Students for International Development at Brigham Young University will host the 15th annual Hunger Banquet Friday and Saturday, March 18 and 19, at 6:30 p.m. in 3220 Wilkinson Student Center.
As diners arrive for the banquet, they will be randomly assigned a first-, second- or third-world status and a description of their socioeconomic condition. Their dining experience will be wholly determined by that assignment.
Advance tickets for the Hunger Banquet are $6 at the WSC Information Booth or $8 at the door. Donations are also welcome.
"The Hunger Banquet provides participants an opportunity to step outside their day-to-day lives. It is a coming together of our community to reach out to other communities," said Tara Mcintosh, SID co-president.
"We put on the Hunger Banquet for the community and for ourselves, to remember that we are, all of us, capable of great things if we just share the opportunities and resources for them," said Colin Smith, Hunger Banquet program director.
Joan Dixon, assistant professor of organizational behavior and strategy, will be the keynote speaker. Dixon received a doctorate in international development education from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. She has been involved with international development work since 1985 and has worked in Nigeria, Gambia, Nepal, Indonesia and Thailand.
A co-founder of the Action Against Poverty network, Dixon is teaching a course on organizational development for NGOs at BYU and doing consulting work. She will speak on the concept of the "other."
Added to the fun, educational evening will be culturally diverse entertainment.
Each year funds generated from the Hunger Banquet are allotted to development and humanitarian projects worldwide.
Last year SID assisted the Zamani Day Care Centre, helping them buy land to build a permanent centre to replace their previous shelter which had burned; the Parenting Foundation of the Philippines to help place foster children; Shanti Ashram's primary and secondary educational scholarship program in southern India; Kanlungan Sa Erma Ministry Inc.; and the Augustinian Scholarship Fund to help young people from Hogar Infantil.
SID is a David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies-sponsored club composed of students interested in helping their brothers and sisters who are suffering from poverty. Club members, who come from various backgrounds and majors, meet each week to hear lectures, have discussions and exchange ideas.
For further information, e-mail Jay Bosterick at international_development@email.byu.edu.
Writer: Lee Simons
