Free Forum - Global Food Crisis May 6, 2008

GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS

A conversation with
RAJ PATEL
Author of _Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System_

The exponential increase in food prices over the last few years has been devastating to the people of the world's poorer countries -- and even of the wealthy ones. Governments are struggling to balance the needs of domestic consumers with the higher gain from exporting, and countries that import most of their food are suffering from the squeeze. Food riots are becoming more common. How did we get here? Raj Patel, author of _Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System_, will discuss the long-term trends and the local and global policies that have led to the current crisis.

Raj Patel, former analyst for Food First, a leading food policy think tank, is a visiting scholar at the UC Berkeley Center for African Studies. He has written for the Los Angeles Times and the Guardian, and though he has worked for the World Bank, WTO, and the UN, he's also been tear-gassed on four continents protesting them.

This program is part of the ongoing "Other Voices" television series produced by Peninsula Peace and Justice Center. It will be broadcast live on Mid-Peninsula Community Media Cable Channel 27 and webcast at www.communitymediacenter.net, and rebroadcast throughout May. As always, you are an important part of the conversation. Come with your questions and comments and be a part of the studio audience. Watching from home or on the internet? Phone in with your questions: (650) 856-1491.

Free and open to the public ~ Wheelchair accessible

Sponsored by Peninsula Peace and Justice Center ~ 650-326-8837

Praise for _Stuffed and Starved_: "Magisterial… the kind of book from which you emerge enlightened, surprised, angry, and determined." -The Independent

Official Website: http://www.PeaceandJustice.org