A clear message

Here's Tara's last post from the Fighting Hunger Conference:

Session one is now over.

I feel the people here today are engaged in the debate and are informed as to the issues. They want practical ways to move forward and the political will to motivate real resources to make plans feasible. The speakers gave very practical advice as to what needs to be done. The message clearly was: we know how to fix this and many poor people know how to fix this. We just need political motivation (and resources!) now.

The audience asked the speakers about a range of issues including storage mechanisms for poor farmers in Africa and India; the reality of arms supplies and severe conflicts in poor countries; and the potential beneficial impact of the recent drop in oil prices.

As I write this (in the media centre) I hope that someone out there is learning a little from this conference. I also hope that a few more people start feeling motivated about development and understand that there are practical things that they can do to help.