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Monday, 31 May 2010

UWA Business School
Every day, one million Australian children do not get enough food. The WHO estimates that, world-wide, one billion people are ‘food insecure.' Yet despite the enormity of the problem, Foodbank Australia, which feeds 50,000 people per day, says hunger still has a social stigma.

That's where SIFE UWA comes in.

The Let's Can Hunger project, run by Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) at the University of Western Australia, is aiming to raise awareness of the issue and eliminate hunger's social stigma.

Commerce student Calvin Coyles is the SIFE UWA vice-president. He hopes SIFE UWA will make a practical difference by collecting 10,000 food cans or raising $10,000 by the end of June.

‘It's a very big goal, but if you're going to work towards a target, why not make it impressive?' asks Calvin. ‘I would personally like to find donations of over 1,000 cans, which would help the team out significantly.'

The team is already on target, with contributions having been sourced from local retailers. Calvin has been overwhelmed by the level of community support.

‘The generosity of members of the community never ceases to amaze me; just yesterday we had a major donation of $500 from Woolworths WA. When you add to this the other individual stores who have contributed between $50 and $100 to our cause, it makes me very proud to live in a country that is so willing to help.'

In May, the Let's Can Hunger team ran a quiz night at the UWA tavern. In addition to raising awareness of the issue, the night raised over $400. The Let's Can Hunger team is also planning public demonstrations, using collected food cans, to raise awareness of hunger in Australia. Collection tins have also been placed around the UWA campus.

Despite only having been working on the Let's Can Hunger Challenge for two months, Calvin has quickly become committed to raising awareness of hunger.

‘Lack of food is a real problem for many impoverished countries, but I was unaware of how big the problem is in Australia. The more I learnt about the issue, the more I wanted to help.'

Calvin is majoring in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and appreciates the opportunity that SIFE gives him to put his skills into practice. ‘These courses have allowed me to understand how to build a successful enterprise in theory and I use these skills in all my SIFE projects,' he says.

The Let's Can Hunger Challenge is sponsored by Campbell's Soup Company and is being run in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Australia. The Challenge will award the top three teams in each country with a trophy and money to invest in future SIFE projects.

SIFE was originally established in the United States in 1975 by Robert T. Davis, a lawyer acting on behalf of the National Leadership Institute. Now, it operates across 2,000 campuses in 48 countries.

SIFE UWA is in its fourth year and has a current portfolio of seven projects. These include helping to educate school children, strengthen local family businesses, and assist indigenous communities to develop sustainable business practices. In 2008, SIFE UWA won the national SIFE championships.

Students wishing to participate in SIFE can contact Calvin Coyles .

Media Contacts
Heather Merritt
Director, External Relations
UWA Business School
T: +618 6488 8171
E: [email protected]

Verity Chia
Communications Officer
UWA Business School
E: [email protected]

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