ended your call, email us at sanfrancisco@oxfamactioncorps.org to let us know how it went! You can also fill out this form online.

Monthly meeting on Thursday, September 22

Our next meeting is coming up soon:

Thursday, September 22

Borderlands Cafe

870 Valencia St, SF

6:30 pm

Come to the meeting to learn about upcoming activities: outreach at Treasure Island Music Festival and other concerts, farmers market tabling, and planning a hunger banquet for the public. We'll have these events before, during, and after World Food Day (October 16) as we continue to gain support for the GROW campaign.

We have lots to do and need your help, so please join us! RSVP to us by email.

Also, if you haven't marked your calendar, go ahead and schedule monthly Bay Area Oxfam Action Corps meetings for the 4th Thursday of the month at 6:30 pm.

Make this World Food Day (Sunday, October 16) a cause for celebration and action!

Here's a follow-up to last week's post, with more information about resources available to discuss food justice at dinner on World Food Day:

When we sit down to dinner every day, rarely do we realize that our meal depends on a global system that involves people both next door and across oceans. This World Food Day, Oxfam America is teaming up with allies across the USA and around the globe to encourage people to take a simple yet profound action. We’re asking you and thousands of others to dedicate your Sunday Dinner on October 16th to a conversation about where your food comes from, who is behind its cultivation and how we can make the food system more just and sustainable.

Just click on www.oxfamamerica.org/worldfoodday

We are all tied to a global food system that is broken. Yet there is a strong and growing movement of individuals and organizations working to repair and improve the system. In a world facing the challenges of the current famine in East Africa, constrained land and water, and an erratic climate, one of the best ways to combat global food insecurity is to invest in farmers and remove the barriers that limit their productivity.

Creating this awareness is what a World Food Day Sunday Dinner is all about.

For your Sunday World Food Day Dinner this October, Oxfam America will provide free resources so you can host a fun, educational and engaging conversation about food justice, including:

• Recruitment videos from Desmond Tutu, Frances Moore Lappe and Ellen Walsh-Rossman to get your friends, classmates, and neighbors fired up

• A Sunday Dinner discussion guide to give you conversation starters for your event

• Recipe ideas from famous chefs

• Dinner supplies – from placemats to posters and more! See placemat above.

All these and more can be found at www.oxfamamerica.org/worldfoodday

No matter where – or when – you eat, hosting a Sunday Dinner will link you to thousands of supporters across the world who are using their mealtime to change the world on October 16th. In dozens of countries, people like you will gather on that day to share a meal and start a conversation about how we can create a fairer and sustainable food system.

Conversations that start at your dinner table can turn into actions that transform our world. Thanks for being part of this day and please pass on to others!

Dedicate your Sunday dinner on World Food Day to farmers

It's hard to believe it's already September, with World Food Day (October 16) coming soon. I was reminded of this not only because our Oxfam Action Corps is planning events for World Food Day (see previous post), but also since Frances Moore Lappe was in town yesterday for a discussion about her newest book.

Frances Moore Lappe is one of Oxfam America's Sisters on the Planet. I was so glad to be able to thank her in person for the support she's given Oxfam America, particularly with the recent launch of the GROW campaign. And maybe, just maybe, in the future we'll have the opportunity to invite her to an event or table at one of her events when she's in town again. And while looking for information to post regarding Sunday dinners on World Food Day, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Frances Moore Lappe has once again helped Oxfam America:

It's time to start planning your Sunday dinner on World Food Day. Oxfam America has resources available to include a conversation about where your food comes from, who cultivates it, and how we can make the food system more just and sustainable.

Upcoming events

Here's a re-cap of the events we discussed at our meeting last week. Feel free to email us if you'd like to help plan or attend any of the activities.

Lobby visits to House members: various dates throughout September

Upcoming concerts and music festivals for tabling/outreach:

Identity Festival - Sat, Sep 3, Shoreline in Mountain View

TV on the Radio - Tue, Sep 27, Fox Theater in Oakland

Treasure Island Music Festival - Sat/Sun, Oct 15-16 (Oct 16 is World Food Day)

Farmers market for tabling/outreach:

Inner Sunset - Sun, Oct 2

Hunger Banquet:

Sat or Sun in Nov (tentatively Nov 19 or 20)

Sunday Dinners in honor of World Food Day:

resources available to host your own Sunday Dinner with family/friends and discuss food issues

Next monthly meeting is Thu, Sep 22 at Borderlands Cafe (870 Valencia St, SF) at 6:30 pm.