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Before We Advocate, We Need to Listen
As Pictou West Food Bank continues to grow and develop, one word keeps finding its way into our conversations: advocacy.
Food banks are often encouraged to become advocates for people experiencing food insecurity. We agree that advocacy matters. And we have also been asking ourselves an important question:
How can we advocate for our clients if we haven't first done the work to understand what they need?
It can be tempting to assume we know.
We see people coming through our doors. We know grocery prices have increased. We hear conversations about housing, transportation, income, health care and the cost of everyday life. We can look at statistics and research about food insecurity.
All of that is valuable.
But it isn't the same as asking the people who use our food bank what they are experiencing.
Moving From Serving Clients to Listening to Clients
Traditionally, food banks have been very good at measuring activity. How many households did we serve? How many pounds of food did we distribute? How much food did we purchase? How many new clients registered?
Those numbers help us understand demand. They don't necessarily tell us why the demand exists or what would make life better for the people behind those numbers.
As our organization develops, we want to become better at understanding both. That doesn't mean turning every visit to the food bank into an interview or asking people to disclose information they would rather keep private. It means creating respectful opportunities for clients to tell us what matters to them.
What Could Food Banks Do Differently?
There are many ways food banks can begin building a better picture of their communities.
A short, voluntary annual client survey could ask about issues such as food costs, housing, transportation, access to health services and other pressures affecting household budgets. It could also ask a much simpler question:
"What is making things hardest for your household right now?"
Anonymous comment cards or suggestion boxes can give people an opportunity to share feedback without having to identify themselves. Occasional client conversations or small listening sessions can provide something numbers cannot: context. A statistic might tell us that transportation is a problem. A conversation can help us understand whether that means someone doesn't have a vehicle, can't afford gas, has difficulty accessing public transportation, or simply can't get to the food bank during its operating hours.
We can also look more carefully at the information we already collect. Are particular communities using our service more frequently? Are we seeing changes in household size? Are more seniors coming to us? Are people travelling significant distances to reach us?
And perhaps most importantly, we can begin asking clients what we could do differently.
Listening Should Influence Services Too
Understanding client needs isn't only about advocacy. It should help shape how a food bank operates.
If transportation is a significant barrier, perhaps we need to think about community pickup locations or partnerships.
If operating hours are difficult for people who work, perhaps we need to explore evening access.
If clients tell us they have limited cooking equipment, that should influence the foods and recipes we provide.
If people struggle to find information about other community supports, perhaps the food bank can become a better connection point to those services.
Sometimes listening will identify an issue we can help solve directly. Other times it will identify something much larger than a food bank can address. That is where advocacy begins.
From Stories to Evidence
Effective advocacy should be grounded in more than individual anecdotes.
Information can help us have better conversations with municipalities, community organizations, funders, provincial and federal representatives, and other food banks. It can also help us determine whether the issues being discussed provincially or nationally reflect what people are actually experiencing here in Pictou West.
There is another important part of this conversation. If we eventually advocate on an issue affecting people experiencing food insecurity, those voices should not disappear once the advocacy begins. Whenever possible, people with lived and living experience should have opportunities to help identify priorities, review what we are saying, participate in discussions and tell their own stories — when they choose to do so.
There is an important difference between speaking for people and helping create a platform where their experiences can be heard.
We want to keep learning that difference.
Our Next Step Is Listening
Pictou West Food Bank doesn't have all the answers. And perhaps recognizing that is exactly where responsible advocacy should begin. Before deciding what our community needs, we need to ask. Before speaking on behalf of the people we serve, we need to listen. Before identifying advocacy priorities, we need local evidence that tells us what those priorities actually are.
Our food bank will always be a place where people can access food. But as we grow, we also want to become better at understanding the circumstances that bring people through our doors — and at ensuring the voices of the people experiencing those circumstances are part of the conversations about how our community responds.
Because good advocacy doesn't begin with speaking. It begins with listening.
Thank you for reading.
At the Pictou West Food Bank, we believe that building a stronger community starts with understanding, compassion, and neighbours helping neighbours.
If this article was helpful, we invite you to share it with someone who may benefit. Every conversation about healthy eating and food security helps strengthen our community. If you're able, please consider supporting our work by using the Donate button on our website. Every donation helps provide nutritious food, compassionate support, and hope to individuals and families right here in our community.
Together, we're nourishing neighbours and building a healthier Pictou West. ❤️
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