by PATRICK LEJTENYI

“It began with my dad phoning me one day and saying, ‘Nejeed, you need to end poverty,’” says Nejeed Kassam, a 20-year-old native Vancouverite and current McGill student. While other students might groan through a hangover, mutter assurances that yeah, they’ll get right on it, Kassam took the suggestion—maybe it was an order?—seriously.

The call, which came through over a year ago, stuck with Kassam. Okay, so he’s going to end poverty. Around the world. Starting now. Good. So, now what?

Well, start up a charity. And that’s what he did, along with Ross Margulies, a 22-year-old political science and economics student at McGill, from Ohio, and a few dedicated others, who got together and set up End Poverty Now, a multi-faced organization born out of the global Make Poverty History campaign. After a year of getting their toes wet in the pools of international development, the group looks like it will be spreading its wings in 2007 and fighting the poverty war on a number of different fronts.

“Our approach is based on tackling poverty on all levels,” says Margulies, EPN’s director of finances. Along with Kassam, the executive director, is Emily Hinton, who works on the promotional side, who all sat down with the Mirror at the Second Cup on Milton and Parc. “We want to involve everyone, from governments to Sudanese peasants.”

In 2007, they hope to start sending a student volunteer abroad, probably to Uganda, and donate some funds to a non-governmental anti-poverty group of their choosing. They are also setting up a scholarship to help students studying poverty alleviation- and eradication-related fields, and helping them shoulder the cost of fighting poverty. Other projects include lobbying, which are attached to the Make Poverty History campaign, a food bank and a slew of promotional events.

With over 50 full-time members, and 600 on the group’s listserv, EPN is still trying to raise their profile, and funds. All good things cost money, of course, so, beginning this Wednesday, Jan. 10, at Café Campus (57 Prince Arthur E.), they’ll be having a big benefit show featuring the Sins, Grady and Moksa. Tix are $25. Other concerts, galas and fundraising activities will follow. Visit www.endpovertynow.ca for more info on the group.