All Roads Lead to Rome: Canada, the Freedom from Hunger Campaign, and the Rise of Ngos, 1960-1980
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All Roads Lead to Rome: Canada, the Freedom From Hunger Campaign, and the Rise of NGOs, 1960-1980 by MATTHEW JAMES BUNCH A thesis presented to the University of Waterloo in fulfilment of the thesis requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, 2007 © Matthew James Bunch, 2007 Author’s Declaration I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis. This is a true copy of the thesis, including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners. I understand that my thesis may be made electronically available to the public. ii Abstract The United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization’s Freedom From Hunger Campaign was a world wide campaign to raise awareness of the problem of hunger and malnutrition and possible solutions to that problem. The Campaign was launched in 1960, and brought UN Agencies, governments, NGOs, private industry, and a variety of groups and individuals together in cooperation and common cause. FAO Director- General B.R. Sen used FFHC to modernize the work of international development and to help transform FAO from a technical organization into a development agency. FFHC pioneered the kinds of relationships among governments, governmental organizations, NGOs, and other organizations and agencies taken for granted today. Canada was one of more than 100 countries to form a national FFH committee, and support for the Campaign in Canada was strong. Conditions in Canada in the 1960s favoured the kind of Campaign Sen envisioned, and the ideas underpinning FFHC resonated with an emerging Canadian nationalism in that period. The impact of FFHC can be identified in the development efforts of government, Canadian NGOs, private industries, and a variety of organizations. Significantly, the reorganization of Canada’s aid program and institutions reflected closely developments at FAO and FFHC. Participation in FFHC had important, lasting effects in Canada, and Canada made one of the strongest contributions to the Campaign. iii Acknowledgements I owe a debt of gratitude to many individuals and organizations. First, I thank the Department of History at the University of Waterloo. I have received much in terms of encouragement and support by all of the staff and faculty, and my experience at UW has been a positive one. I thank also the University of Waterloo Graduate Studies Office, particularly Penny Pudifin, Dianna MacFarlane, and Elaine Garner; your support has been invaluable. This research depended heavily on records held by the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization. The staff at the David Lubin Memorial Library and the FAO Archives in Rome were very warm and skilful in their assistance. Thank you in particular to Chief Librarian Jane Wu (a Canadian!) and Patricia Merrikin; you were both very welcoming and your skill in navigating records at FAO is beyond comparison. Thank you also to Michelle Bergerre and Ricardo Munoz; we never met, but I understand you were very helpful. To Yolanda Gonzalo Balsima , Head of FAO Archives, and Chief Archivist Giuliano Fregoli, I owe you a great debt. Thank you for making room for Kristine and I in your offices, for your knowledge, and for your kind attention in support of this research. Merci and grazi to Phoba Dinka Maurice and Nicola Salvi for your good humour, your precious advice as we encountered the mysteries of Roman society, and for not minding our monopolization of your photocopier. I thank also the staff at the Library and Archives Canada; the archivists have always been very friendly and helpful – even in the face of silly questions. I extend a special thank you to the good folks at the Canadian Hunger Foundation – particularly Cynthia Farrell and Tony Breuer. I appreciate your interest in this project and I thank you for your warm hospitality. I look forward to seeing what is in the rest of those boxes. To Charles H. Weitz, thank you. Your wisdom, your insight, your incredible memory of people and events, your humour, your personal encouragement, and your friendship have meant a great deal to me. To Hans Dall and Victoria Bawtree I am also indebted; without you this research would be diminished, and I have enjoyed our discussions and correspondences very much. Thanks also to Walter Simons who submitted his own personal documents to the stormy seas of the international postal system – thank you Walter for this and for your keen recollections and advice. To Dr. Irene Sage I owe a special debt. Thank you Irene for sharing this research with me, and thank you for going to Rome and excavating the FFHC tomb. Dr. Ken McLaughlin, I appreciate the strength of your support for me over the last ‘few’ years, and it was on your advice that I decided to pursue a PhD. To Dr. John English, I express my deepest thanks and sincere appreciation for the years of guidance and mentorship. Your advice has always been frank, and has invariably helped me improve as a historian and as a person. iv Finally, I would like to thank my family. To my parents, Noelle and Gary, who have always assumed that their children can achieve any thing, I am eternally grateful. To my sister Rebecca, thanks for putting up with me on those research trips to Ottawa. To my sister Mary, thanks for being polite enough to let me finish my dissertation first. To my partner Kristine I owe the greatest debt of all. Kristine, you have always been a staunch ally, enthusiastic supporter, and a loving partner. Without you this dissertation would not have been possible. v For Kristine vi Table of Contents Author’s Declaration………………………...……………………………………………ii Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………...iii Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………….iv Table of Contents…………………………………………………………...…………….vi List of Figures……………………………………………………………………………vii List of Acronyms…………………………………………………………………………xi Introduction: Freedom From Hunger………………………………………………….1 The significance of FFHC………………………...……………………………….7 Overview…………………………………………………………………………11 Part One: the Freedom From Hunger Campaign……………………………...…12 Part Two: FFHC in Canada………………………………………………………19 Chapter One: BR Sen and the Making of the Freedom From Hunger Campaign...24 BR Sen and FAO………………………………………………………………...27 A Freedom From Hunger Year…………………………………………………..33 A Freedom From Hunger Campaign…………………………………………….39 Initial Steps in Developing the Campaign……………………………………….43 The Third World Food Survey…………………………………………….……..45 The Basic Studies………………………………………………………………...51 Cooperation with other UN Agencies……………………………………………53 Non-Governmental Organizations……………………………………………….56 Governments and National FFHC Committees………………………………….59 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………….63 Chapter Two: A World-Wide Campaign…………………………………………….66 The Freedom From Hunger Campaign Secretariat………………………………69 The Government and NGO FFHC Advisory Committees……………………….72 The National Committees………………………………………………………..78 NGOs…………………………………………………………………………….88 Religious Organizations………………………………………………………….92 Youth and Youth Organizations…………………………………………………98 Support by Influential Individuals……………………………………………...105 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………...106 vii Chapter Three: Information, Education, and Action……………………………...108 Part One: Information and Education…………………………………………..111 FFHC Publications……………………………………………………………...112 The Stamp Issue and the Coin Plan…………………………………………….116 Part Two: The World Food Congresses The First World Food Congress, 4-18 June, 1963……………………………...121 The Commissions of the Congress……………………………………………..125 Participation at the Congress…………………………………………………...128 A Note on the Absence of the USSR…………………………………………...132 The Results of the Congress……………………………………………………134 The Second World Food Congress, 16-30 June, 1970………………………….138 A Note on the Participation of the USSR………………………………………141 The Results of the Congress……………………………………………………142 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………...144 Chapter Four: Youth and Industry…………………………………………………147 Part One: Youth and FFHC The Young World Mobilization Appeal………………………………………..149 The Young World Food and Development Project…………………………….156 Youth and the Second World Food Congress…………………………………..158 Youth and the United Nations World Food Conference, 1974…………………162 Part Two: the Industry Cooperative Program…………………………………..163 The Achievements of ICP………………………………………………………168 The End of ICP…………………………………………………………………172 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………...175 Chapter Five: FFHC in Canada: A Case Study……………………………………..177 FFHC in Canada………………………………………………………………..182 The Canadian Hunger Foundation……………………………………………...188 The Canada-Mysore Project……………………………………………………196 Canada+One…………………………………………………………………….200 Massey-Fergusson and Canada’s Centennial…………………………………...202 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………...204 Chapter Six: A Second Decade of FFHC in Canada………………………………..207 Part One: Action for Development……………………………………………..209 A New Aid Regime in Canada………………………………………………….213 Part Two: The Canadian Hunger Foundation in the Second Development Decade……….219 Canada+One…………………………………………………………………….226 Tools for Development…………………………………………………………229 Education for Development and the Appropriate Technology Handbook……..233 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………...237 viii Conclusion: Whither FFHC?………………………………………………………... 239 A Reluctant Liberal?………………………………………………………..…………. 243 Herding Cats……………………………………………………………………………246 A Global, Sustained Effort……………………………………………………………...248 Epilogue………………………………………………………………………………..251 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………...254 ix List of Figures Figure 1, “First World Food