Dietary Restrictions for Judaism

    As reported by the students at Hinsdale Central, Quest food services does not provide enough food options to meet the dietary guidelines for Judaism.  Quest should be educated on these rules of a strict kosher diet.  Students who practice the Jewish religion can not mix dairy with meat and are not allowed to have pork or pork products and shellfish.  An option for Quest would be to supply food options and ingredients that don't include meat.  One common ingredient in many Jewish meals is Matzah Meal.  Matzah meal is unleavened bread that comes from Matzah bread.  If Quest couldn't find Matzah meal, they could substitute bread crumbs for it. By supplying less meat and trying to include ingredients from the Jewish culture, Quest 

could not only diversify the products they get but make the students at Hinsdale Central very happy.

    In the Jewish religion, there are a lot of unique food options to choose from.  The picture to the right is showing freshly baked challah bread.  Jews break it at the start of every meal and holiday like Passover.  Another popular dish in the Jewish religion is called Gefilte Fish.  According to this website, Gefilte Fish is a ball of chopped up fish that can be served warm or cold.  It is made with fish like carp or pike.  A knish is another type of food that Jews eat.  It is a potato and flour dumpling that can be stuffed with cheese, mashed potato, onion, chopped liver, and buckwheat.  In Jewish culture, they eat holishkes which are stuffed cabbage.  This is similar to what some people eat in America.  These can be stuffed with meatballs and glazed with a sweet and sour sauce.  Lastly, eaten in Jewish culture is a slowly cooked stew with beef, barley, and beans in it called Cholent.  This is a traditional meal that Jews eat for lunch or dinner.

    We need to understand the Jewish diet in our schools because we need to embrace diversity.  Students should be able to eat the foods that are allowed by their religion.   We shouldn't just allow chicken patties or pizza every day at lunch.  We need to expand all of our pallets and have a willingness to try some Jewish food! 

Destructive Flooding in East Africa

Summary: 

    Africa is known for its water shortages. But since 2016, floods have started occurring in countries like Ethiopia, Sudan, Kenya, Somalia, and Uganda which are all located in East Africa. According to a BBC News article on Flooding in East Africa, "the floods are caused by a big temperature differential between the east and west sides of the Indian Ocean."  In 2020 alone, over 6,000,000 million people have been affected by it. Sudan got hit the worst where 860,000 people were left with damaged homes and 120 people perished.  

    Africa is home to a government that doesn’t care that much about climate change. The BBC News article on The Effect of Climate Change on Africa, states that "the capacity for adaptation to climate change is low; poverty equates to reduced choice at the individual level while governance generally fails to prioritize and act on climate change."  The government in Africa worries about other issues rather than about the rapidly growing one at hand. Climate change. The uneven heating in the east and west sides of the Indian ocean was due to climate change. That caused major amounts of flooding when Africa was experiencing a water shortage. Someone needs to take charge of what is going on to help Africa end climate change and get rid of poverty. 

Analysis: 

    After reading the articles about Flooding in East Africa and The Effect of Climate Change on Africa, I feel like the African government should care more about climate change. I don’t agree with the lack of action the government has put forth to end climate change. They are putting their efforts into other causes rather than the bigger issue. Alone, climate change has affected over 6,000,000 million people in East Africa. What will happen if the government doesn’t step in soon to help? I feel that the government could start helping the countries like Sudan who have been hit the hardest and continue to support others who need help. The government could look to other countries or companies that are willing to help. We can all work together to help stop the issues of flooding caused by climate change in east Africa. By getting the government more involved, we help control the dangerous flooding in Africa. 

 Discussion Question: 

    What is the best way to deal with the flooding caused by climate change in Africa?  Do you agree or disagree with the way the Africa government is handling climate change?