The Hunger Project

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The Hunger Project
Type 501(c)(3) non-profit
Founded 1977
Headquarters Manhattan, NY, U.S.
Key people Jill Lester, CEO
John Coonrod, COO
Werner Erhard, Founder
Robert W. Fuller, Founder
John Denver, Founder
Joan Holmes, Founding President
Fitigu Tadesse, Vice President Africa
Badiul Alam Majumdar, Vice President Bangladesh
Peter Bourne, Chair BOD
Charles Deull, Secretary, Director
Joaquim Chissano, Director
V. Mohini Giri, Director
Specioza Wandira Kazibwe, Director
Cecilia Loría Saviñón, Director
George Mathew, Director
Queen Noor of Jordan, Director
Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, Director
Amartya Sen, Director
Steven J. Sherwood, Director
George Weiss, Director
Industry charitable organization
Revenue ▲0.27% to $8,727,193 million USD (2004)
Operating income ▼30.4% to $919,249 USD (2004)
Employees 118 employees
Website Corporate Homepage

The Hunger Project (THP) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable organization incorporated in the state of California.[1] The Hunger Project describes itself as committed to the sustainable end of world hunger. In thirteen countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, the organization claims it implements programs that mobilize rural grassroots communities to achieve sustainable progress in health, education, nutrition and family income [1]. Since its inception, it has also received criticism and is still controversial (see Public criticism below).

Contents

[edit] Current activities

[edit] Primary activities

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In Africa (in Benin, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, Senegal and Uganda) The Hunger Project claims to carry out what it calls its "epicenter" strategy. The Project states that it organizes clusters of 10 to 15 villages to establish and manage their own programs for rural banking, improved agriculture, food-processing, income-generation, adult functional literacy, food-security, and primary health-care (including the prevention of HIV/AIDS). Among its claims are a committee of villagers (with equal representation of women and men) that manages each epicenter facility and the existence of a special program of microfinance, the African Woman Food Farmer Initiative, integrated with the epicenter strategy [2].

In Latin America, where poverty especially affects rural indigenous communities, The Hunger Project claims that it works with such communities to overcome their economic marginalization - particularly that of the indigenous women. The Hunger Project claims it implements programs in indigenous communities of Bolivia, Peru and Mexico [3].

[edit] Financial and accountability reports

The Hunger Project claims it raises funds, via contributions, in the following countries Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States. According to its online report retrieved February 2007, Charity Navigator reports that The Hunger Project's program costs in FY2005 were 80.2% of expenses, and administrative and fundraising costs were 19.8%.[2] Give.org/BBB reports that as of December 2006, the Project's program expenses were 77% of total, and administrative and fundraising costs 23% and meets all of its standards.[1] Charity Navigator gives The Hunger Project four out of four stars, and the American Institute of Philanthropy gives it an A- rating.[3]

The Hunger Project met the standards to be listed on the 2004 Combined Federal Campaign National List[4] and the Commonwealth of Virginia 2005 Charity Application.[5]

[edit] History

[edit] Public criticism

Since its inception, there has been criticism of The Hunger Project by the public and the press. This criticism has mainly focused on:

  • the organization's original ties to Werner Erhard, Erhard Seminars Training, and their philosophies;
  • the failure of the Hunger Project to reach its goal of "ending world hunger by 1997..."; [6]
  • the focus of the Project (1977-1990) on public education and advocacy, rather than providing food and other direct action;[7] (On May 30, 1981 the board of directors of Oxfam Canada passed a resolution which stated they would not endorse any activities or programs sponsored by The Hunger Project, nor would they accept funds from the project.[8])
  • recent activity of The Hunger Project to remove critical articles from the Internet.[9]
  • the lack of available, third-party, non-corporate information to verify its claims.

[edit] Project reaction against criticism

The Hunger Project has responded to articles it considers false and defamatory by sending letters threatening legal action, and in some instances undertaking legal proceedings, resulting, in some cases, in apologies, correction and payment of damages.[citation needed]

Mother Jones, the The Christian Century, the fifth estate, Carol Giambalvo, Rick Ross, and Jim Provenzano have all received complaints from The Hunger Project for publishing articles that The Hunger Project considered to be false and defamatory.

...the Hunger Project has reacted strongly against other reporters who have attempted to cover the group's activities. Pat Lynch, then an NBC News reporter, stated that the Hunger Project carried out a four-month campaign to discredit her while she was preparing what eventually became an NBC Evening News segment in 1980. And when Dan Noyes was asked by a radio station in 1983 to participate in a program with a Hunger Project spokesperson, the organization refused to appear. Instead they requested a tape of the program with Noyes alone for review by the group's lawyer.[10]

[edit] Timeline: media, commentator criticism

The timeline below shows some of these media articles, and The Hunger Project's responses. For a summary, see "The Hunger Project: A Historical Background, A News Summary".[11] a report compiled from public media sources. Events related to The Hunger Project's efforts to remove critical articles from the Internet are also included in the timeline.

[edit] Governance and administration

[edit] Executive staff

[4]

  • Joan Holmes, President; previously consulting educational psychologist, Erhard Seminars Training.
  • John Coonrod, Vice President and COO
  • Fitigu Tadesse, Vice President for Africa
  • Badiul Alam Majumdar, Vice President and head of Bangladesh programs

[edit] Board membership

[edit] See also

[edit] Individuals

[edit] Organizations and concepts

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b "Global Hunger Project". Give.org/BBB. February 2006. Retrieved September 17, 2006.
  2. ^ "The Hunger Project". Charity Navigator.
  3. ^ "Top Rated Charities". American Institute of Philanthropy. Retrieved September 17, 2006.
  4. ^ "2004 Combined Federal Campaign National List" (Word document, see "Global Hunger Project", item #1436). U. S. Office of Personnel Management. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  5. ^ "CVC 2005 Charity Application Global Hunger Project". Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign. Retrieved September 17, 2006
  6. ^ Gordon, Suzanne (December 1978). "Let them eat est". Mother Jones. Vol. 3, No. 10, pp. 40-44, 49-50, 52-54
  7. ^ a b The Hunger Project Refutes Innuendos, May 2006, The Hunger Project, website, http://www.thp.org/overview/responses/
  8. ^ a b Bell, Daniel and Weston, Brendan (February 13, 1985). "Hunger Project feeds itself". McGill Daily
  9. ^ a b c d Ross, Rick (April 9, 2004). "The Hunger Project attempts to purge criticism and history from the Internet". Rick Ross Institute. Retrieved September 2, 2006.
  10. ^ Weir, David; Noyes, Dan; and Center for Investigative Reporting (1983). Raising Hell: How the Center for Investigative Reporting Gets the Story., pp.156., Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley Publishing Co. ISBN 0-201-10858-5.
  11. ^ a b Ross, Rick (April 8, 2004). "The Hunger Project: A Historical Background, A News Summary", Retrieved August 26, 2006
  12. ^ Shah, Diane K. and Reese, Michael (August 28, 1978). "Food for thought". Newsweek. Vol. 92, No. 9, p. 78.
  13. ^ Gordon, Suzanne (December 1978). "Let them eat est". Mother Jones. Vol. 3, No. 10, pp. 40-44, 49-50, 52-54
  14. ^ Hoekema, Dr. David (May 2, 1979). "You can't eat words. Christian Century. 96, pp. 486-7. Retrieved August 25, 2006
  15. ^ Hoekema, Dr. David (December 26, 1979). "The Hunger Project and EST: close ties". Christian Century. 96, pp. 1293-4. Retrieved August 26, 2006
  16. ^ Garvey, Kevin (April 19, 1980). "Hunger Project: Erhard's est laboratory". Our Town
  17. ^ Keerdoja, Eileen; Lord, Mary; and Abramson, Pamela (June 15, 1981). "The Hunger Project feeds its coffers". Newsweek. Vol. 97, No. 24, pp. 18, 21.
  18. ^ Gordon, Suzanne (April 17, 1983). "Feeding on Narcissism in the name of the world's hungry". Los Angeles Times. pg. F5.
  19. ^ Tanner, John (June 1985). "Hungry for converts", New Internationalist. 148. Retrieved August 26, 2006
  20. ^ Behar, Richard and King, Jr., Ralph (November 18, 1985). "Fuzzy, but fervent", sidebar to article "The Winds of Werner". Forbes. 136, p. 44. Retrieved August 27, 2006
  21. ^ "Hyping Hunger" (October 23, 1986). the fifth estate, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 17 mins., 52 secs.
  22. ^ Kelly, Caitlin (February 20, 1987). "The Hunger Project involves no food, just a taste of 'commitment' ". The Gazette (Montreal). p. A1
  23. ^ Redden, Bill (November 19, 1987). "The dumb EST plan to end hunger". Willamette Week. Vol. 14, No. 4, p. 4.
  24. ^ a b Giambalvo, Carol (January, 1988). "The Hunger Project: Inside out". Spiritual Counterfeits Project (SCP) Journal. Vol. 8, No. 1. Retrieved August 26, 2006.
  25. ^ Provenzano, Jim (June 3, 1999). "Wheels of Fortune, Part Seven: Devotion Over Dollars". Bay Area Reporter. Vol. 29, No. 22, Pp. 1, 12, 13, 23. Retrieved August 26, 2006
  26. ^ Cline, Austin (April 19, 2004). "The Hunger Project: going after critics". About.com. Retrieved August 26, 2006
  27. ^ Hunger Project, The (June 2006). "Rebuttal to the notion that The Hunger Project attempts to purge criticism and history from the internet". The Hunger Project website. Retrieved September 2, 2006.
  28. ^ Provenzano, Jim (June 3, 1999). "Wheels of Fortune, Part Seven: Devotion Over Dollars". Bay Area Reporter. Vol. 29, No. 22, Pp. 1, 12, 13, 23. Retrieved August 26, 2006
  29. ^ "Global Board of Directors", The Hunger Project website, updated February 2006, accessed September 11, 2006

[edit] External links

[edit] Corporate websites

[edit] Financial information

[edit] Other

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