9 Things To Know About Rise Against Hunger

It’s still early in the year, so we figured it is a great opportunity to reintroduce ourselves! Whether you’re already familiar with Rise Against Hunger and looking to deepen your impact, or this is your first time hearing about us and want to learn more, here are nine things to know about our organization!

Our mission is to grow a global movement to end global hunger by empowering communities, nourishing lives and responding to emergencies.

Over 800 million people worldwide go to sleep hungry each night, but there is enough food in the world to feed everyone. Therefore, it is possible to end global hunger, which is what we’re working toward!

Our mission supports United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 2.

Ever wondered why we’re working to end hunger by 2030? It’s a goal put forth by the United Nations! The 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals are “the blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all” by addressing global challenges. And Goal 2 is Zero Hunger by 2030. Therefore, the United Nations acknowledges that ending world hunger by 2030 is vital for everyone’s future, and we’re proud to support that goal!

We were founded in 1998 under the name Stop Hunger Now.

The organization was founded by Ray Buchanan in 1998, originally under the name Stop Hunger Now, with the goals of providing food and aid to people in need around the world and responding to disasters.

In 2017, we changed our name to Rise Against Hunger.

Stop Hunger Now changed its name to Rise Against Hunger to reflect and encompass our growing portfolio of programs designed to address the root causes of hunger around the globe and empower communities to rise for decades to come.

We’re headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina…

We’ve been based in Raleigh since 1999 and our meal packaging program was first launched there in 2005 before expanding to other locations!

… but we have 28 locations across the United States and six internationally.

While we’re based in Raleigh, we have locations all over the country! We also have six international locations in Italy, India, Malaysia, South Africa, Singapore and the Philippines. So, if you’re looking to host a Rise Against Hunger Experience meal packaging event, chances are we have a location near you!

We have four pathways we use to end global hunger!

Each pathway is designed to tackle different aspects and causes of hunger. The pathways are:

• While long-term food security takes root, our Nourishing Lives pathway provides nutrition and encourages education through school feeding, vocational training and health clinics.
• From droughts to floods, in conflict zones and political crises, the Responding to Emergencies pathway deploys food and aid in communities when it is needed most.
• Our Empowering Communities pathway promotes improvements in agricultural production and rural livelihoods to help individuals increase their incomes and access to food.
• Growing the Movement works to build awareness of world hunger and engages hundreds of thousands of volunteers and advocates each year.

In support of our Nourishing Lives pathway, we facilitate the packaging of meals for people affected by food insecurity.

Our meals are packaged by volunteers at Rise Against Hunger Experience meal packaging events. The volunteers work together to package meals comprised of rice, soy, dehydrated vegetables and essential vitamins and minerals into bags. These meals are then distributed to people facing hunger around the world!

As of 2020, we’ve packaged nearly 539 million meals with the help of our volunteers for distribution in 78 countries!

We’re so appreciative to all of our volunteers who have helped us package meals for people facing hunger! Learn more about where we work here.

Want to get involved in Rise Against Hunger’s mission? Donate today to support our efforts as we work to end global hunger!