By Callum Ludwig
Two of the team from Little Yarra Creperie ditched the lemon and sugar for simple rations from 19 to 25 June in solidarity with refugees.
Bianca Rich and Amy Bliss joined the Act For Peace Ration Challenge where they ate the same rations as a Syrian refugee living in a camp in Jordan.
Ms Rich said it was not her first time taking on the challenge, but it was for Ms Bliss.
“It’s always hard, but I was kind of prepared while Amy found it very hard. It’s quite challenging physically and emotionally because you are quite under your minimum recommended calorie intake,” she said.
“You feel lethargic, with what we call ‘rice brain’, where you feel a bit vague and sometimes teary, but in the end, it’s really rewarding.”
The challenge involves eating the exact same food in almost exactly the same quantities for an entire week, replicating the rations a partner of Act For Peace distributes to Syrian refugees in urban refugee camps in Jordan.
Ms Rich said her inspiration is her love for food and the big part it plays in her life.
“I like to indulge and I like sharing foods, it’s my business. So I do it out of empathy for people who unfortunately aren’t able to, through no fault of their own, have the kind of abundance we have in terms of food,” she said.
“Doing the challenge is very different to just donating money because you get a lot deeper of an understanding of what it means to actually live on a very limited and reduced diet.”
The Ration Challenge pack includes 420g of rice, 170g of lentils, 85g of dried chickpeas, 120g of tinned sardines or tofu, 400g of tinned kidney beans and 300ml of vegetable oil. Additional food ‘coupons’ for an extra 1.5kg of rice and 400g of plain flour are included, representing the food coupons some refugees receive from the United Nations or other aid agencies.
Ms Rich said if you are inspired to take on the challenge, sign up early.
“Join the Facebook group for participants as well, it’s full of support and encouragement,” she said.
“When I did it the first time, I was uncomfortable about asking friends and family for sponsorship, but I’ve gotten much more comfortable with that. It’s just being brave to ask, and also knowing and trusting that people want to help and they just don’t know all the time what they can do.”
To reflect the work done by Act For Peace to bypass limited work rights for refugees and support them to establish small informal businesses— such as making and selling snacks — to help top up their rations, different rewards could be earned by participants of the challenge for hitting fundraising goals:
A dried spice can be earned for sponsoring yourself
A teabag is earned for every five people who sponsor a participant, up to 10 tea bags.
$125 allows for unlimited salt.
$250 provides 210ml of milk.
$500 adds 170g of a vegetable to the rations.
$750 and 120g of protein is available.
$1000 and a tin of tomatoes are all yours.
$1500 and a 330ml hot or cold drink is added.
Participants are welcome to add 25g of fruit up to 125g for every friend they encourage to sign up.
Joining a team also means 1 clove of garlic can be used for each team member, up to six.
The Act For Peace Rations Challenge earned $586,313 this year with an average earning of $534, enough to feed 1873 refugees for a year. At the time of writing, Ms Rich and Ms Bliss had raised $2818 between them, the 46th most of any participating team, and celebrated the end of their pledge with a meal at Bam Bam Italian in Avonsleigh.
The pair urge people to still donate if they can or purchase a raffle ticket to go towards their efforts with the chance to win a hamper full of delicacies. Donations to them can be made at www.actforpeace.rationchallenge.org.au/t/beyoncebea
To take on the Rations Challenge, participants must be at least 18 years old and are advised to only take part if in good health and with no underlying health conditions. For more information, visit www.actforpeace.rationchallenge.org.au.
