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Ertharin Cousin, Tales from the War on Hunger

 

After the 2007 Global Food Crisis, President Barack Obama in his Inaugural Address committed to the world’s poor nations: “We pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds”. Ertharin Cousin worked to deliver on this promise, first as U.S. Ambassador for the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (2009-2012), then as the Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Programme (2012-2017). Ambassador Cousin reflects upon the challenges and lessons learned from serving during a period when the driver of extreme food insecurity shifted from quick onset emergencies (including hurricanes and earthquakes) to protracted conflicts. She also answers the question of why she believes, in a time of unprecedented humanitarian challenges, we can still end global hunger.