Dalhousie, community come together to address student food security for Giving Tuesday

Campus food banks are seeing growing lines of students looking for help in stretching their grocery budgets. Dal is once again rising to meet that need through The Food Security Project on Giving Tuesday.

Metal shelves partially stacked with canned goods and plastic bins of dried goods.

Posted: November 21, 2024

By: Emm Campbell

It’s Thursday and the clock is ticking for Louis Holman and the volunteers who operate the ��ϳԹ��Student Union (DSU) Food Bank. They’re unpacking their weekly delivery from Feed Nova Scotia and restocking their shelves with everything from rice and soup to fresh produce so they can open on time.

Outside, a line of preregistered Dal and King’s students continues to grow. This is one of three days each week that the food bank is open to serve them, and the one day that is reserved exclusively for them. But plans are in the works to expand operations so that they, and the other students and community members who visit the food bank, have access when they need it.

“We get a wide range of visitors who are looking for help with food and stretching their grocery budget,” explains Holman (pictured), the food bank’s manager. “We try and offer as much variety as we can for the benefit of everyone that we are serving.”

Holman leaning on a table in front of a tall fridge and crates of supplies in the food bank.

Making the educational journey easier

Like their community counterparts, campus food banks such as the DSU Food Bank and the Agricultural Campus’ Food Pantry have seen increased demand this year, driven in part by rising food costs and other living expenses. Rising to meet this need, post-secondary schools across Nova Scotia are once again joining with Dal to raise funds through on Giving Tuesday, Dec. 3.

Launched in 2020 by Dal in partnership with the J&W Murphy Foundation, the Project is playing a key role in addressing student food security through donation matching by the foundation. Last year, the Project raised nearly a quarter-million dollars provincewide on Giving Tuesday. This year, ��ϳԹ��aims to raise $90,000 for the Project and gifts will be tripled thanks to the J&W Foundation’s pledge and a personal matching gift from a loyal ��ϳԹ��alum.

“Given the tough economic times many people are in, I think it’s a lot to ask students to worry about what's in their cupboards when they are devoting themselves to learning that can make all the difference for them and for society,” says Lisa Murphy (BA’88, LLB’92) (pictured), co-director of the foundation with her sister, Karen Spaulding.

“That’s why we are thrilled to be part of Giving Tuesday again. I love that this is a provincewide initiative. But more than that, I love that it makes the wider community more aware of how hard it is to earn a university degree and that we can all do something to make that journey easier.”

Lisa Murphy and Karen Spaulding leaning against a bar top in a restaurant, smiling.

Changing the community for the better

That journey is getting harder for students, according to DSU president Mariam Knakriah (pictured). She has noted increases in graduate and international students visiting the food bank to stretch their grocery budget. Giving Tuesday helps the food bank keep pace.

“It enables us to expand our hours, provide more nutritional options, and meet cultural requirements, such as halal items,” she says. “It also helps us raise awareness about the impact of food security on students’ mental and physical health, so it makes us stronger.”

For Krishna, a Master of Applied Computer Science student, having weekly access to the DSU food bank gives him peace of mind. “I’m vegetarian and produce is very expensive, so the selection here really helps,” he says. “I feel relaxed knowing that I can get what I need and focus on my studies.”

Holman, who uses they/them and he/him pronouns, wants the DSU Food Bank to continue meeting that need but also succeed at a higher capacity. In addition to increasing hours of operation, they are planning renovations that would enable the food bank to add a food prep area and more fridges and freezers. They also want to launch food literacy programs that help students reduce their grocery bills and extend the life of their food. Every gift made on Giving Tuesday will go a long way to making these goals, and more, possible.

“With everything going on in the world, it’s easy to feel helpless sometimes,” Holman says. “But there are a lot of ways that we can change our community for the better and Giving Tuesday is an important one.”

The Food Security Project

Post-secondary schools across Nova Scotia are joining with Dal to raise funds through on Giving Tuesday, Dec. 3. Gifts will be tripled thanks to the J&W Foundation’s pledge and a personal matching gift from a loyal ��ϳԹ��alum.

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