It's All About Security, Food Security

http://www.oxfam.org/en/en/emergencies/west-africa-food-crisis/niger-front-lines-war-against-hunger

Many times, people wonder about the effects of environmental degradation in the here and now.  We are told that we have to safeguard the environment for our children and the emphasis is placed so much on the future that we often don't see what happens in the present.  Case in point: Niger.  As a result of sever drought, the grass shoots that normally feed hundreds of thousands of animals in the plains were drastically delayed.  The farmers looked out and didn't see any problem, they believed there would be enough for their animals to survive.  And there would have been, if animals from neighboring zones hadn't traveled hundreds of miles in their own search for food.  Many of the farming cattle died and as a result, the hunger gap that usually begins in June began in April.  Now, half of all Nigerians are starving.  Luckily, Oxfam implemented a two stage program that subsidized grain and millet for the animals and de-stocked the farmers of their dead animals at an above market price.  The result has made an impact in many communities, but it will still take months for Nigerians to recover.  The lesson?  Environmental degradation is not constrained to borders and unless we are taught to understand what needs to be done BEFORE it needs to be done, countless will continue to suffer.  Thankfully, organizations like Oxfam are out there to lend a hand.  Click on the link above to learn more about the food crisis in Nigeria and countless other Oxfam initiatives.