GOAL 2 – ZERO HUNGER
Did you know that 1 in 9 people in this world don’t have enough to eat? This also affects many children, especially in developing countries where 66 million primary school-age children attend classes hungry.
There are many reasons why people can’t afford enough food: a family might lose their harvest in a storm or parents without a job can’t go to the supermarket to buy food for their children. Sustainable Development Goal 2, Zero Hunger aims to end hunger and provide access to healthy food for all people.
We encourage you to read these books and hope they will inspire you to take action for a world with zero hunger.
The SDG Book Club makes content available in the six official languages of the United Nations – please see our other pages for more recommendations in Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish.
Special message from UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed
The Good Garden: How One Family Went from Hunger to Having Enough
The Good Garden is a fantastic story with practical information nuggets about a farming family and their journey in being able to grow more food. This in turn allows them to not only feed themselves but sell their produce and spend money on education, medication and other essentials. I love that the main characters are based on real people and the gorgeous illustrations add another layer to the story.
Author: Katie Smith Milway | Illustrator: Sylvie Daigneault | ISBN: 978-1554534883 | Publisher: Kids Can Press
Thank you Omu!
Omu prepares her favourite thick red stew, the amazing smell wafts out of the window and one by one Omu receives visitors who are all enticed by the stew smell. Omu generously shares her food with all the visitors but finds herself in the evening with an empty pot. Her stew has prompted everyone in the community to bring their own dish to share with Omu and everyone sits down to a real feast.
Author: Oge Mora| ISBN: 978-0316431248 | Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Maddi’s Fridge
Best friends Sofia and Maddi live in the same neighborhood, go to the same school, and play in the same park, but while Sofia’s fridge at home is full of nutritious food, the fridge at Maddi’s house is empty. Sofia learns that Maddi’s family doesn’t have enough money to fill their fridge and promises Maddi she’ll keep this discovery a secret. But because Sofia wants to help her friend, she’s faced with a difficult decision: to keep her promise or tell her parents about Maddi’s empty fridge. Filled with colorful artwork, this storybook addresses issues of poverty with honesty and sensitivity while instilling important lessons in friendship, empathy, trust, and helping others.
Author: Lois Brandt | Illustrator: Vin Vogel | ISBN: 978-1936261291| Publisher: Flashlight Press
Stone Soup
When people work together and look after each other, wonderful things happen and in this book, a big pot of delicious soup brings a village together. Sharing and generosity can help fight hunger around the world and this book illustrates how to do it. The simple things in life are the most important:sharing with each other and caring for each other. When everyone brings something small and puts it together, something big and wonderful is created for everyone to enjoy, just like a pot of soup.
Author: Jon J. Muth | Illustrator: Jon J. Muth | ISBN: 978-0439339094 | Publisher: Scholastic Press; 1st edition
The Lunch Thief
A moving story about a boy who steals other pupils’ lunches. One of his classmates, Rafael, notices this behavior but rather than just presuming Kevin guilty, he tries to understand why. In the process, Rafael realizes that Kevin’s family lost their home to a wildfire and is living in a motel. It makes Rafael appreciate his lunch more and also realize that he could share his lunch with Kevin.
Author: Anne C. Bromley | Illustrator: Robert Casilla | ISBN: 978-0884483113| Publisher: Tilbury House Publishers
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The International Publishers Association (IPA) is a federation of publishing associations from around the world. The main mandate of the IPA is to promote and defend copyright, support the freedom to publish, promote literacy and reading. IPA is an accredited NGO in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the UN. IPA supports the SDGs and works particularly closely with WIPO and UNESCO.
The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) is the leading international body representing the interests of library and information services and their users. It is the global voice of the library and information profession. Founded in 1927 in Edinburgh, Scotland at an international conference, we celebrated our 90th birthday in 2017. We now have more than 1,300 Members in nearly 150 countries around the world. IFLA was registered in the Netherlands in 1971.
The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) is a non-profit organization that represents an international network of people from all over the world who are committed to bringing books and children together. Today IBBY comprises 79 National Sections worldwide.
The European & International Booksellers Federation (EIBF) represents national booksellers associations in the European Union and beyond. EIBF Members in turn have in membership booksellers of all kinds: brick and mortar bookshops, online bookshops, independents, chains.
The Bologna Children’s Book Fair (BCBF) is the most important international trade fair of the children’s publishing industry. With over 50 years of experience, BCBF has succeeded in bringing together a unique and diverse global audience: the result is the world’s premium copyright business hub when it comes to publishing with an extra core that extends to all multi-media content for children.