MALIKA Knapp won't be indulging in winter favourites such as hearty soups, cheesy lasagnas, or crunchy crumbles this week.
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Instead the Macquarie College Wallsend year 11 student is living off the same rations as a Syrian refugee in a Jordan camp: 400 grams of rice, 120 grams of lentils, 60 grams of dried chickpeas, 120 grams of tinned sardines and 400 grams of tinned kidney beans.
She's completing the Act for Peace Ration Challenge for the second time, raising funds for the humanitarian aid agency's emergency response long-term development and advocacy programs.
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"I thought 'What an amazing initiative'," Malika, 17, said.
"I thought it was something that could challenge me and something small I could do to make an impact for other people's lives elsewhere. It pushed me, it challenged me... it made me feel really good, like I'd done something."
Malika has also received food coupons for additional small quantities of oil, rice and flour.
She had raised $1170 as of Monday night, which means she's passed enough fundraising goals to be able to add unlimited salt, 210 millilitres of milk, 170 grams of a vegetable, 120 grams of protein and a can of tinned tomatoes to her rations.
"I'm really excited to do it again and see how I go this time," Malika said.
"I'm a bit nervous when I'm not in the school environment, where it's easy to do it because I have a packed lunch. If I'm at work [at Harris Farm Markets] or something it's a bit harder to have to prepare my meal beforehand and take that in, so I'll just have to do a bit of forward planning."
Malika said the rations were enough for three small meals a day and no snacks.
She said she found last year that keeping up her water intake and having her dinner later than usual helped her ensure she wasn't going to sleep too hungry.
She doesn't remember feeling tired, but she limited exercise due to her low protein intake.
"I felt really really good last year except for in the afternoon when you have a bit of a sugar craving, so when I usually have something a bit sweeter, that was really hard coming home from school and having this flat flour pancake thing that wasn't very filling."
Malika said knowing how much the money she raised would help others, plus support from family and friends, kept her motivated.
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