TED Talks Daily: What Does Poverty Look Like on a Plate? | Huiyi Lin

Release Date: January 3, 2025
Host: Elise Hu
Speaker: Huiyi Lin, Artist and Poverty Researcher
Episode Description: Huiyi Lin presents a provocative exploration of poverty through her groundbreaking project, "The Poverty Line," which visualizes daily food choices available to those living at the poverty threshold across 38 countries. This episode delves into the inspiration, methodology, global reactions, and broader implications of her work, culminating in a thoughtful conversation with TED Fellows Program Director Lily James Olds.

Introduction to Huiyi Lin and "The Poverty Line" Project

Elise Hu introduces Huiyi Lin, an artist and poverty researcher, highlighting her innovative project, "The Poverty Line." This initiative aims to depict poverty by illustrating the daily food selections available to individuals living at the national poverty line in various countries.

Notable Quote:

• [02:28] Huiyi Lin: "Poverty is really linked to so many things in life because it is not just an economic phenomenon. It's not just a social phenomenon. It's an individual and a family. It's at the base of really what it means to be human and how we think about human rights."

Concept and Methodology of "The Poverty Line"

Huiyi Lin explains the genesis of the project, developed over 14 years in collaboration with her partner, Stefan Chow. They calculated the per person per day poverty line in China, purchasing food items within that budget to visually represent what poverty looks like on a plate. The food was then photographed alongside local newspapers to contextualize the time and place.

Notable Quotes:

• [02:28] Huiyi Lin: "The Poverty Line tries to understand and look at a very simple question. What does it mean to be poor?"
• [03:49] Stefan Chow: "It was kind of just a way of communicating between the two of us, a way of extending that discussion about what poverty means."

Global Reach and Diverse Reactions

The project expanded to 38 countries and territories across six continents, revealing varied perceptions of poverty. Different cultural contexts influenced how people responded to the same visual representation of poverty, highlighting the subjective nature of poverty's depiction despite its objective basis.

Notable Quotes:

• [03:51] Huiyi Lin: "We found that different people had different responses to the same set of photographs."
• [06:31] Huiyi Lin: "The Poverty Line is really about bridging the gaps in our understanding, making us very curious, also motivated to want to understand more."

Impact on Policy and Public Discourse

Huiyi Lin emphasizes that while her photographs do not alter the structural issues underlying poverty, they effectively prompt conversations that can influence policy and research. The visual simplicity of the project fosters empathy and a deeper understanding of poverty's multifaceted nature.

Notable Quote:

• [05:10] Huiyi Lin: "These photographs don't change that, but they do prompt conversations."

In-Depth Conversation with Lily James Olds

The episode transitions to a dialogue between Huiyi Lin and Lily James Olds, TED Fellows Program Director, delving deeper into the project's inspiration, methodology, and personal insights.

Origins and Development of the Project

Huiyi Lin and Stefan Chow discuss their motivations, rooted in their diverse backgrounds and experiences living in different countries. They sought to comprehend poverty beyond economic definitions, focusing on tangible daily choices.

Notable Quotes:

• [07:09] Stefan Chow: "We decided that we really wanted to understand for ourselves what it means to be poor."
• [09:03] Lily James Olds: "Your photos are really striking in their simplicity. Why did you choose this minimalist style?"

The Power of Simplicity in Art

Stefan Chow explains that the minimalist approach facilitates universal connection and empathy, leveraging the commonality of food to bridge diverse audiences.

Notable Quotes:

• [09:17] Stefan Chow: "Food has a certain way of connecting people... the simplicity of the visual allows us to really associate with the commonalities that we have."
• [10:13] Stefan Chow: "It's about the choices that we have in life and the limitations of who has those choices."

Surprising Insights and Visibility of Poverty

The artists share unexpected findings, such as the invisibility of poverty in high-income countries and the existence of the "working poor" who may not outwardly appear impoverished.

Notable Quote:

• [10:13] Stefan Chow: "We found that it's sometimes actually really hard to tell who is living at the poverty line, especially in high-income economies."

Interplay Between Art and Policy

Huiyi Lin and Stefan Chow reflect on how their backgrounds in economics and art complement each other, enabling them to address complex social issues through a humanistic lens.

Notable Quote:

• [11:24] Stefan Chow: "Good art really connects those different points and brings us into a different way of really looking at the issue and looking at the people who are involved."

Legacy and Future Directions

Celebrating their project's inclusion in the Museum of Modern Art, the artists discuss their aspirations to continue fostering empathy and understanding through visual storytelling. They also touch upon their future projects centered on impermanence and human vulnerability.

Notable Quotes:

• [13:19] Stefan Chow: "We are building conversations, we are building empathy through commonalities."
• [14:26] Stefan Chow: "We hope that this will be a long-term project for us for the next 40 years of our lives."

Recommended Resources

To further explore the themes of poverty and economic decision-making, Huiyi Lin recommends "Poor Economics" by Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo, which offers in-depth field research on poverty alleviation.

Notable Quote:

• [15:47] Stefan Chow: "The Poor Economics book really brought together a lot of very important research and ideas on decision making, about policy implications."

Conclusion: Bridging Understanding Through Visual Art

Huiyi Lin's "The Poverty Line" project transcends traditional economic discussions, offering a visceral, empathetic glimpse into the lives of those living at the poverty threshold. Through minimalist photography and global outreach, the project fosters meaningful conversations and encourages a collective responsibility towards addressing poverty's underlying causes.

Final Quote:

• [14:19] Lily James Olds: "It's really personal in terms of psychology and emotion and just beyond the data and the numbers, which can seem very cold when looking at them."

For More Information: To learn more about Huiyi Lin and her work, visit fellows.ted.com. Explore all TED Fellows films and discover the innovative projects shaping our world today.