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Dear Members of the Board,

As you know, we launched our “Winning the Peace” report almost two weeks ago. As part of our broader effort to focus on the link between food security and instability, the report provides a key tool to expand the discussion about why the U.S. Government should prioritize its efforts to address food insecurity. Following are a few highlights of our initial roll-out efforts:

Senator Todd Young (R-IN) highlights the report at Senate Hearing: Following our briefing of Senator Young, he used the report to direct questions to witnesses about the impact of food insecurity in the recruitment to extremist groups at a Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee hearing that he chaired on “Countering Terrorism, Radicalization, and Promoting Stability in North Africa.” He inserted our report into the congressional record and asked the witnesses to review the document (photo from the hearing is attached).

In his comments, Senator Young stated, “My sense, informed by some recent authoritative reports, is that there is going to be an increasing need for our country to focus on addressing the sources and root causes of radicalization ... including focusing on hunger.” During our briefing, Senator Young also agreed to co-author an op-ed and submit a research request to the GAO per our guidance.

We also briefed Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS) and former Senator Dick Lugar on the report and related need to prioritize investments in promoting food security as a key tool in bolstering stability. Senator Moran agreed to convene a Senate Hunger Caucus Hearing and co-author an op-ed on the report.

2nd Annual Sandy Berger Memorial Lecture with Stephen Hadley: In an effort to further highlight the link between food security and instability, the report featured centrally in the Hadley event. In his remarks, Hadley stated, “If you worry about extremism, as a practical matter, you have to address the issue of food.” Copies of the report were distributed at the event. A full readout from the discussion can be found here<https://wfpusa.org/articles/stephen-hadley-talks-food-security-and-national-security-at-2nd-annual-berger-lecture/>. The event was also covered in the Hagstrom Report (story attached).

Media: The report was featured in Politico’s Morning Agriculture Digest, the Hagstrom Report and in a WFP USA op-ed<https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/why-food-security-is-key-to-winning-peace-and-security_us_5a3179b1e4b06a512dd69ce9> on Huffington Post. Deep thanks to Tony Fratto and his team at Hamilton Place Strategies: HPS distributed key highlights of the report to 279 reporters covering national security, agriculture, and foreign policy. Tony also shared the report with his 25K followers on Twitter. The report was also sent to over 1,600 agricultural and foreign policy Hill staffers by our policy team.

Social media: The report has been shared widely across our social media platforms. To date, we’ve had almost 600 visits to the report landing page, leading to over 150 downloads of the full report or executive summary. Prominent shares on Twitter include: Rep. Dwight Evans (PA-02), WFP Media, CSIS, Bread for the World, USAID Office of Food for Peace, USGLC, SDG2 Advocacy Hub, 1,000 Days, and Roger Thurow.

We plan to continue sharing the report findings and briefing Members of Congress, Executive Branch officials, media, partners and others in the year ahead as part of our overall public policy strategy.

Thanks again for your continued support.

All the Best,
Rick


Richard Leach
President & CEO

World Food Program USA
1725 Eye Street NW, Suite 510
Washington, DC 20006
T 202.627.3737
F 202.530.1698
rleach@wfpusa.org<mailto:jcorum@wfpusa.org>