In order to reflect upon the underlying causes of world hunger I am going to use the sociological imagination template, and my own reflective thoughts and opinions. With over 870 Million people in the world suffering from hunger it is definitely a prominent issue in a global context. By using the sociological imagination template, I was able to gather a deeper understanding of the issue by dissecting each factor. The historical factor is is how past events can, and will impact on the present and future. In my opinion, the main historical factors are armed conflict, natural disasters, inefficient agricultural practices and poor crop yields. The outcomes of hunger from armed conflict can be rooted in the destroying of crops, livestock, other food sources, as well as farmers and communities reducing or ceasing farming out of fear or becoming under direct attack. In addition to these outcomes it is noted that even years after armed conflict has ceased in a country, a strain is still present on the source and distribution of food supplies. In the aftermath of a natural disaster it is critical that resources are supplied to those affected in order to support a healthy and safe environment while reconstruction takes places within the community. Through natural disaster, damaged land which is unable to be used, and supply of imported and exported food supplies become the main areas affected. Through analysing the historical factors, I am able to form a connection between different events and how they all lead to similar outcomes which consequently affect hunger.

The next step in the sociological imagination template is cultural factors. In my opinion the most significant cultural factors are nutritional traditions within cultures, and their belief systems. These factors can have major impacts on prevalence of world hunger, as some traditional practices, mainly found in developing countries, place practices such as fasting at high importance.