In an unprecedented food crisis, Buddhist anti-hunger fund meets its moment

In June, as the Ukraine war’s disruption to the world’s food supply looked as if it would become a long-term problem and inflation extended its grip over the global economy, the staff of Buddhist Global Relief, a nonprofit fund for humanitarian food aid across the world, gathered for an online meeting to firm up the list of organizations it will fund for the fiscal year ahead.

With $1.5 million to spend, BGR’s team was considering a slate of 54 worthy projects.

“Yes, 54,” said Carla Prater, a BGR volunteer who was until recently the nonprofit’s assistant director. Now the most significant Buddhist-led humanitarian agency in the United States, BGR began in 2008 with just $20,000 and three small-scale projects in Southeast Asia.