To most Northwestern students, it doesn’t seem like there’s a lack of food around campus. We can stuff our faces with pizza in the dining halls, indulge in any of the numerous choices at Norris or head into downtown Evanston for a delicious meal. However, for many people across the nation, hunger is a serious issue. According to 2012 statistics from Feeding America, there are 800,000 food insecure individuals in Cook County alone.
This widespread hunger is exactly what the Campus Kitchen at Northwestern University aims to tackle. From February 20 to February 27, CKNU will go head-to-head against 24 other Campus Kitchen universities in “Raise the Dough,” an online fundraising challenge to fight hunger in local communities. The competition is being hosted by the Campus Kitchens Project, a national organization that partners with schools to promote student-powered hunger relief. Kitchens that raise the most money or have the most individuals donate to their online campaign will win cash prizes totaling $2,500.
Starting at midnight on February 20, you can support CKNU by donating as little as $10 to their online fundraising page. Or, if you’d rather help relieve local hunger by simultaneously relieving your own (and who wouldn’t?), you can buy puppy chow and cookie dough from CKNU’s “Raise the Dough” bakesale outside Kellogg on February 24. Their goal is to raise at least $1,000 over the course of the week, and the Campus Kitchens Project will announce the winning kitchens on February 28.
There are currently 42 Campus Kitchens nationwide, and in the last academic year they helped save more than 800,549 pounds of food and serve almost 300,000 meals to around 12,000 clients. Northwestern’s Campus Kitchen serves more than 500 meals a week to members of the Evanston community, incorporating fresh produce through partnerships with the downtown Evanston farmers’ market. Students also teach nutrition education classes to underprivileged youth in Evanston.
Learn more about other CKNU projects and food-related student groups at Northwestern:
Donate Your Leftover Meal Points to Charity