Although the actions you take on your own do make an impact on hunger, the change you can make when you synergize with individuals that have shared goals is much greater; or as Covey (2020) shares, "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts" (p. 134). Individuals from local communities, local activists, and members from different organizations must work together to foster not only trust and collaboration between parties, but also to achieve better results in their efforts to fight hunger. We should not see people who are working on the same issue as a threat, but instead as allies we can join forces with to make a greater impact. In a review of the quality of partnerships between the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and NGOs, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (2012) stated that the protection of refugees was enhanced when partners adhered to human rights principles, adhered to the principles of partnership (equality, transparency, and complementarity), had a common understanding of the purpose of their advocacy, and had a partnership that was well-balanced in terms of contributions. When looking to build partnerships with like-minded advocates, we must target "key individuals /influencers who are in a position to bring about the change you want, understand policy process and who can make decisions and have influence over your goals" (SIVIO Institute, 2018, p. 3). By creating synergizing partnerships in our efforts to end hunger, we can reach more resources, solidarity, wider audiences, and give our voice more power.
Do you synergize to generate better results? Read these steps to find out how you can.
As local activists and advocates we value the act of working together with different people or organizations to achieve our common goal, which is helping families gain more access to food. We also value and respect the differences each party brings to the table because this opens the door to new and creative solutions to address hunger. In other words, we celebrate individuals' different perspectives, ideologies, and backgrounds and invite diversity into our partnerships because we can use them as resources to develop ideas we might not have been able to develop on our own.
There is a pressing need for advocates that strive to end hunger to create synergizing partnerships with individuals that share the same goals. We need to invite, celebrate, and put to good use the different perspectives, ideas, and backgrounds every partner has to offer so that we can create solutions to hunger that are unique and innovative. Instead of only working with our own limited skill set, we have the opportunity to build on the strengths of other advocates to make our work more effective and achieve high-impact results to end hunger. Take my own experience of building synergy as an example: I invited my former colleague who
grew up food insecure to share with me how I could help families gain
more access to food directly. Keep in mind, I have never experienced
having a lack of food growing up so I thought it would be helpful to
receive ideas from someone who has. His perspective made me realize I
had not thought about the shame people may feel when they are gifted
food, especially in front of others. Because of this, we came up with an
idea to drop off food privately to families in need, which we would
contact through a Facebook page. Boxes of uneaten, donated foods would
be dropped off at families' front doors so they would not feel ashamed
receiving assistance in front of others. I would not have been able to
think of this solution on my own without the perspective of my former
colleague. More families were willing to reach out to us and admit they needed help because they knew they could receive assistance away from the public eye.
CALL TO ACTION! In order to produce a better combined effect on hunger, I want to create synergistic partnerships by inviting your own unique experiences, ideas, and perspectives on how we can help families gain more access to food. Are you or someone you know experiencing food insecurity? Have you volunteered in an organization that targets hunger? What resources or solutions can you offer that you believe will help us decrease food insecurity in our local communities? Please comment your thoughts and suggestions below so we can tackle this crisis together because together is better.
Information Sources
Covey, S. R. (2020). The 7 habits of highly effective people. Simon & Schuster.
SIVIO Institute. (2018). Creating synergies for policy advocacy. Sivio Institute. https://www.sivioinstitute.org/schools/wp-content/uploads/Local_Governance/07_Creation_Of_Synergies_For_Advocacy/Module-7-Lecture-Notes.pdf
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. (2012). Guidance note on partnership in advocacy for protection. UNHCR. https://www.unhcr.org/en-ie/57348bc57.pdf
Image Sources
Covey, S. R. (2022). Synergy is better than my way or your way. It’s our way. [Image]. QuoteFancy. https://quotefancy.com/quote/909761/Stephen-R-Covey-Synergy-is-better-than-my-way-or-your-way-It-s-our-way
Regality Academy. (2021). Together is better. [Image]. Pinterest. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/246290673355289884/
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