An InterVarsity student on a Global Urban Trek in Cairo.
International (MNN) ― The United Nations is warning that the high cost of food and fuel may be more than a trend. The combination of high oil prices, increased consumption, climate change, and growing use of agricultural produce for fuel might actually mean cheap global grain supplies are a thing of the past.
Helyn Luisi-Mills with Intervarsity Christian Fellowship agrees. She says the food and fuel crisis hit their Global Project with a one-two punch.
First came the jump in travel costs and a stumbling economy. Luisi-Mills says as plane tickets and fuel surcharges skyrocketed, the American economy weakened. The translation: more students were having trouble fundraising for the Global Urban Trek trips. Luisi-Mills says this year, many of the students began fundraising as a team. She notes that impact of vision from the team seems to be more effective in communicating the need to potential donors.
That's one problem addressed. Then, the food crisis hit. "This became an issue for us, thinking about the ethics of finances for short-term projects overseas, and how we can balance the amount of money that we spend--particularly because our hosts were being more directly impacted for costs of food, and then the cost of living, which is then the second point of impact."
For example, Luisi-Mills explains that beans--a main staple in Honduras--nearly tripled in price over the last year. A host family now needs to feed an extra mouth, so they feel the increased cost almost immediately. The students see firsthand how the crisis affects families.
Ironically, the food and fuel crises may be exactly what was needed to clarify the Trek students' vision. The Trek itself is about opening an opportunity for God to call some to spend their lives among the poor as His couriers of hope.
Seeing the devastation of crises and feeling the impact personally, Luisi-Mills says of the students: "They begin to understand the place of calling, that it's beyond meeting the needs. People are still depressed. People are still addicted to drugs. People are still turning to alcohol and abandoning their families. How do they bring the hope of Christ into that situation? It's really by being there and modeling the love of Jesus."
According to InterVarsity, each summer about 30 - 40% of the Global Urban Trek participants respond by pledging at least two years to serve the urban poor. Click here if you'd like more details.
