Food is the great connector. It is survival and nourishment. It is family and tradition. It is hope and resilience. It is love. Sharing food around the table is an experience that binds us all. This document presents five distinct agricultural livelihoods in five countries facing food crises: wheat farming in Ethiopia, poultry keeping in Mozambique, pastoralism in Somalia, fisheries in South Sudan and sorghum farming in the Sudan. Through the stories of five people and their endeavours to ensure they can put food on the table, it illustrates the essential roles emergency agricultural assistance and resilience interventions play in improving food security and nutrition, reinforcing self-reliance, protecting traditions and ensuring people not only live but thrive.