It was good of Minister Fantino to respond to my article, but it would have proved far more productive if he had just listened to the professionals in his own department. They possess the training, on-the-ground experience, and clear-headed compassion to help Canada make a greater difference.

The only way for us to end global hunger is for governments, non-governmental organizations, business and the community work together to implement solutions we know will work. I left Bangladesh knowing that I want to help bring about an end to global hunger. So my family and I are going to take a few simple steps.

Remember the 0.7 per cent of their gross national product (GNP) that the world's riches nations committed to international development? Whatever became of it? Let's have a 0.7 per cent for a new generation, only this time with the concentration on that one part of the world that has lagged behind -- Africa.

As a big idea, happiness needs to be taken seriously. As many civil society groups recognize, privileging happiness helps fill a missing "human" gap between the organizational objectives they are advocating and the needs of people on the ground.

A well-publicized list of western celebrities has attracted enormous attention for their engagement in African development as well as peace and confli...