FEED at Five

In honor of FEED's 5th anniversary, please welcome the FEED 5 Africa Bag!

As seen in Marie Claire magazine, this FEED 5 Africa Bag is handmade by artisans in Kenya. The outside of the bag is made from our traditional burlap material, along with the "FEED the Children of the World" logo from the first-ever FEED bag, the FEED 1 Bag. The bag is lined with traditional African kitenge fabric. Each FEED 5 Africa bag provides 5 children with micronutrient powder for 1 year through the FEED Foundation's Nutrients Fund. ~ FEED Projects website

This is a great bag for summer, especially. Visit the website for the complete line of products & a listing of retail partners.

World Food Week 2011

Yesterday was the official World Food Day 2011; World Food Week activities continue this week.

“FOOD PRICES – FROM CRISIS TO STABILITY” has been chosen as this year’s World Food Day theme to shed some light on this trend and what can be done to mitigate its impact on the most vulnerable. Price swings, upswings in particular, represent a major threat to food security in developing countries. Hardest-hit are the poor. According to the World Bank, in 2010-2011 rising food costs pushed nearly 70 million people into extreme poverty.

On World Food Day 2011, let us look seriously at what causes swings in food prices, and do what needs to be done to reduce their impact on the weakest members of global society.--FAO website

For actions you can take & multi-media events, please see here. To join the 1 Billion Hungry Project on Facebook, click here.

(photograph by Olga)

Help Japan Eat

There are people in Japan who have not eaten very much, if at all, since last Friday. (Update - this is a re-post from Friday)

As the UN's leading agency in emergency operations, the World Food Programme is deploying experts to help deliver assistance to shattered Japanese communities. This is in response to Japan's request for help in meeting "epic logistical challenges," said WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran.

Please donate funds to the World Food Programme. Japan is the fourth largest donor to WFP but is in great need now & for the foreseeable future. This is a multiple crisis as the lack of donations from Japan will be sorely felt in the rest of the world.. Please help to the best of your ability. Bloggers have been asked to spread the word as well. Those with Facebook & Twitter accounts can be particularly useful in spreading this message. Thanks!

ciao-try-not-to-panic-because-it-does-no-good-meow/GG Central

PS: For a little relief, stick your head out the window & see the full super-moon tomorrow night.

(woodblock prints by the great Utagawa Hiroshige)

Made4Aid Monday - Winter Snow Photography Cards

Today's Made4Aid post highlights a set of greeting cards, made with prints of original photography of snowy winter scenes in London. They would make a lovely gift for someone this season (or for you). The photographs are printed in high resolution on premium glossy photographic paper and mounted on good quality white card. The cards are blank inside for your own greeting and come with matching envelopes. The size of these cards is 5 inches/12.5cm square.

If you would like to order a custom set of cards, there are 16 winter scenes and you can choose any of these to be made into cards. See the full set here.

Any of these photographs, made into cards, at the following prices:
7 cards for $19; 8 cards for $22; 12 cards for $32

All prices inclusive of shipping worldwide.

Made4Aid items are sold to support the work of Médicin sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders) and the World Food Programme. Please see other items in the made4aid shop : http://www.etsy.com/shop/made4aid

Made4Aid Month

Made4Aid now sells items through a new Etsy shop. GG will be featuring items from the shop this month & next.

Made4Aid is a non-profit-making organisation, raising money for aid and relief work, through the generosity of creative people around the world. Handmade art or craft items - or materials - can be donated to made4aid and will be sold online to raise money for aid. All proceeds go to the relief work of Médicins sans Frontières (aka Doctors without Borders) and World Food Programme USA. You can find more information about where the money goes here.

If you have any items to donate, please read guidelines, here.

ciao-meow/GG Central

(made4aid mosaic/all rights reserved)

Made4Aid Monday - Flower Photography Cards

GG's editor did the math--not our strong suit, admittedly--but we are aces on a calculator. With free shipping world-wide (this is rare, people), each card costs $2.75 (USD). Go to any store & see if you can find lovely handmade cards for $2.75. We'll save you the trouble because we searched: you cannot. These cards make a thoughtful gift, too. GG Central has ordered from Made4Aid from nearly the beginning & can therefore highly recommend from several trouble-free experiences.

ciao-meow/GG's editor

(photograph & text below via Made4Aid's new etsy shop)

From Made4Aid:

A set of 8 original flower photography greeting cards. Made and donated to made4aid by Sally. The photographs are from a series of flower photos, printed in high resolution on glossy photographic paper and mounted on good quality card. The cards are blank inside for your own greeting and come with matching envelopes. The size of these cards is 5 inches/12.5cm square. The price of this item includes shipping worldwide. Made4aid items are sold to support the work of Médicins sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders) and the World Food Programme. For more info. about made4aid go to www.made4aid.org

GG's Spring Break

GG is on spring break.

Please check links on this page, especially for Darfur Peace & Development Organization (DPDO), Enough Project, U.S. Campaign for Burma, Raise Hope for Congo, Theater J's In Darfur production, Ante Up for Africa, World Food Programme, & Haitian relief.

GG is miffed--really miffed--that she was not invited to the White House Easter Egg Roll. It's right down the street from us. She doesn't want to hear about allergies; she has them, too. We're trying to figure out something to make up for it. Wish us luck. Have a lovely week. (GG's editor takes comments on her blog, here.)

ciao-meow/The Management

[photograph: Freedom/Impress on Me, via we heart it]

Made4Aid Monday - Spring Lecture Edition

Update: Monday afternoon: Photographs have disappeared from both of our blogs; we do not know what is going on but we are most irritated. We will try to upload over time. Cheers & we hope the same is not happening on your sites. The Management

Peeps! Please do not tarry--race over to Made4Aid. At least tell them how much you care about their work. Everyone needs a pat now & again. Look here at Rod, another creature by UK-based The Devil Makes Work. You could give him a home.

Also, there is a gorgeous blue, window-paned handmade bag; two beautiful hanks of hand-spun, hand-dyed yarn; & a marvellous selection of photography cards. The cards are not by auction but a set price.

It's so very easy to participate in this. GG's editor hears from nervous Nellies about bidding & paying. Stop yer whinin'. If you're in North America, you can write a check (or cheque, if thou preferest). There's PayPal. Whatever. We know very well that those who have e-mailed buy things on-line nearly every bloody week. Do we sound annoyed? We are. Well, OK, GG is asleep (presently).

Soon, there will be a break at Made4Aid & perhaps it will return in another format. Meanwhile, these items are available through 3 April 2010.

ciao-peevish-meow/GG's editor

[all images via Made4Aid/all rights reserved/used by kind permission]

Alice & the Red King Dreaming

Made4Aid's auction item this week is donated by Susan Sanford, of ArtSpark Theatre

Look what GG's editor just bid on. It's gorgeous...look at those colors. Care to make it interesting? It's less money than you think, including shipping.

From the Made4Aid blog:

Susan has for some time been delighting blogland with her photography series of Alice in Wonderland and through the Looking Glass. She's produced a calendar and just recently a book "Dreaming Alice"... and this is the photographic print she has donated to made4aid, which is entitled : Alice and The Red King Dreaming.

ciao-curious-meow/GG's editor

[image via Made4Aid/all rights reserved/used by kind permission]

Made4Aid - Adopt Alfred

Meet Alfred. He hails from the Outer Hebrides Islands; however, he is more than willing, even eager, to relocate. GG is envious of those fabulous ears.

From M4A's website: Alfred is a limited edition hand-made Creature, one of a kind - made for Made4Aid by Woo of The Devil makes Work Alfred is made of genuine Harris Tweed, which is woven by hand on the Outer Hebridean Islands North-West of Scotland. And he is stitched entirely by hand, with vintage button-eyes and a little mother-of-pearl vintage button heart. Alfred is nearly 4inches/10cm tall, excluding his ears. (Including ears: 7inches/ 17.l5cm). Alfred is not a toy, or intended for young children.

He is quite a character.

ciao-meow/GGCM

[photographs by Made4Aid/used by kind permission]

Hunger Bytes

A billion for a billion. An international video competition sponsored by the World Food Programme--go for it. Entries accepted through 31 December 2009. Watch it, pass it along. Thank you.

[Southern Sudanese women drag bags of grain to a central collection point dropped by WFP chartered airplane in the village of Pochalla, Jonglei state © Peter Martell/IRIN]