The US Alliance to End Hunger organized something new and interesting that took place over the last few days here in Washington, DC. In coordination with the International Alliance Against Hunger (IAAH) and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization Liaison Office For North America, they organized the National Alliances Against Hunger Forum. The forum worked to bring alliances that focus on hunger-related issues together from all over the globe — Mexico, Ghana, Brazil, Jordan, Canada, Haiti, and Sierra Leone– in an effort to share experiences, ideas and best practices.

If there is one thing I have come to realize while working at ONE, it is that there are thousands of different organizations working in the international development community. Each organization has a history of successes and challenges, which if shared and learned from could help us be more efficient and ultimately better serve our “clients” – the poor, hungry and needy of the world.

I was eager to get a firsthand look at such an event as this; excited to see how each alliance used this forum to better its own work. The international alliances had the opportunity to share with the group how they were formed, the accomplishments they had made, the challenges they had run in to, and where they wanted to go in the future. The dialogue was open and honest. It was an opportunity for people from very different backgrounds and places to find common goals and build relationships with others who are interested in helping fight poverty and hunger. The forum ends this afternoon, at which time the US Alliance to End Hunger will post more information about the event on their website: www.alliancetoendhunger.org.

-Adrienne Sullivan