October, 1995. Every year, 16 October is the day the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations draws the world's attention to the problems of poverty and hunger. For 1995, ICARDA marked the occasion in style at its school, the International School of Aleppo (ISA). This year was FAO's fiftieth anniversary. On this important occasion, FAO's Director General, Dr Jacques Diouf, delivered a message entitled "Food for All," focusing on the role of agriculture in fighting hunger and ensuring food security.
The international agricultural research centers are equally committed to the bold objective of ensuring a world free from hunger and malnutrition. As the International Center with a mission to improve agricultural production in West Asia and North Africa, ICARDA is an important player in the fight for food security. As such, it is anxious to commemorate events such as the World Food Day, especially when it is FAO's half century. So ICARDA's participation in World Food Day was of special significance this year. Several activities, mainly organized by faculty members and students of the International School of Aleppo, took place at the school over the week of 16-23 October 1995.
On Monday, 16 October, ISA faculty and students (KG1-6th Grade) gathered at the main entrance of the school to start the event. Posters prepared by the students covered the walls of the main lobby, and boxes were put out to collect food donations for the poor.
The celebrations started with a brief introduction for students to the occasion, its history and objectives. This was followed by discussion on the event, with the objective of promoting the students' knowledge of healthy food and nutrition. Later, the School assembly started with students of each class climbing the front steps of the School's main entrance to recite their specially-composed song for the occasion.
On the following day, the 11th Grade students started a nutritional analysis of samples of foods/drinks collected from the elementary classes. Results of the analysis were announced at an assembly on the last day of the celebrations, Monday 23 October.
On the final day, ICARDA's Head of Training, Dr Samir El-Sebae Ahmed, delivered two talks/slide shows to the school children: one for grades 1-3 and another for grades 4-6. The talks were aimed at raising the children's awareness of the importance of food and nutrition in the human diet, and of the right for "Food for all, at all times, in all places," as FAO stated it in its 50th Anniversary Bulletin. Dr Ahmed showed the children samples of seed of all the crops on which ICARDA works. The students enjoyed these talks, which generated many questions from teachers as well as students.
Following the slide show, winners of the World Food Day Poster Competition were announced and presented symbolic gifts for their creative works and wonderful artistic designs. The winners were: Leila Kayali (Grade 12), 1st prize; Anne Sophie Gintzburger and Sara Ceccarelli (Grade 9) and Swathi Sridharan and Agniesca Konopka (Grade 11), 2nd prize; Amanda Homsi and Tiffany Homsi (Grade 10), 3rd prize.
A special prize was donated to Bassel Khoury and Fadi Kamal (Grade 4) for their expressive poster in which they used every letter of the acronym "ICARDA" to develop a statement about ICARDA's interest in helping farmers and people all over the world. Students from Grade 11, who were involved in the food analysis of some samples provided by students from other classes, presented the results of their analysis.
The School Principal, Dr Jim Bonnell, concluded the event by thanking all participants for their efforts. Towards the end of the final day, piles of canned/packaged food, all of which were donated by ISA students and teachers, were sent to a local charity organization to help the needy.