Hand in hand over a hot meal: Nourishing community and hope at the ASRC

Hand in hand over a hot meal: Nourishing community and hope at the ASRC

On World Food Day, we’re invited to reflect on how we can build a fairer food system – one where everyone has access to better food and a better future. But for many people seeking asylum in Australia, that future feels out of reach.

Each week, hundreds walk through the doors of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC) – not just for a meal, but for connection, safety, and dignity. At the heart of our food justice work is our community meals program, where we serve hot, nutritious meals four days a week to people too often excluded from even the most basic support.

This is what working hand in hand looks like.

More than a meal: A table where everyone belongs

For people who’ve fled danger and face years in limbo without the right to work or access to social security, a hot meal can be life-changing. Here, every plate is an act of solidarity.

Prepared by volunteers, former refugees, and community chefs, our meals reflect the cultures we serve – curries, stews, rice dishes, soups – lovingly prepared and freely shared.

Over 24 years, we’ve learned something simple but profound: meals don’t just nourish – they connect. At our Footscray centre, food is served at long, shared tables – an invitation for strangers to become community. Conversations flow. Children play. Elders are heard. The table becomes a place of restoration – for body, mind, and spirit.

A helping hand in difficult times

Behind every meal is a deeper truth: many people seeking asylum live in chronic food insecurity. Most want nothing more than to contribute and support themselves – but without work rights or access to financial support, they’re left without income and without options.

Some go days without a proper meal. Rising food prices and long waits for work rights leave families in increasingly vulnerable situations. Community services, including ours, are under growing pressure.

At the ASRC, our meals are about more than filling stomachs. They’re about restoring what was taken away – choice, culture, routine, and the simple right to be nourished and seen.

A hand-up, not a hand-out

This program thrives because people come together – hand in hand.

Volunteers give their time in the kitchen. Community members shape the menu. Staff work side by side with people seeking asylum to make the space safe and welcoming. Donors and local suppliers keep our pantry stocked.

This is food justice in action — a shared effort to meet immediate needs while challenging the systems that create hunger.

At the same time, our global food system faces its own imbalances – rising hunger, widespread waste, and environmental impact. Building a better food future means addressing these together: connecting people, reducing waste, and creating inclusive, sustainable food systems. It’s the kind of cross-sector, cross-generational collaboration that World Food Day calls for.

A better food future starts with us

This year’s World Food Day theme – “Hand in Hand for Better Foods and a Better Future” – is a call to action.

A better future means fairer policies, the right to work, and access to safe, nutritious food – no matter your visa status.

If you believe access to food is a basic human right, not a privilege, walk hand in hand with us:

• Donate food – Help us serve 500+ hot meals a week
• Volunteer – Join our kitchen or dining team
• Share – Raise awareness about food insecurity
• Advocate – Call for fair, compassionate policies