CHRISTIAN AID NEWS Issue 47
Spring 2010
www.christianaid.org.uk
• Election 2010: Ask the Climate Question • Q&A with Christian Aid’s new director
Central
LIFE IN THE MUD How Christian Aid Week is bringing new hope to one of Kenya’s ‘forgotten’ slums
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UNLEASH YOUR
TALENT
to fundraise during Christian Aid Week
Christian Aid Week (9–15 May 2010) is the perfect opportunity for you to use your talents to support Christian Aid’s essential work around the world. Bake a cake or climb a mountain… there are countless ways you can use your skills and join with thousands of others to raise vital money to fight poverty.
Register NOW for your free fundraising pack by visiting www.caweek.org !"#$%&'()*+"",,,-
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020 7620 4444
CONTENTS Edna Ribeiro Sebastio, 19, and baby Emanuelly with their water barrels in the Augusto Boal protest camp, Promissão, Brazil
EDITOR’S LETTER
20
REGULARS
Q 28 YOUR CHRISTIAN AID
Q 4 NEWS
Events and stories from your part of the UK
From Haiti to Zambia; Sudan to Zimbabwe – how Christian Aid is responding around the world… plus other news from the world of Christian Aid
4
Q 10 CAMPAIGNS
Q 16 THE BIG PICTURE One striking image…
Q 24 LIFE AND SOUL Are we seeing a new age of philanthropy?
Q 27 INPUT
A timely reflection on Christian Aid’s work
FEATURES
The battle to wipe out ‘the world’s worst job’
14
Q 14 INTERVIEW Meet our new director, Loretta Minghella
Q 18 COVER STORY The inspiring story of a new community project in one of Nairobi’s ‘forgotten’ slums
Q 26 EVENTS Looking ahead to more of the big fundraising challenges of 2010
Q 30 LAST WORD
Q 13 FRONTLINE REVISITED
Election 2010: find out how you can ask the right questions
Your feedback Christian Aid News is printed on 100 per cent recycled paper
Christian Aid/Siân Curry
TWO BIG EVENTS are looming. Likely to be first is the general election – and Christian Aid’s campaigns team is determined that the issues of poverty and climate change are thrust centre stage. See page 10 to find out how. Then there is Christian Aid Week, 9-15 May. As you prepare for this year’s vital activities, a sanitation project in the slums of Nairobi should inspire you: see pages 16-19. Meanwhile, some of you willl have noticed that it’s been five months since our last print issue. In an effort to save on production costs, the winter issue of Christian Aid News was produced in a digital-only format. If you missed that edition and would like to catch up with it, or view this and other past issues digitally, go to http://digital can.christianaid.org.uk Finally, as part of our continuing effort to offset costs, this issue includes the first-ever paid-for loose insert for a commercial product. I should point out that this does not mean that Christian Aid endorses the product (in this or any future commercial inserts): readers can decide for themselves whether they wish to try what’s on offer. Roger Fulton, Editor
24
Q 20 FRONTLINE The fight for land rights in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest
Christian Aid is a Christian organisation that insists the world can and must be swiftly changed to one where everyone can live a full life, free from poverty. We work globally for profound change that eradicates the causes of poverty, striving to achieve equality, dignity and freedom for all, regardless of faith or nationality. We are part of a wider movement for social justice. We provide urgent, practical and effective assistance where need is great, tackling the effects of poverty as well as its root causes.
UK registered charity number 1105851 Company number 5171525 Scotland charity number SC039150 Northern Ireland charity number XR94639 Company number NI059154 Republic of Ireland charity number CHY 6998 Company number 426928. The Christian Aid name and logo are trademarks of Christian Aid; Poverty Over is a trademark of Christian Aid. © Christian Aid April 2010. The acceptance of external advertising does not indicate endorsement.
Q Cover Joseph Kithuku and his granddaughter Blessing: finding hope amid Nairobi’s slums. Photo: Christian Aid/Elaine Duigenan Q Pictures Joseph Cabon Q Sub-editors Sophy Kershaw, Simon Wilcox, Caroline Atkinson, Carolyn Crawley Q Circulation Ben Hayward Q Design and production Becca Higgins/Circle Publishing, 020 8332 8400 Q Christian Aid head office 35 Lower Marsh, London SE1 7RL Q Tel 020 7620 4444 Q Fax 020 7620 0719 Q Email info@christian-aid.org Q Stay in touch online at www.christianaid.org.uk
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NEWS
Marcus Aronson/ACT Alliance
HAITI
FOOD AND SHELTER COME FIRST CHRISTIAN AID partners in Haiti are working hard to ensure that the ongoing needs of ordinary people are being met as the country struggles to rebuild its economy following the earthquake. Our field office will be managing a budget of £9.2 million raised around the world to provide both immediate lifesaving assistance and help with longer-term reconstruction. Most of those made homeless also lost their means of earning a living, so Christian Aid is working to sustain them. APROSIFA, a health clinic and community outreach centre in Port-auPrince that Christian Aid has supported for many years, has been organising and funding local food-sellers to
The ACT Alliance is helping with camps for Haiti’s homeless
provide thousands of hot meals to people living in one of the poorest districts in the capital. Its next step will be to provide grants to women to help them set up small businesses. In Petit Goave, 20 miles from the capital, our partner the National Human Rights Defence Network has identified the most vulnerable families in 36 camps and provided thousands of people with a stipend to enable them to buy food in the markets. Another partner, Koral, is working in the southwest of Haiti, providing cash to people who migrated to the countryside after the quake. One woman, who had been a tailor, bought cloth with her stipend. After sewing it into clothing,
Appeal saves threatened projects VITAL CHRISTIAN AID PROJECTS have been spared the axe, following a generous response to our New Year appeal for urgent funds following a sharp downturn in revenue over the past year. Around £1 million has been received and, as a result of this, the directors were able to save all the projects threatened with closure, as well as fund other valuable work including a project providing clean water and sanitation in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya – see pages 16-19. Praising the ‘incredible generosity’ of supporters who made donations, Ruth Ruderham, head of Fundraising, said: ‘We know that much of the money raised in this appeal is made up of additional, exceptional gifts from those who already support our work financially, so we are extremely grateful.’
she was able to sell what she had made for 50 per cent more than she had received. Prospery Raymond, Christian Aid country manager for Haiti, said: ‘This is how Christian Aid wants to help in Haiti, by giving people the means to get back on their feet again.’ This stands in contrast to the initial response from the international community, which was intensely focused on security, with thousands of marines being drafted in from the US. Mr Raymond adds: ‘What the population needs most is food, clean water and adequate shelter. Once basic needs have been provided for, there will be no problem with security. The current level of military presence is very costly; Christian Aid would like to see more of that money directed towards the needs of the Haitian people.’ To help ensure that the international reconstruction plan meets the needs of the most vulnerable people, Christian Aid teamed up with its US counterpart, Church World Service, to lobby the donor’s conference at the UN in New York on 31 March. Any plan must recognise the need to create sustainably better lives for Haitians, said the two agencies, who are partners in the ACT Alliance (see opposite, right). You can still donate to our appeal at www.christianaid.org.uk/emergencies/
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SOUTH AFRICA
YOUTH GATHER FOR ALTERNATIVE FOOTBALL AS SOUTH AFRICA gears up to host the FIFA World Cup in June, this April Christian Aid partner the Pietermaritzburg Agency for Christian Social Awareness (PACSA) will be hosting a football tournament of its own. The tournament, in Durban, will include more than 50 teams, bringing together youngsters from KwaZulu Natal’s poorest communities, in which PACSA works, with pupils from elite, privileged schools nearby, as well as international German and UK students. Bridging the divides of race and wealth, the mini-tournament, and workshops held between games, will offer social and psychological support to 300 young participants from underprivileged backgrounds, while sharing messages around the risks of HIV. KwaZulu Natal, where PACSA works, has the highest rate of HIV infection of South Africa’s provinces, and the second-largest population. Christian Aid is supporting the tournament as part of a group of concerned organisations, that includes Alive and Kicking and Tackle Africa. Christian Aid is supporting PACSA to build on the football buzz and
enthusiasm and equip a group of about 100 youth leaders – girls and boys from privileged and underprivileged areas – who will then influence their peers through sessions in community groups, churches and schools. Similar schemes run by PACSA have previously been very successful in helping young people to reduce the risk of HIV infection, pregnancy and discrimination against girls. South Africa has the highest number of people known to be HIV-positive in the world, with UN estimates at 5.7 million, and hundreds of people die every day as a result. PACSA has a vision to ‘build the nation, one youth at a time’ and through its day-to-day work using sport, art and culture, seeks to break down social barriers in a country with one of the widest inequality gaps in the world and more than 20 million people living on less than $2 a day. Visit www.christianaid.org.uk to find out more about Christian Aid’s work in South Africa and on HIV and other poverty-related diseases. Find out more about PACSA at www.pacsa.org.za/
ACT ALLIANCE STRENGTHENS AID EFFORTS CHRISTIAN AID has strengthened its ties with other church-based charities around the world to form an alliance providing emergency relief and development aid in 125 countries. Officially launched on 24 March, the ACT Alliance is one of the largest international networks channelling emergency and development aid from both public and private donors to the people who need it most in the developing world. With a combined budget of more than £1 billion, the ACT Alliance will be able to provide emergency food aid, shelter, water,
sanitation and poverty-reduction programmes more efficiently. Recently, money raised by Christian Aid helped victims of the Chile earthquake. It was sent to the Chilean ACT Alliance member FASIC to buy food, shelter materials and improve water and sanitation facilities. The same principle also works in reverse. In Haiti, medical supplies and hygiene kits sent from the US by Church World Service were passed on to APROSIFA, a health clinic and community resource that Christian Aid has supported for years.
SHADOW MINISTER SEES IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE
THE SHADOW SECRETARY of state for energy and climate change, Greg Clark MP, recently visited Bangladesh with Christian Aid to see for the first time how climate change is affecting people in one of the poorest communities of the world. Dr Clark met with Christian Aid partners and the communities they work with in the capital Dhaka, as well as in the coastal Bagerhat District, one of the areas worst hit by the impacts of the changing climate. There he found out how people were having to cope with increasingly frequent flooding, worsening storms, the erosion of coastlines and river banks, and the salination of water sources. Dr Clark has since held a follow-up event with Christian Aid and some of the Bangladeshi diaspora in the UK, and has spoken about his trip with Christian Aid in a number of speeches in Parliament. In one of these he said: ‘I was in Bangladesh with the charity Christian Aid, looking at the experience of people living in that part of the world, particularly those living on a delta near the coastline. What struck me about all the villages that I visited was not that flooding, erosion and cyclones were out of their historical experience – life in the delta is clearly dangerous and prone to such events – but that people recalling their childhoods were unanimous in the view that events taking place there now were occurring with much greater severity and frequency than was the case even a generation ago.’
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NEWS
Children under five will be among the first to receive insecticide-treated nets to combat malaria
A CHILD DIES FROM MALARIA every 30 seconds – one of the clearest scandals of poverty in a world in which there are effective and affordable ways to help children and adults avoid infection. As we mark World Malaria Day on 25 April, Christian Aid is announcing a major increase in its commitments to tackle poverty-related, preventable diseases to give more attention to malaria prevention and treatment. Much like HIV, malaria can have a devastating effect on communities. And just like HIV, it is both a result of, and a cause of, poverty. Two illnesses that are often closely related and combined, HIV and malaria account for four million deaths every year. Both infections hit hard in the same areas of the world. Essentially, this means Christian Aid is able to increase our response to malaria with limited additional cost. HIV is one of Christian Aid’s main priorities and our partners working on HIV are well-placed to incorporate a response to malaria into their community-based structures. Many of our country programmes are already implementing the change. For
example, in Nigeria – where 300,000 children die of malaria every year – our partners are already in the third year of distributing 250,000 long-lasting insecticide-treated nets. Beginning with pregnant women, children under the age of five, people living with HIV and the elderly, distribution will eventually include all families in the areas in which they work. We are also providing on-theground education and training in malaria prevention and treatment and advocating better, more effective drug therapy and diagnostic testing. A staggering 250 million cases of malaria are recorded each year, resulting in one million deaths – 90 per cent of which occur in Africa, mainly in children under five years of age. By investing more in directly making sure people don’t fall ill and die from malaria, we can better combat extreme poverty across the world. Find out more on the newly refreshed HIV and poverty-related diseases pages of the Christian Aid website here: www. christianaid.org.uk/whatwedo/issues/ hiv.aspx
Christian Aid/Rachel Stevens
MORE BITE IN THE BATTLE TO BEAT MALARIA
Backing for new film project THE NEXT FEATURE-documentary film from the makers of Black Gold, Marc and Nick Francis, will be Cashback – a landmark cinematic feature-documentary thriller about illicit financial dealings. Now at production-funding stage, Cashback will tell the story of how money is drained out of developing countries by a network of bankers, accountants and lawyers into secret western bank accounts. It will peel away the secrecy to reveal one of this century’s biggest scandals. Christian Aid supported the film’s early development and looks forward to the film playing a vital role in taking the tax justice campaign to a popular audience. To see how you can get involved, go to www.tippingpointfilmfund. com/projects/cashback
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ZAMBIA
WHAT GOES UP… MUST WALK DOWN CHRISTIAN AID launched its new abseiling challenge last month, with the Mega Mersey Abseil, which saw 29 supporters rise to the challenge of abseiling 50 metres down the Mersey Tunnel Ventilation Station in Birkenhead. The abseilers included 17-year-old student Matthew Gwynne and grandmother Jill Loach, as well as our abseiling soap star Hollyoaks’ Junade Khan. All made it to the ground safely and with smiles on their faces, and look set to raise more than £5,000 for Christian Aid’s work. To join our abseiling team at the Titan Crane Abseil in Glasgow, on 2 May, visit www.christianaid.org.uk/ events
TAX CAMPAIGN STEPPED UP AS COPPER PRICES SOAR
Christian Aid’s Hannah Dawe prepares for the long drop
Christian Aid/Rachel Stevens
CHECKING THE CHECKPOINTS
Christian Aid/Tabitha Ross
WOULD YOU CONSIDER volunteering for between three and five months in Israel or the West Bank, as an ecumenical human rights ‘accompanier’? A Christian Aid partner is recruiting new volunteers now for 2011. So what exactly are accompaniers? Essentially, they act as observers, both to deter and witness violations of workers by Israeli security personnel. ‘I’m here to monitor human rights,’ says volunteer ecumenical accompanier Anna Akerlund (pictured below), standing at the main checkpoint between Jerusalem and Bethlehem at 5am. Hundreds of men pass through here every morning, queuing from the early hours to get through in time for work, watched over by Israeli soldiers. It’s a tense situation where sometimes human rights abuses take place. ‘It’s important to witness what is happening here and to keep a record
and follow up cases of detention. Sometimes someone comes up to me in the street in Bethlehem and says he knows me from the checkpoint, and thanks me for being here. It’s very moving when that happens.’ The Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme for Palestine and Israel (EAPPI) was established by Christian Aid, the World Council of Churches, and others, in 2002, in response to a call made by the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem, and Palestinian and Israeli NGOs. Ecumenical accompaniers support Palestinians and Israelis in non-violent action against the occupation, and provide protection by presence for Palestinians who suffer abuse from Israeli soldiers or extremist settlers. Living allowances and benefits are provided, and accompaniers are stationed in Bethlehem, Jerusalem and three other locations in the West Bank. Upon their return to their home country, accompaniers also raise awareness about the situation in their own community, advocating for a just peace and an end to occupation. Recruitment starts in April 2010. See www.quaker.org.uk/eappi for application packs and more details. For more information about our work go to www.christianaid.org.uk/whatwedo
AS THE PRICE of copper rebounds on the international market, Christian Aid and its partners in Zambia continue to exert pressure on Zambia’s government to ensure that the country’s citizens see the benefit through taxes paid by multinational mining companies. Zambia’s Council of Churches, Caritas Zambia and the Centre for Trade Policy Development (CTPD) are stepping up a national campaign to see the 25 per cent windfall tax on mining companies reinstated. Christian Aid partners influenced the government to change tax policy by introducing these taxes in 2008. The decision was quickly withdrawn in 2009 due to pressure from international donors such as the International Monetary Fund, but has since triggered a heated national debate. In an article in Zambia’s national paper The Post, Caritas Zambia’s economic justice programme officer Edmund Kangamungazi challenged the government to reinstate the windfall tax. ‘The tax captures revenue during high copper-price periods and there are only two elements for consideration – that is selling price and cost of production – so it is easier to administer and it is a low-cost approach on tax administration.’ In the same article, the Reverend Suzanne Matale of Zambia Council of Churches stressed that Zambians must benefit from their wealth, urging that mining companies be obliged to publish earnings to promote transparency. Christian Aid’s country manager for Zambia, Jennipher Sakala, also recently appeared live on a national television debate, challenging the government on its decision not to reintroduce windfall taxes. See: www.christianaid.org.uk/ ActNow/the-big-tax-return/
Disp pl tem
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NEWS
PM praises retiring director PRIME MINISTER GORDON BROWN and the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams paid moving tributes to the work of Christian Aid’s director, Dr Daleep Mukarji, who is leaving after 12 years. In a letter read by Douglas Alexander, secretary of state for international
development, at a service of thanksgiving in Waterloo for Christian Aid’s work under Dr Mukarji, the prime minister said: ‘I know that your work at Christian Aid will have changed, improved and saved the lives of thousands of people whom you will never meet but who
Christian Aid
Daleep captured in cheerful mood at his service of thanksgiving
will remain forever indebted to you.’ Mr Brown praised Dr Mukarji for being ‘central in keeping justice and the fight against poverty at the top of the political agenda’ over the past 12 years. He added: ‘It was your work that helped to link development and climate in a way that no person and no agency had managed to do before. The world owes you a great deal in this regard,’ he said. In a video message, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, thanked Dr Mukarji for his ‘wonderful work’. ‘We have a great deal to be proud of in Christian Aid,’ he said. In his farewell speech, Dr Mukarji urged Christian Aid to retain its passion for social justice and a world free of poverty. ‘The work of Christian Aid, day after day after day, is about people who are not often in the room and who are not often at the table. That is what kept me going and is what must keep Christian Aid going,’ he said. O Read the first interview with our new director, see page 14
SUDAN COMMUNITY ‘STANDS UP AND WALKS’ escalating violence that claimed 2,500 lives and displaced 350,000 people in southern Sudan in 2009. Kennet Korayi, who was executive director of MRDA when the fundraising week was launched, is emphatic about the need for local communities to play an active role in funding their own development. ‘The
MRDA
THE SUCCESS OF our Christian Aid Week efforts has inspired a Sudan community to take the funding of critical projects into its own hands. In 2008 our partner the Mundri Relief and Development Association (MRDA) – which works in Mundri in southern Sudan – took its lead from Christian Aid Week, and launched MRDA week. Hundreds of volunteers go door to door collecting donations, and other events – from raffles to tricycle races to film screenings – are held throughout the week to raise money for local projects. Money raised in 2008 has already been used to build Mundri’s first library and to renovate a clinic for young children. Funds raised in 2009 are being used to construct a dam and provide scholarships for students. These projects will provide timely support for those who come to Mundri from other parts of Western Equatoria State because of
fundraising week is also to educate local people to contribute to their own development, rather than wait for handouts,’ he says. ‘The days when people wait for government and donors to do things for them are passing by very fast. We must stand up and walk.’ http://mundridevelopment.org/
A tricycle race proves very popular
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ZIMBABWE
CHRISTIAN AID IN THE NEWS
STUDENTS DARE TO SPEAK OUT
Anatomy of a smear
SUNDAY 18 APRIL MARKS the thirtieth anniversary of Zimbabwe’s independence. Yet on that day many Zimbabweans will mourn their lack of basic freedoms – including freedom of speech. Christian Aid partner the Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe (SCMZ) is publishing a booklet called I-stories in a brave move to speak openly about the experiences of young Zimbabweans during the most recent years of the country’s decade of decline. During the period of politically motivated violence that followed the elections in March 2008, many people living in extreme poverty were caught up in, and incited as perpetrators of, violence. Many young adults were severely beaten, bullied and intimidated. I-stories brings together the stories of young people who experienced the violence, including eight personal student testimonies, including the stories of several SCMZ staff and student activist members. With support from Christian Aid, SCMZ is distributing the booklets to its 5,000 members nationwide through groups in schools, colleges and universities. I-stories aims to help young people understand each other and what happened. It is part of SCMZ’s wider work to encourage young Zimbabweans to choose alternative, constructive and peaceful means to make their voice heard. ‘There is no freedom of speech in Zimbabwe, because there is no freedom after speech,’ explains Innocent, the 26-year-old national coordinator of the SCMZ. • To watch an audio-slideshow, go to www.christianaid.org.uk/ whatwedo/eyewitness
Andrew Hogg, Christian Aid’s news editor, examines how media coverage of a controversial claim about aid money led to a distorted, damaging story racing around the world… IT BEGAN AS a plug on BBC Online for a World Service radio programme. The claim was damning. ‘Millions of dollars in Western aid for victims of the Ethiopian famine of 1984-85 was siphoned off by rebels to buy weapons.’ The story went global immediately. One of the greatest outpourings of compassion the world has ever seen, the Live Aid concerts masterminded by Sir Bob Geldof in 1985 to raise funds for the famine victims, had apparently ended as a sham. Sceptics who had always had their suspicions about the efficacy of aid smelt blood. One former rebel leader suggested during the broadcast that as much as 95 per cent of aid sent to the region held by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) in 1985 was diverted away from famine victims. The programme didn’t say directly that Live Aid donations had been compromised – it didn’t need to. Sir Bob and his fundraising activities were featured throughout. Christian Aid was then identified as an aid agency that had been hoodwinked. Our man on the spot in 1984, Max Peberdy, had allegedly handed over money to buy grain to merchants in Sudan who were in fact Tigrayan rebels in disguise. Many of the sacks of grain, the programme suggested, actually contained sand. A figure of $500,000 was mentioned. It was Mark Twain who said: ‘A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes.’ Today, he seems more prescient than ever. Christian Aid is anxious to give the truth the chance to catch up with what has been said. That is why we have made an official complaint to the BBC. Our grounds are these. The programme claims were based on four strands of evidence. Two of those came from purged members of
the TPLF with axes to grind against their former comrade-in-arms, Meles Zenawi, Ethiopia’s president. Indeed, it was he who was alleged to have suggested the diversion of 95 per cent of aid. The two men can hardly be regarded as impartial witnesses. A third strand of ‘evidence’ was a CIA report from the time from which the programme quoted selectively. Claiming in one place that aid had ‘almost certainly’ been diverted, in another it said it would have been against the TPLF’s interests to do so. The fourth strand was an interview with the then US chargé d’affaires in Addis Ababa who spoke of aid bought in Sudan being sold before it reached the border. He gave no indication as to how widespread this had been. Supporting the claim against Peberdy was a photograph from a book he had written that showed him buying grain. The two men with him, it was said, were TPLF in disguise. However, in the text, Peberdy went into great detail about the measures he took to avoid being cheated, including following the aid to the point of distribution. Then as now, Christian Aid sets the highest store by making sure the money we are given reaches the intended recipients. Unsubstantiated claims from 25 years ago cannot go unchallenged.
Christian Aid News 9
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CAMPAIGNS
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MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD IN THE BATTLE AGAINST POVERTY
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With the general election looming, Christian Aid is calling on its suppporters to help make sure all MPs in the new Parliament are committed to ending global poverty and addressing climate change
ENTER CHRISTIAN AID’S POSTCODE LOTTERY! We are running two strands of our election campaign, depending on the constituency in which you live: Either: • our Ask the Climate Question campaign – focused solely on climate change and coordinated with Oxfam, the RSPB, Tearfund, CAFOD, Greenpeace and WWF-UK in 50 marginal constituencies. Or: • our Poverty Over vision – calling on politicians to tackle the causes of poverty, and, specifically, climate change and tax dodging by the less scrupulous multinational companies. See panels, opposite
WHERE DO YOUR PARLIAMENTARY CANDIDATES STAND?
TAKE ACTION Go to www.christianaid.org/ election2010. Here you can: • find out which campaign is being run where you live • take action and email your candidates to ask them about their positions on climate change and tax dodging • find out information on your nearest hustings – look out for information in your local press about where and when these are being held and quiz your candidates about climate change and tax dodging • download a copy of the Christian Aid Election Manifesto – a simple guide to our key poverty issues.
IF YOU DO NOT LIVE in one of the marginal constituencies being targeted by Ask the Climate Question, we would like you to help us highlight two causes of poverty on which we want a future government to take urgent action: • climate change is already killing 300,000 people a year in poor countries. With no fair or binding deal reached in Copenhagen, this has to be a key election issue and politicians must act before it is too late for the world’s poor.
Ask the Climate Question Christian Aid is working with Oxfam, the RSPB, Tearfund, CAFOD, Greenpeace and WWFUK to make climate change a major general election issue in our new campaign, Ask the Climate Question. This campaign will target 50 marginal parliamentary seats. Climate change is a key issue for many of the poorest people in the world, including those with whom Christian Aid works. Every day we hear stories of lives and livelihoods being destroyed by altering weather patterns, droughts and floods. That’s why we know climate change is already a reality for the world’s poor – regardless of recent controversies. Every time a candidate, party member or a pollster asks what is important to you in this election, please list climate change in your top three issues – this is vital to our campaign.
• tax dodging by some unscrupulous multinational companies denies poor countries at least $160 billion a year. This is more than oneand-a-half times the amount poor countries receive in aid. With greater transparency in companies’ financial reporting, developing countries could claw back this money for health, education and fighting poverty.
Christian Aid/Modammadur Rahman/Map Photo Agency
POLLING DAY is fast approaching and, whichever party wins the election, the next Parliament will be full of new MPs. Together, we can make sure they are fully aware of the importance of tackling the causes of poverty such as climate change and tax dodging – the two big subjects that are the focus of our current campaigning. Climate change is a key issue for many of the poorest people in the world – their lives and livelihoods are being destroyed by altered weather patterns, droughts, floods and other climate-related changes. Recent controversy surrounding climate change should not detract from the fact that the people with whom Christian Aid works in the developing world are telling us that they are experiencing additional hardship directly because of a changing climate. In the run-up to polling day please ask your candidates what they will do if elected to tackle the causes of poverty, such as climate change and tax dodging.
A heavy monsoon shower in Bangladesh where coastal erosion is increasing
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CAMPAIGNS TIME FOR CLIMATE JUSTICE
Christian Aid
FOUR MONTHS ON from the Copenhagen climate summit, Christian Aid is refocusing its continuing campaign to get a fair, ambitious, binding and effective climate deal for the world’s poorest people. The Countdown to Copenhagen campaign which, last December, saw Archbishop Desmond Tutu hand over a petition with more than half a million signatures to UN climate chief Yvo de Boer on behalf of the global Countdown to Copenhagen movement, continues under the banner Time for Climate Justice. Joining the crowd in Copenhagen’s Central Square were more than 100 Christian Aid supporters who had travelled overland to Denmark to add their voice to a final call for a fair, ambitious and binding international climate deal. Thank you to all Christian Aid supporters for the tremendous energy you showed during the Countdown to Copenhagen campaign. If only the politicians had demonstrated the same commitment to climate justice! Instead of a fair global deal, we began 2010 with a weak ‘Copenhagen Accord’. Not even agreed by all countries, it is completely inadequate in addressing the urgent climate change crisis. Rich countries failed to deliver the emission cuts and finance needed to secure a legally binding agreement. But we must not give up. We continue to hear from our partners about the devastating impact that climate change is having on their lives and the worsening poverty that it is creating. And that global voice will not be silenced. In 2010 we will push for world leaders to address urgently the need for a fair and effective global deal at the United Nations. Domestically, the biggest opportunity to keep climate change at the top of the political agenda is the upcoming general election. Join our campaign (see pages 10, 11) and play your part in the fight for climate justice!
New milestones for tax campaign Thanks to your support, Christian Aid’s campaign for greater tax transparency has had some major breakthroughs AT A MEETING of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in January, finance ministers and tax officials from the world’s developed nations agreed to a new OECD guideline for companies’ reporting of profits in individual countries. Though not binding, this guideline ratchets up expectations on multinationals to act more transparently in developing countries, and increases pressure on the International Accounting Standards Board to introduce a compulsory standard on country-by-country reporting. At a recent public meeting in London, UK finance minister Stephen Timms said: ‘All credit to Christian Aid who first brought to my attention the issue of country-by-country reporting.’ Meanwhile, the UK government has announced its intention to
Christian Aid’s ‘Alternative Tax Awards’ made the cover of Taxation magazine
sign the first-ever multilateral taxinformation exchange agreement with various developing countries. Interestingly, both the UK government and senior OECD officials are now saying that information exchange must be automatic – a point highlighted by Christian Aid and others for some time. This would make it harder for tax dodgers to hide their profits in tax havens. Your support and campaigning have made these policy successes possible. But there is still a long way to go. Please help us with the next stage of our campaign as we encourage the UK’s biggest companies to support country-by-country reporting and help end tax secrecy in the process. To find out more go to www.christianaid.org.uk/tax
20 OCTOBER A DAY IN WESTMINSTER BY THE TIME YOU READ THIS, a general election will most likely have been called and, come the autumn, a new House of Commons will be settling into Westminster life. Whatever the political colour of the government we will have elected, we already know that there will be a large cohort of brand-new MPs with whom we will need to talk about the importance of international development. Christian Aid invites you to join us for a Poverty Over supporters‘ day on Wednesday 20 October. Plans are afoot for a stimulating day of learning, networking, celebrating and campaigning, with appearances from an internationally renowned activist, a special service and an opportunity, if you wish, to meet your MP as part of a lobby of parliament. Hence there will be something for every Christian Aid supporter. We’ve even chosen a Wednesday to enable some supporters to attend Prime Minister’s Question Time. The fight against poverty has several fronts – this event is a chance to discover how Christian Aid’s vision of Poverty Over involves both fundraising and campaigning on issues such as climate change and tax. So get ready for an October trip to London, and spread the word among your groups, congregations and friends.
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FRONTLINE REVISITED Stories from around the world, where Christian Aid and its partners are working to empower people to shape a better future for themselves and their communities
FINAL DRIVE TO WIPE OUT MANUAL SCAVENGING Kathryn Irwin reports on the latest success of a campaign to end this degrading practice in India Right: two manual scavengers at work cleaning out dry latrines. And, yes, those baskets really do contain what you think they do
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Christian Aid is campaign ing in India to end the degrading practice of manual scavengin g. Kathryn Irwin reports on a movement that is successfu lly challenging a system that ensnares the poorest
Demolishing a dry latrine and (inset) a reminder of our story from last summer
T
ODAY, LIKE every day, thousands of women in India will set out to do a job that has been passed down from grandmother to mother and from mother to daughter. They will set off for work with a cane basket and an A5-sized piece of cardboard, metal or plastic. Today, like every day, thousands of
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women will clear human faeces from In India, Christian Aid homes and businesses, works with scoop it into their SKA is partners to bring about baskets and carry it to structural and dumping sites. going economic changes by These women wear addressing the no masks to protect that st social exclusion and themselves from the injustice that keeps noxious, vomit‘We people trapped in inhuman, inducing smells, nor poorly paid gloves to protect govern jobs such as manual themselves and their scavenging. We are families from the official supporting a national real risk of diseases. movement called our effo the Safai Karmachari These women are India’s Andolan (SKA) estimated 1.3 to need o challenge the system million safai that ensnares this occ karmachari or generations of ‘We need one last books,’ manual scavengers. families in this monumental push to SKA’s Manual occupation. see build th this occupation consigne scavenging is the Since its formation d employe practice of to the history books’ in 1986, SKA has empowe employing a section engaged in a for all. S of society to clear other protracted struggle people’s governm to liberate and restore excrement from dry dignity latrines. The and rights rehabilita to those employed as so-called dry latrines manual are toilets that are livelihoo scavengers. Today, the not plumbed into a sewerage movement has system, so was enco galvanised activists drawn that the excrement and from the safai urine has to be manual s karmachari communitie scooped up manually s across 18 states from the floor and ‘I liked the in India. And it has had carried away. success. never tho Following a long-running Manual scavenging campaign, is linked to the I motivate SKA and others have caste system and the successfully vast majority of Bharati influenced the ending those involved in it are of the practice in dalit women who, domestic the southern Indian states at the lowest level of of Andhra the caste hierarchy, left manua Pradesh, Tamil Nadu pass the occupation and Karnataka. Now down from money wa SKA has trained its sights generation to generation. on India’s They get the work. But northern states and set lowest wages and live a deadline of 31 in utter poverty, domestic i December 2010 for the facing daily humiliation total eradication and earn more of manual scavenging. discrimination. It is this deeply rooted respect,’ sh In 1993, the Indian government pattern of exclusion that contributes to passed In Decem legislation prohibiting the continuing high levels manual of poverty. rally in New scavenging and the use of dry latrines, so rallying call
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LAST SUMMER, Christian Aid News reported on the campaign by partner organisation Safai Karmachari Andolan (SKA) called Action 2010 that seeks to eradicate the degrading practice of manual scavenging in India by the end of 2010. The World’s Worst Job article provoked a strong response from readers, who were horrified that women are employed to clear other people’s toilet waste from dry latrines (so-called toilets that are not plumbed into the sewerage system). Since then SKA’s campaign has gained momentum and, while challenges remain, India is on the verge of finally eradicating manual scavenging. Last year, SKA presented detailed evidence to India’s supreme court, the highest level in the country’s judiciary and presided over by the chief justice of India. The court demanded that state governments take action against dry-latrine owners and employers of manual scavengers. State governments have been required to arrange rehabilitation to help women
find alternative employment. The court case has given states firm deadlines and compelled them to report on progress. The outcome is causing a stir across India, attracting media coverage and making authorities wake up to the reality of manual scavenging in their neighbourhoods. In Haryana, for the first time in India, dry-latrine owners were prosecuted for owning these types of toilets and for employing people to clear excrement manually. SKA activists continue to organise local rallies to put pressure on both local authorities and the owners of dry latrines. And, in autumn 2009, SKA took their campaign to the United Nations where they presented a piece of brick to Ms Navanethem Pillay, UN high commissioner for human rights. The broken brick, from a dry latrine demolished by manual scavengers, symbolised the liberation struggle of the Dalit women seeking to escape from an occupation that has been passed down from generation to generation.
ACTION 2010 IN NUMBERS 1 Public interest litigation case in Indian supreme court
23 states of India where Christian Aid partner SKA campaigns
116 women working as manual scavengers in Ambala city in an SKA survey
660 women 768 activists 70,000 dry ‘liberated’ in trained to latrines Haryana and campaign for demolished Rajasthan eradication in Haryana, states from of manual 45,000 in April 2009 to scavenging by Punjab, 10,000 January 2010 the end of 2010 in Rajasthan
WOMEN GAIN DIGNITY AND SELF-RESPECT Last year, Ann Lyall, a Christian Aid organiser from Glasgow, joined other supporters on one of our supporter tours to India, where she met campaigners from our partner SKA, and some of the women it has been helping ‘WE MET WOMEN who spoke of doing this work for 35 years – they get the lowest wages and it made them feel demeaned and of little value. I cannot begin to imagine what it would be like to do this kind of work. ‘One woman, Saroja, 50, began manual scavenging when she was 12. Working with her mother, she dropped out of school and was married at 15. Her description of falling down the stairs when eight months’ pregnant, while carrying her full basket, and her employer not helping her, brought tears to my eyes. ‘Thanks to SKA, she gained the courage to stop this work and now has a job in her local municipal office. ‘The other women had also been helped by SKA to find new work and to gain confidence in themselves – a new dignity and self-respect.’
YOUR CHANCE TO JOIN US Award-winning ethical tour operator Skedaddle is offering Christian Aid supporters a range of tours that give a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to witness the fight against poverty and injustice. Upcoming destinations include Kenya, Peru, Malawi, India and South Africa. For more information, contact Paul or Lizzie at Skedaddle, tel 0191 265 1110, email christianaid@skedaddle.co.uk or go to www.christianaid.org.uk/tours
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INTERVIEW
First of all, can you tell us a bit about yourself, and about your background? I was born on the Isle of Wight in 1962, into a big, close Italian family with a café in the middle of Ryde High Street. The café was one of the big meeting points in the town – not least because of my dad’s amazing homemade ice-cream – so it was a busy, noisy and sociable place to grow up. After studying law at Cambridge in the early 1980s, I became a criminal lawyer and got involved in financial services regulation in 1990 while working in the Department of Trade and Industry‘s Investigations Division. During my five years as chief executive of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) it paid out more than £21 billion in compensation for victims of financial services firms that failed, most of it to cover the bank failures of 2008-09. I am married to Christopher and we have two children at senior school near where we live in south London. Tell us about your faith journey... My parents are devout Catholics and brought up my four sibilings and I as
Catholics, too. In my twenties, my faith began to ebb away, but I always felt as if something was missing. In my thirties, I began to explore other churches but nothing felt right. Then just before I turned 40, I moved to where I live now and found my lovely current C of E church, St Barnabas, in Dulwich. The first time I went there for a Sunday service, I felt that I had come home and could put down the huge weight I felt I had been carrying for the previous 20 years. What do you do in your spare time? As an enthusiastic (rather than talented) alto, I joined the church choir in 2003. It is always a wonderful experience to sing great music with great friends, but, of course, the purpose of the choir is to sing to the glory of God and it is a special privilege to help lead the worship in this way. This and catching up with family and friends dominate the little spare time I have, though my husband and I enjoy going to the theatre, concerts and galleries when we can. And I should probably confess that I support Portsmouth FC, which is not very good for my blood pressure!
Aid/El i Ch i ti
Christian Aid has a new director, following the retirement of Daleep Mukarji. Loretta Minghella arrives in the role from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, where she was chief executive for the past five years. If the surname, at least, is familiar, it’s probably because Loretta is the sister of the late film-maker Anthony Minghella. So, what inspires Loretta and what are her hopes, plans and expectations for our organisation? Christian Aid News went to find out...
D i
‘Life’s too short not to run Christian Aid’ What was your earliest encounter with development charities, and Christian Aid and its work? My parents both grew up in very straitened circumstances and still speak of the help they were given along the way – often by people who had very little of their own. They have always been active fundraisers for a number of charities and my dad was chair of the Isle of Wight branch of Save the Children for many years. I can’t remember a time when I wasn‘t conscious of Christian Aid’s work, but I’ve been much more aware of it since I became an Anglican and began to learn at church about the work it is involved in. What drew you to the job of director? Throughout my career, I have always been involved in upholding the rights and freedoms we enjoy. I am acutely aware that the effects of the financial crisis have hit many people in poorer countries the hardest and I want to do more now to address the continuing barriers to social justice in the world. I always thought I would like to run a charity whose work I really care about. When my brother Anthony died, aged 54, in 2008, just when his career as a movie director and producer was in full flow, I felt a strong sense that life could be very short, and I wanted my next role to take everything I had to offer it on every level. When I saw the advert for a new director last summer, I realised that the Christian Aid role might enable me to bring three things together – my professional skills, my faith and my
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strong desire to do my very best to make a positive difference with my life. What do you feel you will bring to the job and to the organisation? I hope that my experience managing a complex organisation expected to work quickly and efficiently will be useful. I have extensive experience of policy-making and working with government and I am also used to managing relationships across a number of diverse organisations internationally, united by a common purpose. While the common purpose will be different, the skills involved will be similar – the capacity to listen, a willingness to debate issues and a determination to find the best way forward. Is there an example of Christian Aid’s work that has particularly inspired you? I’ve been inspired by the range of our involvement in poverty issues, from humanitarian work following the 2004 tsunami, to our work on HIV, and on climate change. But one campaign has prompted me to get more involved. Christian Aid’s Poverty Over vision emphasises that human beings are
capable of seemingly impossible achievements. Poverty Over inspired me to think that I could and should do much more, that poverty is not insurmountable if we can brigade the energies and passions of those who feel the same. More recently, I’ve been moved by the relief work in Haiti and struck by the simple but powerful Christian Aid Week film about our work in Kenya – take a look on http://www.youtube. com/watch?v=liToTC8VNQc and you’ll see why. It’s Christian Aid at its best – working with local communities to meet local needs, and giving people a new sense of dignity and hope for the future. What will be your priorities? Christian Aid has been through a difficult time recently, facing similar challenges to most charities as the credit crunch has affected income from public donations. Responding responsibly to this drop in income, Christian Aid has refocused its programmes and reduced its staffing levels, a tough step for an organisation that had been growing very rapidly for many years. I want to ensure that the organisation moves on with confidence now, implementing
Christian Aid/Tom Pietrasik
Christian Aid/Tom Pietrasik
‘I want supporters to be proud that they support us, staff proud that they work for us, partners proud that they work with us and our sponsors proud that they sponsor us’
Christian Aid/Sarah Filbey
Christian Aid/Elaine Duigenan
The work that inspires: clockwise from above, projects in Kenya, Sri Lanka, India and Malawi have left their mark
ambitious humanitarian, development and campaign plans for 2010-11, and building on its huge successes under my predecessor, Daleep Mukarji. I want supporters to be proud that they support us, staff proud that they work for us, partners proud that they work with us, and our sponsors proud that they sponsor us. With limited resources and a huge agenda, we will have to be very imaginative in choosing how to make the best contribution. We will need to be highly collaborative among ourselves and with other organisations that share our vision and our values so that we don’t duplicate and so that we can seize opportunities that would be beyond us acting in isolation. Do you have a particular message for supporters? My main message to supporters is an enormous thank you for what you do, for the inspiration you give us, as well as for the funds that you help us to raise. Each of you is helping to alleviate poverty and we are determined to make the very best difference we can with your help. I look forward to meeting as many of you as possible, and to working with you.
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THE BIG PICTURE
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MUDDY QUARTERS NOT LONG BEFORE Blessing Kithuku, six, (far left) was photographed with her grandfather Joseph (centre) in Nairobi’s Matopeni settlement for Christian Aid Week 2010, she was so ill with typhoid that her family feared she would die. ‘For two weeks she was coughing. She coughed and coughed and then she would vomit,’ says her father, Charles. With one child dying every 20 seconds from preventable waterborne diseases, Blessing’s story will be familiar to many families who – like the Kithukus – live without access to clean water or sanitation facilities. Overpage, read how Christian Aid’s visit to Matopeni has inspired a determination to help the Kithukus and others like them.
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COVER STORY This page: Joseph Kithuku and his granddaughter Blessing. Right: home for the Kithukus is one cramped room. Below right: many slum dwellers earn income by recycling old shoes
MOVING OUT OF THE MUD
Christian Aid/Elaine Dunigenan
In the run-up to Christian Aid Week, Antoinette Powell sets the scene for an inspiring new project in the slums of Kenya’s capital, Nairobi
SINCE CHRISTIAN AID partner Maji na Ufanisi (MNU) began working in Nairobi’s informal settlements more than a decade ago, it has changed the lives of thousands of slum dwellers by building water and sanitation facilities. From communities in Kibera, Africa’s largest slum, to Kiambiu in the northeast of Nairobi, MNU has done more than improve the health of communities: it has brought them dignity and self-respect. ‘The blocks brought a lot of change here,’ explains Catherine Nyaata from Kiambiu. ‘They have brought us more dignity. Previously, there was none.’
Having worked with MNU for 10 years, Catherine’s community group has maintained the blocks using savings from the small fee charged for use of the facilities, planned and implemented other community projects, and even bought a piece of land where people will soon live. Despite these achievements, MNU is keen to reach the many communities that remain without access to clean water, toilets and showers. So when Christian Aid visited Nairobi for Christian Aid Week 2010, they took us to meet the Kithuku family in Matopeni, a small
community with whom MNU hoped to work. MNU did not just want to show us how far slums like Kiambiu have come but how far there is to go. Even by slum standards life in Matopeni – whose name means ‘in the mud’ in Swahili – is desperate, with no proper roads or houses, no clinic and only an unreliable supply of dirty water. But with their passion and determination to bring change for the whole community, the Kithukus are extraordinary. Rarely is the scandal of poverty so obvious or the tenacity of those affected
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DOWN AND OUT IN NAIROBI
Christian Aid/Elaine Dunigenan
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Christian Aid communications officer Rachel Stevens offers a personal reflection on life in Matopeni, one of the forgotten slums of Kenya’s capital, where a new project aims to rebuild lives from the very bottom up
so compelling. This Christian Aid Week, the Kithukus’ story will show how important it is for Christian Aid to continue to support the work of MNU so it can reach out to communities such as Matopeni. Follow Matopeni’s progress throughout the next 12 months in future editions of Christian Aid News, or visit www.christianaid.org.uk for more information on this project that has touched and inspired us. And we hope it will similarly inspire our supporters during this year’s Christian Aid Week.
FOR THE PAST 10 YEARS I have been lucky enough to travel to Africa and Asia for my work. I never cease to feel inspired and uplifted by the amazing people I meet or the work that I see, particularly on Christian Aid trips. Occasionally, however, I find that a journey – such as the one I recently made to Kenya – will challenge me more than others. Nothing prepared me for Nairobi’s slums. The overwhelming sense of hopelessness, injustice and indignity is, without a doubt, the worst I have ever seen. My recollection of Kibera slum, for instance, is of picking my way in heavy walking boots through deep mud and plastic bags filled with excrement from flying toilets along its narrow alleyways as children skipped past in bare feet to play among the overfilled sewers. It was gut-wrenchingly appalling. More than one million people live like this, crammed on to Kibera’s land in the centre of Nairobi, within walking distance of the city’s government buildings. As shocking as this experience in Kibera was, it is the memory of Matopeni that will stay with me for ever. One five-hundredth of the size of Kibera, Matopeni does not have the ‘fame’ of Kibera, nor does it feature on any maps or official documents. But this doesn’t make it any less shocking. Tucked away behind a lorry park, the sense of neglect is palpable. Spend just a few hours in the settlement and walk over the precarious wooden pathway above the rat-infested, stagnant sewers; play with children who look like they haven’t washed for weeks, or sit in a family home no bigger than a small bedroom,
and the terrible day-to-day reality of the slums becomes clear. On one occasion, as I sat interviewing the Kithuku family, crammed into their tiny home where eight people sleep in one room, I became increasingly aware that a violent fight had broken out next door. Catherine and her parents barely flinched as I listened to the chilling sounds of a woman screaming while she beat her child. Catherine told me that this is life in the slum; that it is ‘a violent existence where people have little respect for themselves or each other’, and the lack of privacy means that there is no escape from it. Just imagine living with eight members of your family in a tiny space flooded with sewage water because you have nowhere else to go. Imagine living with no privacy to get changed, to wash, to sleep or to argue. Imagine defecating in a plastic bag at night in the same room your family is sleeping in and throwing it on to the path outside because you have no alternative. Imagine staying in your house after dark because you are afraid of being mugged or raped, or being afraid to drink the only water you have access to because it might give you typhoid or cholera, or facing the daily battle to find enough money to buy just one meal a day for your family. Imagine living with the constant threat of eviction from this, your only home, with nowhere to go if you cannot afford to pay the rent. There is nothing dignified about life in Matopeni. And yet, even here amid the grime and hopelessness of a forgotten Nairobi slum, the Kithukus are some of the most dignified, hopeful people I have ever met.
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FRONTLINE Stories from around the world, where Christian Aid and its partners are working to empower people to shape a better future for themselves and their communities
THE BUS-BOAT AND THE BUDGET I’M WOKEN by the murmur of voices and the swish of canoes gliding out on to water. I open my eyes to the muted fire of an Amazon dawn and roll at once from the hammock, reaching for the camera. The fishermen all stop what they are doing and stare at me. I whisper my morning greetings and urge them to ignore me and carry on. The river, in all its splendour and simplicity, is coming to life. After the fishermen come the women and the girls, crouching to wash the breakfast dishes at the water’s edge. Then the approaching chug of the bus-boat, and the lively chatter of the children as they climb on board, bound for school. Among them is Helen. She waves
to me and smiles because we made friends yesterday, when she explained that if a lizard stares at you for a long time, it means that soon you will fall in love. Eleven years old and in her first term of secondary school, Helen is settling in well. Her brothers and the older boys from the neighbouring villages take it in turns to pilot the busboat, which ploughs up and down these waterways for four hours each day, ferrying Quilombola children to school. The Quilombola people are the
Christian Aid/Siân Curry
Communications officer Siân Curry begins a special four-page report from Brazil with an inspiring story of how one group of Amazon people are ensuring an education for their children
descendants of slaves who escaped the plantations and fled deep into the forest, for freedom and protection. For many decades, their isolation helped to keep them safe, but that same isolation also means that they are far away from state services such as schools and hospitals. For young Quilombola, education is a particular problem. Although children go to primary school in their own village, secondary schools deep in the forest are few and far between. Often the only options are to go and stay with relatives in a town
Helping people who are usually ignored to make themselves heard is the best way to deliver change
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Christian Aid/Siân Curry Christian Aid/Siân Curry
THE MILLIONDOLLAR DAUGHTER
Helen and her cousin Alonso washing clothes on the bus-boat jetty
or city, or abandon their schooling altogether. But the Brazilian state, as promised in its own constitution, has a duty to provide an education for its young citizens, and they shouldn’t have to leave their home, family and culture in order to get it. Christian Aid’s partner the Pro-Indian Commission (CPI) helps Quilombola people to find out about their rights to land and services, and understand how to claim those rights using legal and lobbying tools. After learning the ropes, a group of Quilombola mothers, led by Helen’s mum Nílza, took their local council to task about their children’s fractured schooling. The new school bus-boat is the direct result of those mothers’
negotiations. In a rich state such as Brazil, helping people who are usually ignored to make themselves heard in the corridors of power is the best way to deliver long-term change. Fully funded by the council but driven by the students, this motorboat can cover, in just one hour, a distance that would take up to eight hours by canoe. The boat has been running since August 2009. It picks up children all along its route, including seven from Helen’s village. Without this transport, none of these children would have been able to continue his or her schooling without leaving home. • Overpage: the families who camp out in the struggle for land rights
Raquel, 20, lives in a slum neighbourhood on the outskirts of the capital Brasilia, bordering the local rubbish dump. Her parents support the family by collecting rubbish from the tip and selling it on for recycling. As the daughter of poor, illiterate rubbish collectors, Raquel (pictured above) is exactly the kind of person whose voice usually goes unheard by those in power. But not any more. Raquel’s school is more than 30 years old and, with no upkeep, is falling apart. When the roof fell in on a teacher’s head during class, it was the final straw. Armed with new-found knowledge about budgets and political lobbying, from our partner INESC, Raquel and her schoolmates went along to a public budget meeting, took the microphone and argued their case. As a direct result, the city council’s annual budget includes an extra million dollars for maintenance work in all the city schools. ‘We knew that we had rights that were explained on paper, but before INESC came to our school, we didn’t know what to do to claim them,’ Raquel explains. To find out more, watch a film, made by Raquel and her classmate Raíssa, at www.christianaid.org.uk/ million-dollar-students
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FRONTLINE WHO DO WE WORK WITH?
Brazil is one of the biggest countries in the world. Surely there’s enough land to go round? asks Siân Curry HIGHWAY 153 sweeps across São Paulo state in southern Brazil. By the roadside, a sign made from rounded stones tells travellers and truckers that they have reached the region of ‘Promissão’ – the Promised Land. A little way beyond the main town, a line of hundreds of makeshift tents, formed from plastic sheeting, stretches alongside the highway as far as the eye can see. In the scorching midday sun there is precious little shade. The tents
offer no respite from the heat. In fact, it is often hotter inside. Drinking water is brought in by lorry and stored in plastic barrels. The water is hot, too. The site might look like a refugee camp, but Brazil is not at war. The people here are at the frontline of a different kind of struggle: the fight for land. This is a protest camp, and 380 families have been here for five months. Living under these conditions is hard, especially for those with young children,
Christian Aid/Siân Curry
• Christian Aid helped establish the Landless People’s Movement (MST) 25 years ago, and has funded them ever since. In that time, MST has helped more than a million poor, landless Brazilians, such as Rui (opposite) to get land of their own. • Christian Aid has worked with the Institute for Socio-Economic Studies (INESC) for more than 20 years, helping the poorest Brazilians to understand and claim their rights. INESC’s youth participation project (see Raquel’s story on previous page) was named best adolescent project in the country in 2009. • The Pro-Indian Commission (CPI) is a relatively new partner for Christian Aid: we have worked with them since 2008. Thanks to CPI’s work, an area of tropical forest three times the size of the Lake District will soon be under Quilombola protection.
HIGHWAY TO PARADISE
This page: Tiago da Silva, 21, and his family have been living in the Augusto Boal protest camp for five months. He hopes that one day, like Rui (above right), he will have land of his own to farm Above right: Rui Barbosa, 62, who camped out for eight years to get his own land. He is now a dairy farmer
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Christian Aid/Siân Curry
‘Now we have peace and dignity. I always knew we’d get there in the end’
Christian Aid/Siân Curry
but residents such as Tiago and his family (pictured left) are determined to stay, in the hope of a better future. Brazil is the biggest country in which Christian Aid works. It is 35 times the size of the UK and takes up half of the entire South American continent. This country has a lot of land; it also has the most unequal pattern of land ownership in the world. Just three per cent of the population owns two-thirds of all arable land. Vast swathes of it lie unused, while millions have none. Despite Brazil being one of the ten wealthiest nations on the planet, more than 40 million people live in poverty. However, the Brazilian government does, at least, recognise the problem.
The country’s constitution (1988) states that farmland which is not being used can be claimed for redistribution to people who have none. Our partner MST – the Landless People’s Movement – helps make sure that this rhetoric becomes reality. They organise protest camps on or near unused farmland and, through the courts, make legal claims for that land to be released for landless families. MST camps, such as this, are usually set up beside major highways. They aim to be as visible as possible, to exercise maximum political pressure. Families remain camped out on the roadside until their legal claims are resolved. This can take months or even years.
Christian Aid/Siân Curry
AMAZON GRACE
A QUILOMBOLA fisherman sets out at dawn in the northern Amazon: an idyllic image that hides a desperate fight to preserve this precious environment for
the people who live here – and, indeed, for us all. Deforestation releases more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than all the
Gently spoken Rui Barbosa, 62, and his wife Fátima, 53, spent eight years camped out under plastic by Highway 153, staking their claim and waiting for the courts to decide their case. With Rui out at work each day, it was Fátima who felt the misery of camp life most keenly. ‘It was very difficult,’ she remembers. ‘We had no electricity or water. You’d have to wash yourself by candlelight, using water from a bucket. We lived in a tent made from plastic. We didn’t even have a bed.’ But it wasn’t only the physical hardship that made those years so tough. ‘People humiliated us, they’d call us names as they drove past, call us tramps,’ explains Rui. ‘It was a time of great suffering and humiliation… But you have to bear it. I bore it because I needed my own land.’ At last, after eight years of legal battles, Rui and Fátima’s claim was granted. The couple have built a house on the plot they were allocated, complete with a toilet, hot shower, water on tap and electric lighting. Together they run a small dairy farm that they hope will support them as they grow old. They have called their new home ‘Paradise’. ‘Now we have peace and dignity,’ says Rui. ‘I always knew we’d get there in the end.’ Go to www.christianaid.org.uk/roadto-paradise to watch the short film that Rui made, explaining how he got his land and showing you round ‘Paradise’.
world’s cars, planes and ships put together. Brazil has the largest reserves of tropical forest on earth, but the country is losing them at the rate of three km² every hour. Christian Aid partners CPI and ARQMO are helping the Quilombola people, who live deep in the Amazon, to protect themselves and their territory from illegal trespassers such as loggers and cattle-ranchers. Thanks to their work, an area of forest three times the size of the Lake District will soon be under Quilombola ownership and protection: a lifestyle and environment saved from destruction. • To learn more, go to www. christianaid.org.uk/amazon to watch a slideshow.
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LIFE AND SOUL The way we lead our own lives can have a tangible impact in the fight to end poverty. By ‘doing the right thing’ we show we have a commitment to a sustainable lifestyle that places a high value on helping others
Working on a climate adaptation project in Matagalpa, Nicaragua
Christian Aid/Karen Robinson
WHY PHILANTHROPY IS GOOD FOR US At Christian Aid, every penny raised is vital to our drive to eradicate poverty. But sometimes, donors are prepared to think big. Mark Rowland, head of Philanthropy and Partnerships, examines the changing face of philanthropy
IN 2009, even after the financial crisis, Forbes magazine estimated that there were 793 billionaires worldwide. Booming economies since the 1980s have left huge wealth concentrated in the hands of a tiny minority. In the same period, the number of those living in poverty has expanded to an estimated one billion, with 60 countries seeing little or no economic growth in that time. It is a picture of inequality that is now inescapable. However, in their book, Philanthrocapitalism, Matthew
THE NEW BREED OF INVESTORS Stephen Almond (left) ‘I was inspired to commit ongoing support to Christian Aid by their proactive focus on sustained solutions designed to improve daily life rather than reacting to events. Christian Aid projects provide motivation for some of the many millions for whom hard work may simply make life bearable. ’
Bishop and Michael Green argue that we are entering a fifth golden age of philanthropy where today’s wealthy are following in the footsteps of individuals such as Lord Shaftesbury, Anthony Carnegie and Sir Thomas Guy in taking responsibility for transforming society. Over the past few years, gifts for Christian Aid from individuals giving at high levels, as well as trusts and foundations, have become an increasingly important part of our income. We have recognised that alongside inviting
politicians, churches and campaigners to help eradicate poverty, wealthy individuals, companies and foundations are a critical part of that equation too. In doing this, we have found that people’s approach to philanthropy is shifting towards an investment-led approach, where many individuals are applying the same rigour that has served them well in business. Today’s philanthropists are moving from being passive donors to active participants and looking for organisations
Simon (left) and Eli Merchant ‘Over the past three years, my wife and I have decided to invest in Christian Aid’s work with its local partners in Burma, Ethiopia and Sierra Leone. I always use the term “invest” rather than “donate” because I like to work with partners who are clear about their responsibility to deliver sustainable impact against a defined set
of objectives. This, obviously, means finding management teams in the UK, the country teams and the local partners who can execute their plans effectively.’ ‘At Christian Aid, it has been a privilege to work with a team prepared to be honest about problems and ready to address them. Seeing the reality of poverty while visiting some of the projects we have funded has been a fascinating learning process for our family that we hope has only just begun.’
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Christian Aid/Karen Robinson
INPUT ready to take an entrepreneurial, impactfocused approach to social problems. For us, this has sometimes meant donors wanting to invest to strengthen Christian Aid’s infrastructure, which is particularly difficult to fund through other means, especially through government grants. At other times, it has meant donors funding specific projects and visiting the work to see the progress. Individuals and foundations have a key role in helping to drive innovation by providing resources to test new ideas. For example, in February 2010, an individual decided that he would invest a significant sum through his charitable foundation to develop new agricultural approaches to reduce vulnerability to climate change in seven rural communities of Matagalpa, Nicaragua. The funding will directly benefit 4,682 people and indirectly benefit up to 38,000 others, as the communities adopt new farming techniques that will increase farming yields and protect them from future natural disasters. Christian Aid is also aiming to move beyond its own supporters to reach those who perhaps had not considered the life-changing potential of giving. Last year, we launched our New Philanthropy service – the first of its kind aimed at providing advice on ‘social investments’ for wealth managers at private banks, accountancy and law firms. The aim is to encourage those advising wealthy individuals to consider how they could use their assets to deliver social as well as financial returns. We provide advice on where and what to fund as well as input on tax-efficient giving. If advice on philanthropy can establish itself as part of the mainstream service offered by the wealth management community, we really will be in another golden age of philanthropy.
Martin and Samantha Rich ‘We are passionate about helping communities to overcome poverty once and for all. We believe that this is best achieved through long-term partnership and specific, sustained investment at a level that makes a real difference.’
WAYS TO GIVE Project-funding A significant gift can make a fundamental difference, helping to change lives and end poverty for good. Each year, our philanthropy team works with dozens of individuals and trusts to pick out the projects which most need their support. We try to match people’s concerns with Christian Aid’s priorities and specific projects on the ground.
In Their Lifetime The In Their Lifetime campaign appeals to supporters interested in collectively giving at high levels. It seeks to invest in some of Christian Aid’s most innovative projects around the world, enabling us to develop new solutions to poverty that we would not normally be able to fund. This flexibility brings the potential to leverage further funding to match or even exceed our own from government institutions. It’s a unique opportunity for supporters to be fully engaged at each stage of the development process.
Giving tax efficiently If you are a UK taxpayer, Gift Aid lets Christian Aid reclaim tax on donations you have made to us. This means that donations are worth 28 per cent more. If you are a higher rate taxpayer, you can claim further tax relief through your tax return, which some supporters choose to donate back to the charity. This would mean that a donation of £1,000 would be worth £1,604 including the Gift Aid and additional tax relief.
Share-giving Each year, about £100 million-worth of shares are given to charity. Many people are unaware that, through this, they can earn generous tax relief while supporting causes they care about. When donors give shares to a charity, they can get substantial relief on their income tax bill, as well as exemption from capital gains tax on any gains they may have made on the shares. With the higher rate of income tax at 40 per cent and capital gains tax at 18 per cent, this can amount to a substantial tax break. To find out more, please contact Rosalind O’Mahony on 020 7523 2078 or email romahony@christian-aid.org
Inspired? Enraged? Send your views to: The editor, Christian Aid News, 35 Lower Marsh, London SE1 7RL or email canews@christian-aid.org DUE TO THE FACT that the last issue of Christian Aid News was ‘digital only’ our normal steady stream of readers’ letters has all but dried up. Another victim of climate change, perhaps… If you feel ‘inspired or enraged’ by anything you read in this issue or just want to raise a topic you feel passionately about, do please send your views. Meanwhile, here’s one lovely letter of praise.
MAKING IT COUNT I would love to pay tribute to the enthusiastic volunteers who help run the Rainbow shop in Countesthorpe, Leicestershire. Last September, our shop celebrated an amazing 25 years of trading and fundraising for Christian Aid. It is a venture that began when horrific pictures of the effects of war and drought in Africa – and Ethiopia, in particular – appeared on our television screens in the 1980s. We have a great team of volunteers – some of whom have been with us right from the start – who serve in the shop and prepare the goods for sale. The local community is also very supportive, supplying us with good-as-new clothing, books, brica-brac, etc. We serve tea and coffee (Fairtrade, of course) and encourage people to drop in for a chat; we also sell Fairtrade goods and whole foods. Our three annual Christian Aid Fayres – at Christmas, in the spring and in autumn – are always popular, and we have recently taken over running the Christian Aid Week house-to-house collection in May. Every penny we raise is sent to Christian Aid: over the past 25 years we have contributed a total of £143,500. Jill Cramp Cosby, Leicestershire
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EVENTS
Christian Aid
We work with some of the world’s poorest communities. They face huge challenges every day, so why don’t you challenge yourself? Have fun while fighting poverty: join one of our events or do your own fundraising
Whether you like to run, cycle or trek, Christian Aid has a 2010 challenge for you!
ARE YOU A RUNNER? 31 MAY Bupa London 10,000 With Buckingham Palace as the backdrop, this is a fantastic 10k course for runners and spectators alike. These roads are likely to form part of the 2012 Olympic Marathon course, with runners passing many of London’s famous sights, including the Houses of Parliament, the London Eye and St Paul’s Cathedral. 19 SEPTEMBER Bupa Great North Run It’s the world’s biggest half-marathon, where the atmosphere is always electric. You can become one of Christian Aid’s
150-strong running team pounding the streets of Newcastle to help fight poverty across the world.
ARE YOU A CYCLIST? 21-25 JULY London to Paris Bike Ride John Wall, a 75-year-old retired Methodist minister from Newcastle, has been a Christian Aid supporter for many years and, last year, took on the challenge of cycling to Paris. He recalls: ‘We all enjoyed cycling along the Kent country lanes, especially as it was a perfect English summer day. Once in France, “a droit!” was the constant cry
as we tried to remind ourselves which side of the road to be on! Cycling through the French countryside, along the River Somme and through forests was a sheer delight and the food provided by the tour company every day was splendid. ‘The final push up the Champs-Élysées, round the Arc de Triomphe, over the Seine and up to the Eiffel Tower was a time of real achievement. The excitement of the challenge and getting to know other people kept me going – it was a fantastic experience. I recommend it!’ John raised an incredible £4,300, which will go to help Christian Aid’s work all around the world.
Christian Aid/Kevin Leighton
FANCY A PERSONAL CHALLENGE?
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CHRISTIAN AID IS INVOLVED with sponsored walks up and down the country. They’re great fun for all the family and a fantastic way to raise money for Christian Aid’s work. SCOTLAND Forth Bridge Cross Sponsored Walk – Saturday 24 April Erskine Bridge Cross Sponsored Walk – Saturday 22 May Tay Bridge Cross Sponsored Walk – Saturday 12 June NORTHEAST ENGLAND Bede’s Way Sponsored Walk – Saturday 12 June
THE SUPER SOUP LUNCH 2010 ON FRIDAY 26 MARCH, thousands of people across the UK held a Super Soup Lunch in their homes, work places, communities, schools and churches. On the day, thousands of spoonfuls of every type of soup imaginable were enjoyed – from Stockport to Sevenoaks, Shrewsbury to St Albans. Christian Aid hopes to have raised more than £200,000 from the Super Soup Lunch. And whether you sipped your way to £2 or glugged yourself to £200, all the money will help Christian Aid partners across the world to fight poverty and campaign for change. Thank you!
SOUTHWEST ENGLAND Newton Abbot Race Course Sponsored Walk – Saturday 8 May
Christian Aid
To find out more and register to take part, visit www.christianaid. org.uk/walks
ARE YOU A TREKKER? 11-12 SEPTEMBER Holy Island Midnight Marathon Steve and Matthew Joyce, brothers and workmates at their own car-body shop in north Lincolnshire, completed the Holy Island Midnight Marathon in 2009. Matthew said: ‘Me and my brother like a good challenge, which is why we signed up. We did our fundraising together and received lots of support from our local community. One way we raised money was by holding a sponsored car wash. The best bit about the walk was the people – there was lots of camaraderie,
Q: When is Quizaid being held this year? A: Thousands of people will be quizzing to raise money for Christian Aid from 13 to 19 September. Q: What should I do if I want to hold a Quizaid? A: Register NOW at www.christianaid. org.uk/quizaid for your free fundraising pack with hints, tips and a range of questions (plus answers, of course).
Unleash your talent this Christian Aid Week
SOUTHEAST ENGLAND Circle the City Sponsored Walk – Sunday 16 May
29 SEPTEMBER TO 3 OCTOBER London to Luxembourg Bike Ride This is Christian Aid’s newest bike ride covering four countries and 330 miles in just four days! You will be part of a team of 75 cyclists who will be cycling though the stunning and varied scenery of England, France and Belgium before finishing in Luxembourg City.
WATCH OUT: QUIZAID IS BACK!
shutterstock.com
How about a family day out?
everyone encouraged each other and it was a real laugh.’ 17-19 SEPTEMBER Jurassic Coast Weekend Trek This new 24-mile trekking weekend allows you to explore the UK’s first natural World Heritage Site – the Jurassic Coast. The two-day trek goes from west to east starting in Sidmouth and finishing at West Bay. Following along the South West Coastal Path, the views are filled with stunning sea views, breathtaking cliffs and geology from the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods.
Register NOW at www.christianaid. org.uk/events Once registered for your challenge, you’ll receive fundraising, nutritional and training advice, support from the Events Fundraising team and, most importantly, the knowledge that the money you raise will go towards our vital work to help the world’s poorest people. So what are you waiting for?!
Are you a green-fingered gardener? Perhaps you’re a brilliant baker? Or maybe you’re a marvellous musician? Christian Aid is asking you to unleash your talent, whatever it may be, to raise money in Christian Aid Week 2010 (9-15 May). MAYBE YOU COULD open up your garden to your local community? Could you hold a cake sale in your office? How about putting on a concert in your church? The possibilities are endless, so be as creative as you wish! It doesn’t matter how big or how small your activity, or whether it raises £5 or £500, all the money you raise will be used to help realise Christian Aid’s vision of ending poverty. Taking part is easy – register NOW at www.caweek.org for your free Unleash Your Talent fundraising pack full of ideas, hints and tips to help you to use your talent and raise money.
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AROUND CENTRAL ENGLAND
Christian Aid/Antoinette Powell
‘We’re empowering people to change their lives’
Alison Clarke from Worcester, West Midlands, travelled to Kenya with a group of other organisers and collectors. She saw the work of Christian Aid partner Maji Na Ufanisi (Water and Development) in Kiambiu slum, Nairobi. This is her story… ‘With five other supporters I was privileged to be part of Christian Aid’s film project for Christian Aid Week 2010 visiting some of the poorest settlements in Africa. It was an unforgettable trip. ‘Our focus was on clean water and sanitation, as you can see in the Christian Aid Week DVD Let’s End Poverty. ‘Life there is very hard. There are open drains, and diseases that come with poor sanitation. Homes are tiny dwellings with mud walls and corrugated iron roofs. As we walked, talking to the local people, I felt overwhelmed by the sheer extent of the poverty. ‘Watching the films and looking back on my own photos has stirred up a range of
emotions about that experience. I feel really sad at the grinding and demeaning poverty we saw, where people like you and I have nowhere to go to the toilet and no reliably clean water for their children and themselves; where, after heavy rain, people sometimes find themselves knee-deep in filthy floodwater from the open sewers which run past their doors. But looking back has also renewed in me a sense of hope that I want to pass on to you. We saw how Christian Aid’s work in Kenya is helping to change lives. All of us, through giving, volunteering, action and prayer can truly make a difference to people’s lives. Most importantly, Christian Aid and its partners are empowering people to change their own lives.’
EAST MIDLANDS AREA SATURDAY 8 MAY Loughborough Sponsored Walk 9:30am for 20km walk, 10:30am for 10km walk. Meet at the Brush Bowls Club, Nanpanton Sports Ground, Watermead Lane, off Nanpanton Road. Join us for a sponsored walk around the Charnwood forest area, with two options of distance for the energetic and the not-so-energetic! For more details, please call Normal Revell on 01509 218886 or email norman. revell@btinternet.com SATURDAY 8 MAY Humber Bridge Cross 2pm at the south or north side of the Humber bridge. Reach the south side via Barton Upon Humber and park below the bridge. If you would like sponsorship forms, posters or other information, please contact Mrs Gill Dalby, 4 Hollytree Avenue, Hull HU5 5YB; 01482 504203. SATURDAY 15 MAY Christian Aid Coffee Morning 10am-12 noon, The Rothley Centre, Mountsorrel Lane, Rothley. SATURDAY 15 MAY Scoot for a Hoot 2pm Join in Loughborough’s first motorised scooter games, or, if you don’t have a scooter, come and
The East Midlands Regional Office has moved to Loughborough. Their new contact details are: Christian Aid, Suite 2, Ground Floor, Block A, The Moseley Complex, Derby Road, Loughborough, Leicestershire LE11 5AH. Tel: 01509 265013 • Email: eastmidlands@christian-aid.org If you are in the area, please do come round to say hello.
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EVENTS IN CENTRAL ENGLAND cheer on the competitors. For more information visit www.lbcweb.org.uk/caweek WEDNESDAY 30 JUNE Rothley Christian Aid Quarterly Lunch Beginning at 12 noon for 12.15pm, Old School Rooms, School Street, Rothley. Cost is £5 for a three-course meal plus beverage. Phone 01162 304634 for details and to book a place. SATURDAY 17 JULY Bamford Sponsored Walk Start at 9:30am, Methodist Church car park, Bamford, Hope Valley, Derbyshire. A scenic sponsored walk around the Hope Valley in the Peak District. The full walk is 11 miles with the option to join in either the morning or afternoon sessions. Please contact Stan Willis on 01433 651584 or email stan@ruthandstan.me.uk
EAST ANGLIA AREA SATURDAY 17 APRIL Choral Concert 7.30pm, Stowmarket Parish church. Performance by the Combined Churches Choir, music by Karl Jenkins and Roger Jones. Details from Norwich office. Monopoly Sponsored Walk A fun fundraising event, organised by the Ipswich Christian Aid. Further details from Moira Kleissner, 01473 462566. SATURDAY 22 MAY Talk 7.30pm, Hungate Church, Beccles. Brian Morton MBE speaks about the restoration of the Albert Memorial. Tickets £5.
WEST MIDLANDS AREA SATURDAY 17 APRIL Speaker Training Day 10am-1.30pm, Cathedral Heights, 5th floor, 3 Temple Row West, Birmingham. Be inspired by stories about Gaza, Kenya, Bolivia, Jamaica and Bangladesh. Call 0121 200 2283 or email birmingham@christian-aid. org to book a place. SATURDAY 17 APRIL Ploughman’s Lunch 12 noon-2pm, St Luke’s Church Centre, Cannock. Pre-Christian Aid Week fundraising and motivating event. Tickets £5. Contact Peter Barker on 01543 275152 WEDNESDAY 21 APRIL Strictly Come Collecting 6-8pm, Ludlow Methodist Church, Broad Street, Ludlow. A creative evening for those involved with Christian Aid Week with a focus on Kenya. Food provided. THURSDAY 22 APRIL Sofa Sessions 7-9pm, St John’s Church, High Street, Harborne, Birmingham. Lively discussion for 18- to 25-year-olds, short films, talks and free food and drink. Contact Imogen Sackett at isackett@christian-aid.org or call 0121 200 2283. FRIDAY 23 APRIL Friday, Folk and Food 7.30pm, St Paul’s Church, Stockingford, Nuneaton. Folk singer/songwriter Gareth Davies-Jones performs. Cheese and Chutney Supper, Fairtrade wine available or BYO. Tickets £10, contact Anne Vincent on 0247 635 0737.
TUESDAY 27 APRIL Fashion Show 7-10pm, Bar Risa, Quayside Tower, Broad Street, Birmingham. Songs, dance, drama, videos and poetry. Tickets: £5 in advance, £8 for VIP tickets and £10 on the door. Call Abigail on 0121 200 2283, or email aokunlola@christian-aid.org 28 APRIL-7 MAY Retrospective art exhibition Worcester Cathedral Chapter House. Featuring 100 works by Timothy Vivian. Includes grand finale auction. Call 0121 200 2283 or email birmingham@christian -aid.org MONDAY 3 MAY Bank Holiday Day of Fun! British Oak, 1364 Pershore Road, Stirchley, Birmingham. A family day of fundraising with food, music and comedy. Call Charlotte Marshall on 0121 200 2283 or email cmarshall@christian-aid.org SUNDAY 9 MAY Christian Aid Week service 6pm, St Andrew’s Methodist Church, Pump Street, Worcester. A special ‘sending out’ service for all involved in Christian Aid Week. 9-16 MAY Volunteers needed Birmingham St Phillips Cathedral. Volunteers wanted to shake a tin during Christian Aid Week! Come to the desk in the cathedral, or call Christian Aid on 0121 200 2283. SATURDAY 8 MAY Coffee Morning/Ploughman’s Lunch 10am-2pm, Solihull Methodist Church Hall (next to Solihull Station). Tickets £1.
SATURDAY 8 MAY, SATURDAY 15 MAY Kids’ Buskathon 11am-4pm, Saturday 8 May, Solihull town centre; 11am-4pm, Saturday 15 May, Birmingham city centre. Sign up for a 15-minute slot or come and enjoy young talent. All proceeds to Christian Aid. Call Anna on 0121 200 2283 or email aburden@christian-aid.org WEDNESDAY 12 MAY An evening of music, food, wine and an art auction 7.30-11pm, Art House Café, Huntingdon Hall, Worcester. With singer-songwriter Rich Clarke, plus All Saints, Worcester’s folkaholics. £5 on the door, or £12 in advance with food. Email clarke. alison@gmail.com TUESDAY 18 MAY Jazz Concert for Christian Aid 8pm, St Gregory’s Church, Offchurch. New Orleans jazz with Tierra Buena. Wine and buffet. Tickets £6. Contact Mike Porter on 01926 624909. MONDAY 24 MAY Platform2 Presents: Behind The Mic 7-10pm, Urban Village, 580 Bristol Road, Selly Oak, Birmingham. Inspired by global issues, performers take you on a journey through poetry and song. For information and if you would like to perform, contact aokunlola@christianaid.org, tel 0121 200 2283. SUNDAY 4 JULY Nuneaton Christian Aid Sponsored Walk at Riversley Park, Nuneaton Registration at 2.30pm, walk from 3-5pm. Contact Anne Vincent on 0247 635 0737.
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AROUND NORTH ENGLAND Christian Aid cyclists go coast to coast
DURING CHRISTIAN AID WEEK, 9 to 15 May, Christian Aid staff in the northwest and northeast of England will attend hundreds of local fundraising events. Most will travel by car, bus or train. However, 12 Christian Aid volunteers and members of staff from the northwest and northeast of England will take in 13 local meetings and events by cycling the 135-mile Coast to Coast Bike Ride between Whitehaven and Sunderland in just five days. The journey will not only raise public awareness of Christian Aid Week but will give supporters and collectors the opportunity to hear about how the money they raise will help improve the lives of those living in poverty around the world. Find your local Coast to Coast Bike Ride event in the events diary. Sponsor the team by visiting www.justgiving.com/ Christianaidcoast2coast
EVENTS IN NORTH ENGLAND
MONDAY 3 MAY Saltburn Trio of Sponsored Walks Start and finish at Emmanuel Church Hall, Saltburn-bythe-Sea. Basic 5-mile walk, children’s Treasure Hunt Walk and The Walk on Wheels (suitable for wheelchairs and buggies). Contact Annette Adams on 01287 624674. MONDAY 10 MAY Lord Mayor’s Coffee Morning 10am, Mansion House, Fernwood Road. Contact the Newcastle office on 0191 228 0115 or newcastle@christian-aid.org MONDAY 10 MAY – FRIDAY 14 MAY Sponsored Christian Aid Week Coast to Coast Cycle Ride – northeast leg Staff from the northwest and northeast will cycle from
Whitehaven to Sunderland in five days, visiting supporters along the way and joining in their fundraising activities. Contact newcastle@christianaid.org or 0191 228 0115. 10-12 May See northwest events 12 May Morning start in Penrith, lunchtime in Renwick, afternoon stop in Alston, finishing in Nenthead, overnight in Allendale with fundraising curry night. 13 May Start in Nenthead, coffee break in Allenheads, lunchtime in Stanhope, overnight in Consett. 14 May Start in Consett, coffee in Annfield Plain, lunchtime in Chester-le-Street, stop in Washington, finish in Sunderland. SATURDAY 15 MAY Great Big Plant Sale and Coffee Morning 10am, Westerhope Methodist Church. Contact the Newcastle office on 0191 228 0115 or newcastle@christian-aid.org SATURDAY 12 JUNE Bede’s Way Sponsored Walks Join TV presenter John Grundy to celebrate the rich cultural heritage of the
Northeast. Entertainment comes from the Jarrow School Steel Band, refreshments are at Bede’s World and there’s an optional celebratory service. Minimum sponsorship £40 (£60 family). 12-mile walk: 10am-5pm, St Peter’s, Monkwearmouth, to St Paul’s, Jarrow. Follow Bede’s Way between the ancient twin monasteries bidding for World Heritage Site status in 2011. You can walk at your own pace or as part of a guided group. 4-mile walk: 2-5pm, starting and finishing at St Paul’s Church, Jarrow. This gentle return walk follows Bede’s Way along the River Don through the Primrose Local Nature Reserve and is accessible for wheelchairs and buggies. Celebratory service: 5-5.40pm, St Paul’s Church, Jarrow. Contact Kerry Crellin on 0191 228 0115 or newcastle@christian-aid.org NORTHWEST REGION THURSDAY 15 APRIL Live@Royal Northern College of Music 7.30pm, RNCM 124 Oxford Road, Manchester. The astonishing Brazilian Maracatu 40-strong percussion and dance group Juba do Leão
supported by the Eblana String Trio. Tickets £10. Contact warrington@christianaid.org or call 01925 573769. All profits to Christian Aid. SATURDAY 17 APRIL Guided Walk along the Clywedog Trail 10.30am, Nant Mill, North Wales. Starting at the Minera Lead Mines, the walk covers six miles of woodland, river and wildlife to King’s Mill. It can be extended to eight or 11 miles. £10 registration fee. Contact warrington@christian-aid.org or call 01925 573769 for more information. FRIDAY 30 APRIL Concert 7-9pm, Civic Hall, Ellesmere Port. The children’s choir of Woodlands Primary School and the Sapphire Dance Troupe will be performing for Christian Aid. Tickets £4, family tickets £16. Contact Ricky Montgomery 07712 589215. Christian Aid/Kevin Leighton
NORTHEAST REGION SUNDAY 18 APRIL The Tees Valley Youth Choir Concert 7.30pm, Barnard Castle Methodist Church. Admission on door by suggested donation of £5. Contact Bob Ward on 01833 630163.
SATURDAY 8 MAY Coffee Morning 10am-12 noon, St Mary’s church hall, Sandbach. All welcome.
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MONDAY 10 MAY – FRIDAY 14 MAY Sponsored Christian Aid Week Coast to Coast Cycle Ride – northwest leg Staff from the northwest and northeast will be cycling from Whitehaven to Sunderland in five days visiting supporters and collectors along the way. Contact warrington@christianaid.org or tel 01925 573 769. 10 May Start in Whitehaven, lunchtime in Cockermouth, overnight in Keswick. 11 May Start in Keswick, break in Threlkeld, lunchtime in Troutbeck, overnight in Penrith. 12-14 May Start in Penrith. See northeast events for details of the rest of the ride. FRIDAY 14 MAY Barnoldswick Street Collection 9am-6pm, in the Barnoldswick and Earby area. Collectors needed for an hour or so. Contact Robert Sneath on 01282 816784. SATURDAY 15 MAY Barnoldswick Annual Sponsored Walk 9am and 9.30am starts, St Andrews Methodist Church, Barnoldswick. Four or 12-mile walk. Contact Robert Sneath, as above.
Christian Aid/Kevin Leighton
THURSDAY 3 JUNE Annual Volunteers Thank You Day 11am-3pm, North West Regional Office in Warrington. Includes light lunch. Speaker: Jeremy Wyman, head of Supporter Stewardship at Christian Aid. Booking essential. Contact Warrington@christian-aid.org or call 01925 573769. FRIDAY 18 JUNE The Annual Schools Roodee Sponsored Walk Chester Racecourse. Activities to help schoolchildren
experience the reality of life for children in some of the world’s poorest communities. We can help you to explore this theme in your school using experienced volunteer teachers who can give an assembly or take a lesson. SATURDAY 19 JUNE Lap the Lakes Register between 10am-2pm at Rydal Hall, finish by 5pm. Three-mile, 7-mile or 10-mile annual sponsored walk around Rydal Water and Grasmere. Contact Warrington@christianaid.org or call 01925 573769. SUNDAY 4 JULY Sponsored Cycle Ride Sandbach, Cheshire. For details, contact Deborah Darnes on 01270 764681. YORKSHIRE REGION WEDNESDAY 28 APRIL Preaching and Speaking for Christian Aid Week 2-4pm, Oxford Place Methodist Church, Leeds. A workshop for all those who will be preaching or speaking during Christian Aid Week. For more information or to book a place, email leeds@christianaid.org or tel 0113 244 4764. THURSDAY 29 APRIL York Christian Aid Service. 7.30pm, York Minster. Speaker: Anne Owers, chair of Christian Aid’s Board of Trustees. Contact John Eckersley on johneckersley@ymail.com or 01904 410389. All welcome. THURSDAY 29 APRIL – FRIDAY 30 APRIL Plant Sale 10am-3.30pm, St Edward the Confessor Church, Dringhouses, York. Includes refreshments and light lunches. Contact Jennifer Simpson on 01904 705809.
SUNDAY 2 MAY Mirfield Churches Together Service: Climate Change in Burkina Faso 3pm, Mirfield Baptist Church. Contact Michael Stopford on 01924 492308 for details. MONDAY 3 MAY May Day Trek 10am, five-, 10- or 15-mile sponsored walk on the edge of the Peak District. Contact Leeds office or visit www.sheffieldmaydaytrek. org.uk SATURDAY 8 MAY Humber Bridge Cross 2pm, Hessle Country Park. Contact Gill Dalby on gilldalby@gilldalby.karoo.co.uk or 01482 504203. SATURDAY 8 MAY Rillington Christian Aid Concert 7.30-9pm, Rillington Village Hall. Admission £5, children free. Artists include Rillington School Singers and The Trouts. Contact Eddie Jameson on eddieandwendy james@phonecoop.coop or call 01944 758807. SUNDAY 9 MAY Scarborough Christian Aid Sponsored Walk 1.45pm. Assemble at St Michael’s Church, Filey Road. Contact David Bridge on david garnerbridge@googlemail. com or 01723 362091.
Concert Hall. Programme includes Rev Mike Leigh, Chris Wright, Frank James, Northstead Primary School Choir and the Scarborough Singing Vicars. Contact David Bridge, as before. SATURDAY 22 MAY A Transport of Delight: a Concert of Songs by Flanders and Swann 7.30pm, Toll Gavel Church, Toll Gavel, Beverley. Tickets £7 (£5 concessions) from John Emmerson. Contact aj@ajemmerson. karoo.co.uk or 01482 881238. SATURDAY 22 MAY Jazz Concert with the Algiers Stompers 7.30pm, All Saints Church, Northallerton. Tickets £8 from Geoff Davison. Contact w.g.davison@talk21. com or 01609 780235. TUESDAY 8 JUNE – SATURDAY 12 JUNE Great Horton Theatre Company presents Jesus Christ Superstar Cleckheaton Town Hall. Tickets from £6 to £15 (profits to Christian Aid) available from Kirklees Council Box Office or John Mason on johnbmason@btinternet. com. More information from leeds@christian-aid.org
TUESDAY 11 MAY – SATURDAY 15 MAY Cake Stall Boyes Store, Queen Street, Scarborough. Supplied with goodies from 30 churches, the stall opens at 10am on 11 May. Contact David Bridge, as before.
SATURDAY 3 JULY Sheffield Night Hike 17-mile dusk-till-dawn sponsored walk from Lodge Moor out to Hathersage and back. Contact Alex on 0113 2444764 or leeds@christianaid.org or visit www. sheffieldnighthike.org.uk
SATURDAY 15 MAY Scarborough Christian Aid Concert 7pm, Scarborough Library
If you would like us to include your event in the next edition of Christian Aid News, please contact your local office.
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AROUND SCOTLAND
Shepherd to cycle Scottish coast
Richard Scott/Maverick
A freelance shepherd from the Scottish Borders will cycle the entire Scottish coast this summer to raise money for Christian Aid.
A global movement for justice Kathy Galloway, head of Christian Aid Scotland, looks forward to taking the Christian Aid show on the road One of the great joys of working for Christian Aid, in the face of so much poverty, struggle and suffering, is knowing that we are part of a global movement for justice. We experience it with partners across the world, in local communities and churches, women’s networks and interfaith groups, campaigning alliances and voluntary organisations and the whole wonderful network of Christian Aid supporters. A vision of the common good as extending beyond the borders of the nation state underlines a passionate commitment to justice in finance and trade, in human rights, in combating climate change and overcoming poverty. In a cynical and sectarian world, countless people, quietly and with great kindness, humour, patience and hope, refuse to countenance the dehumanisation of their fellow human beings, wherever and whoever they are. It is an extraordinary privilege to be part of this movement. That’s why we’re looking forward so much to taking our roadshow to communities across Scotland. And it’s why we’re excited to be a partner in a new Scottish festival, launching this summer. Solas (Gaelic for ‘light’) will be an all-age weekend to light up the Scottish festival landscape with a vivid mix of music, debate, theatre, comedy, film and visual art – a unique location to celebrate, explore and deepen our commitments to art, faith and justice within Scotland’s cultural life. Christian Aid will be at Solas – come and join us! • 25-27 June at Wiston, Biggar, www.solasfestival.co.uk
ARTHUR CROSS, 50, from Kelso, will cycle an average of 90 miles a day to complete the 1,300-mile ride in a fortnight, travelling clockwise from Gretna in the southwest to Berwick-upon-Tweed in the southeast. Starting on 1 July, Arthur and his friend Ian King, a teacher from Yetholm, will stop at various places en route to raise awareness of Christian Aid’s climate change work. They will meet local Christian Aid groups but also hope to reach a new audience and to raise £5,000 for Christian Aid partners in Burkina Faso. The money will go to two partners in a match-funded partnership scheme, Office de Développement des Eglises Evangéliques (ODE), and Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe (HELP). Every pound raised by Christian Aid will be matched by another £4 from the European Commission. Arthur and Ian therefore hope to generate £20,000 towards the partners’ work, which aims to reduce chronic poverty and hunger for nearly one million people by adapting the environment to grow more crops. ‘The whole thing is very appealing,’ said Arthur. ‘I’m looking forward to going up to the Western Isles, meeting people and helping them to understand what we are doing. I want
‘I’m looking forward to meeting people and helping them to get an understanding of what we are doing’ to get across how difficult it is for people living in places like Burkina Faso and what a big difference a small amount of money makes.’ Arthur, who also works as a mental-health support worker for the Scottish Association for Mental Health, has cycled throughout his life but only discovered the joys of road cycling as he got older. His co-cyclist Ian cycles nine miles to and from his school each day. The pair have undertaken two previous fundraising cycle rides, one through cities in the Central Belt and another tracing the shape of the AIDS ribbon through Scotland. Each ride raised £3,000 that was split between Christian Aid and the Scottish Borders Africa Aids Group. The scale of the 2010 challenge encouraged them to work closely with Christian Aid and make the most of the charity’s local links throughout rural Scotland. To donate, go to www.justgiving.com/ christianaidscottishcoastaltour
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CRAMOND TO ANTHONY VENNELLE from Cramond Kirk joined a trip to Kenya last spring to film the DVD for Christian Aid Week 2010. He returned inspired. ‘Four years ago my wife Marjorie arrived home from a parish committee meeting with a big smirk on her face. She’d avoided being the Christian Aid coordinator. We had both collected for Christian Aid for many years. A few days later I was asked to take on the role instead. She missed the chance to do a very satisfying job! ‘I agreed to visit Kenya out of duty. I knew I would be
shocked by the conditions and was very unsure of how I would handle it emotionally. I dreaded the trip – could I cope with the appalling conditions I was going to see? ‘The conditions in Nairobi were terrible: overcrowded slums of tiny huts made from scrap on either side of open sewers that regularly flooded. But I also saw cheerful, positive, hard-working people somehow wearing freshly laundered clothing. They asked for a little help so that, along with their hard work,
Christian Aid/Rachel Stevens
KENYA
they can lift themselves out of awful poverty. I learned of their fight against corruption and their effort to ensure every penny is well spent. ‘I encourage collectors and
donors alike to strive that bit harder during Christian Aid Week to support millions of people who are desperate to help themselves. • See also pages 16-19
EVENTS IN SCOTLAND TUESDAY 13 APRIL – THURSDAY 29 APRIL CHRISTIAN AID ROAD SHOWS Meet Kathy Galloway, find out how Christian Aid is helping to overcome poverty in Kenya, and how you and your church can get involved. • Tuesday 13 April – Dumfries, 7-9pm, St George’s Church, 50 George Street. • Monday 19 April – Motherwell, 7-9pm, Dalziel St Andrew’s Parish Church, 83-87 Merry Street. • Wednesday 21 April – Peebles, 7-9pm, Eastgate Theatre and Arts Centre, Eastgate. • Thursday 22 April – St Andrews, 7-9pm, St Leonard’s Church, Donaldson Gardens. • Thursday 29 April – Fort William, 7-9pm, Duncansburgh MacIntosh Church, The Parade. To book a free place at these events, call 0131 220 1254 edinburgh@christian-aid.org
SATURDAY 24 APRIL Forth Bridge Cross 2pm, sponsored walk across the Forth Road Bridge. For more information, visit www.christianaid.org/walks or call 0141 241 6138. TUESDAY 27 APRIL Vote Global General Election Hustings National hustings event for the general election, focusing on climate change and economic justice, Glasgow University (eve). Contact Diane Green at dgreen@christian-aid or 0141 241 6136. WEDNESDAY 28 APRIL Ask the Climate Question Hustings, Edinburgh North and Leith (See page 10 for more details.) 7.30pm, St Paul’s and St George’s Church, York Place, Edinburgh. Contact Diane Green on dgreen@christianaid.org or 0141 241 6136.
Similar events in Edinburgh East, Dumfries and Galloway and Glasgow Central: www. christianaidscotland.org SUNDAY 2 MAY Titan Crane Abseil One for the bravehearts! Abseil down Clydebank’s iconic industrial landmark. For more information, visit www.christianaid.org/events or call 0141 241 6138. SATURDAY 8 MAY, MONDAY 10 – FRIDAY 14 MAY Christian Aid Book Sale St Andrew’s and St George’s West Church, George Street, Edinburgh. Contact Mary Davidson 07714 186754; booksale@st andrewsandstgeorges.org.uk SATURDAY 22 MAY Erskine Bridge Cross 2pm, sponsored walk across the Erskine Bridge. For more information, visit www.christianaid.org/walks or call 0141 241 6138.
SATURDAY 5 JUNE Ninian’s Walk 10am, sponsored walk from Garlieston Harbour to Isle of Whithorn. Contact Sheila Smith 01292 313747 srs@wightcablenorth.net SATURDAY 12 JUNE Tay Bridge Cross 2pm, sponsored walk across the Tay Bridge. For more information, visit www.christianaid.org/walks or call 0141 241 6138. SATURDAY 19 JUNE Cumbrae Challenge Sponsored Walk Contact Amy Corcoran 0141 241 6138; acorcoran@christian-aid.org FRIDAY 25 JUNE – SUNDAY 27 JUNE Solas Festival Wiston, Biggar New Scottish festival in the spirit of Greenbelt. www.solasfestival.co.uk
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AROUND THE SOUTHEAST Regional news and events in Beds, Berks, Bucks, Herts and Oxon
Tom Weller Photography
Making a media moment
REACHING PEOPLE through local media is a highly effective way to raise awareness and money. Finding a story that will get into the papers and capture people’s attention is always a challenge, but when it works, it works brilliantly. Last autumn, bishops in the Oxford and St Albans dioceses were photographed in support of the Countdown to Copenhagen campaign, and the story was featured in six local newspapers and websites, as well as the diocesan press, reaching thousands of people. Christian Aid Week is a key time to get media coverage. In Oxford and Bedford, we’re going to highlight a lack of water and sanitation in Nairobi’s slums through the imaginative use of a (donated) Portaloo in the city centre. The resulting stories in local papers will hopefully encourage many more people to give via their red envelope, at local events, or online.
What visual story could you get into your local paper this Christian Aid Week? A busking vicar, or maybe a tug-of-war between a local rugby club and Christian Aid supporters to illustrate inequality? Even a letter to the editor that lets people know how long the houseto-house collection has been running in your community, and how many volunteers are involved, will help encourage people to give. Our regional media guru, Amy Merone, is very happy to support local volunteers to get media coverage – get in touch with her on amerone@christian-aid.org or 01865 246818. Even better, if you’ve got skills, experience or interest in this area, become a Christian Aid media volunteer and help us make many more successful media moments. Clockwise from top left: the Bishops of Reading, Bedford, Buckinghamshire and Oxford photographed for climate justice
EVENTS THURSDAY 22 APRIL Christian Aid speaker panel 1-2pm, Christ Church Cathedral, St Aldates, Oxford. Speakers include Paul Valentin, international director, Christian Aid and Rev Dr Sabina Alkire, director of the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative. SATURDAY 8 MAY East Herts Christian Aid Sponsored Walk 8.30-9.30am, for registration, at Ware Football Club, Wodson Park, Ware. Choose your walk length
from between 5km and 44km. To register, please see www.christianaidwalk. org.uk For more information, contact Jess Hall on jhall@christian-aid.org or tel 01865 246818. SATURDAY 8 MAY Chinnor walks and runs Walks start at 9.30am and runs at 10am, Chinnor Village Centre, High Street, Chinnor, Oxon. There are two walks and two runs, of 10km and 20km. For more information, contact Jess Hall as before.
THURSDAY 13 MAY Christian Aid Week Oxford gig Doors open 8pm for 8.15pm start, Port Mahon, St Clements Street, Oxford. Join us for a gig featuring some of Oxford’s finest musicians, including our very own regional administrator Jess Hall. Tickets £5. For more information, contact Jess Hall as before. SATURDAY 15 MAY Walk the Country – sponsored walk near Henley Registration from 8.30-10am, Bix Village Hall, Bix. Choose to walk five, 10, or 15
miles. To register, contact John Russell on 0118 978 3232. For more information, contact Jess Hall as above. FRIDAY 25 JUNE Dearest Heart performed by the Kennington Choir 7.30pm, Witney Congregational Church, Welch Way, Witney. Join the Kennington Choir for this free performance of the story of Gilbert and Sullivan. Donations to Christian Aid. For more information, contact Pip Cartwright on 01993 703717.
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Regional news and events in London, Essex, Surrey, Kent and Sussex
Christian Aid
London walks the walk
CHRISTIAN AID SUPPORTERS around the country are passionate about sponsored walks, and London is no different. Circle the City, on Sunday 16 May, is an annual sponsored walk raising money for Christian Aid partners around the world – last year it raised more than £35,000! If you enjoy walking, history, architecture or just love visiting London, then this walk is for you. The route takes you around the City of London and visits historic churches, such as beautiful Southwark Cathedral and Sir Christopher Wren’s St Bride’s Fleet Street. It also goes past some classic buildings, such as the Tower of London and St Paul’s Cathedral, as well as some lesser-known alleyways, backstreets and buildings. Registration is from 1pm at either St Mary-le-Bow on Cheapside or All Hallows-by-the-Tower and there is a pre-walk service at St Mary-le-Bow at 1.15pm. The walk has lots to keep children amused, so is ideal for young people’s church groups, schools and scouts. As well as some fascinating sights en route, there will be an exciting new scavenger hunt, giant games, children’s entertainers and face-painters.
EVENTS MONDAY 26 APRIL, THURSDAY 29 APRIL Debt Relief in Ghana Hear from Ben Addo, from Christian Aid partner SEND in Ghana. Ben will be talking about how SEND helps to hold the Ghanaian government accountable for how they spend the extra money they receive after having their international debt written off. If you would like to understand more about the issue, then Ben’s talk will be of interest to you. 26 April, Worthing, 7-8.30pm, West Worthing Baptist Church. Contact Kate Parr, kparr@christian-aid.org, or tel 020 7523 2105. 29 April, London, 6.30-8pm, All Hallows-by-the-Tower, Byward Street, EC3. Contact Jo Marshall, jmarshall@christian-aid.org or tel 020 7523 2120. SUNDAY 16 MAY Circle the City 2010 Walk 5km or 8km around the City of London and help stamp out poverty. To find out more, to order posters or to register for the walk, please email Lse@christian-aid.org or phone 020 7523 2321. SATURDAY 22 MAY Pentecost Festival: Generate Justice All day, Westminster Central Hall, Westminster. We’re once again involved in Pentecost Festival, a Christian arts and culture event for the whole of London that attracts more than 20,000 people. We will be taking part in Generate Justice – an event for young
people to understand more of God’s heart for justice and to get involved practically in tackling injustice. The morning will be in Westminster Central Hall where Shane Claibourne will speak at a gathering rally. In the afternoon, 1,000 people will march through Parliament Square, past Downing Street and finish at Leicester Square. There will be four stations where they will get to know more about key global issues. Christian Aid’s station will focus on economic justice and feature a tug of war between ‘pirates’ and ‘superheroes’ outside the Treasury. For further details, visit www. pentecostfestival.co.uk Contact David Muir, dmuir@christian-aid.org or tel 020 7523 2157. WEDNESDAY 16 JUNE Christian Aid Week Thank-You and Evaluation From 3pm. If you’ve been involved in Christian Aid Week, we’d like to say thank you and hear what you thought about the resources. There will be two separate evaluation meetings with thank-you tea and cake in between. If you can join us for either evaluation meeting or the tea then we would love to see you. 3.00-4.30pm for first evaluation meeting, 5.00-6.30pm for thank-you tea, 6.30-8.00pm for second evaluation meeting. Contact Lse@christian-aid. org or tel 020 7523 2105 (for Essex, Sussex and Kent), 020 7523 2321 (for London and Surrey).
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AROUND WEST AND SOUTHWEST
Christian Aid/Ramani Leathard
Bishop’s challenge to help marginalised mums THE BISHOP OF GLOUCESTER is challenging churches in his diocese to raise money to support marginalised mothers and their babies in India. The Rt Revd Michael Perham has pledged proceeds from collections at his Episcopal services during 2010 and is challenging churches, benefices and deaneries to match his fundraising. Every £1 raised in Gloucester Diocese for the Christian Aid-funded project in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan will be matched with a further £3 from the European Commission as part of our Church Partnerships scheme. If Gift Aided, every pound donated produces £5.12 for the project! The project trains and supports volunteers to build relationships with pregnant mothers who are HIV positive and explain what treatment can help them and protect their babies from HIV. The volunteers themselves are living with the virus so are uniquely placed to understand the fears and worries facing the women. The Bishop’s Challenge is already receiving great support from Anglican churchgoers in Gloucestershire and a service of thanksgiving will take place in Gloucester Cathedral on Sunday 14 November to celebrate the success of the project. More details can be found at www.gloucester.anglican.org Methodist circuits, Churches Together groups and others in the West Country are supporting other projects as part of this scheme, which utilises fundraising opportunities outside of Christian Aid Week and other established appeals which are needed for vital general funds. If you would like further details of the scheme, please contact Max Khanna, mkhanna@christian-aid. org or 020 8123 7523.
AURIOL’S PERFECT PITCH AURIOL BRITTON FROM BEDMINSTER in Bristol really loves music and decided to use her singing talents to support Christian Aid during Advent when she undertook a busking tour of the West Country and the London Underground. Auriol (left) chairs the Clear
Sounds choir for visually impaired people and also helps lead music at St Stephen’s parish church in Bristol city centre. Eight days singing carols in London Tube stations and days in Bristol, Bath, Wells and Weston-super-Mare meant that Auriol was able to
donate more than £900 to our Christmas appeal. If Auriol’s efforts inspire you and you think you could use your special talent then please ask us for the new leaflet Unleash your Talent, which we have produced in time for Christian Aid Week.
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A QUESTION OF SUPPORT
IS PHYLLIS
Picture: Wikimedia Commons
OUR OLDEST COLLECTOR?
Painswick viewed from across from the valley
SUPPORT FOR CHRISTIAN AID in the beautiful Painswick Valley in the Cotswolds was not in question in February when the local group organised a really popular QuizAid evening with 15 teams competing. Despite an enforced change of venue with 24 hours’ notice due to winter weather damage to the village hall, they made sure the show went on. The competition for the prestigious trophy was won by the visiting Cherry & Whites team, who just pipped the Old Vic (ministers and friends) in the final round. The competition was decided in the music round, where the classical music buffs played their joker and scored zero, while the ministers demonstrated an in-depth knowledge of pop music to top the charts. Alison Knight, the west regional legacy officer, spoke on Christian Aid’s work and legacies and, to make sure everyone was paying attention, she based the questions for the tie-break round on her talk. Teams had a lot of fun, and the tasty ploughman’s platter and real ale disappeared very quickly. A total of £595 was raised for Christian Aid and the group have already been asked to make this an annual event. • If you would like to organise your own QuizAid event, find out how by ringing your local Christian Aid office.
At the grand old age of 102, we are pretty sure that Phyllis Hayes merits the title of ‘our oldest collector’. Phyllis has been collecting for Christian Aid Week on the streets of Wells in Somerset for
more than 40 years and is still going strong! She has collected every year since her late husband retired as station-master in the mid1960s when Dr Beeching closed the local station. Come rain or come shine, Phyllis always goes back at least twice to collect all her envelopes, and says that it’s an important part of her commitment to her church. ‘Last year they couldn’t get anyone to take my place so I said, “All right, I’ll do another year.” I know I’m able to. I can walk, that’s the thing. I profess to be a Christian and I therefore have a certain duty.’ So… we think Phyllis must be the oldest Christian Aid Week collector in the West Country – and maybe even the whole country! Unless, that is, you know differently?
EVENTS IN WEST AND SOUTHWEST SATURDAY 8 MAY Christian Aid Week open garden 10am-1pm and 2-5pm, Ashleworth Manor (seven miles north of Gloucester, off the A417). Beautiful manor garden, plant sale, art exhibition, refreshments. Contact Dr and Mrs Jeremy Barnes, on 01452 700350 or email rjb@ashleworthmanor. fsnet.co.uk Plant Sale 11am-1pm, Woodram Oaks, Pitminster, Taunton. Contact Marlaine Kift on 01823 421213.
SATURDAY 8 – SATURDAY 15 MAY Christian Aid shops Newent, Painswick, Nailsworth, Wotton-underEdge. Christian Aid groups around Gloucestershire set up shops in church halls during Christian Aid Week selling a vast array of goods. Contact the local Christian Aid group or west office 01454 415923 or west@christian-aid.org SATURDAY 15 MAY Christian Aid Fair 10am-12.30pm, Redland Park United
Reformed Church, Whiteladies Road, Bristol. Sale of plants, cakes, second-hand books, and Korean food. Contact Myra Jones 0117 950 4238 or myraejones@btinternet.com FRIDAY 21 MAY – MONDAY 24 MAY Art Exhibition and Sale 10am-4.30pm, Boulevard United Reformed Church, Waterloo Street, Weston-super-Mare. Exhibition and sale of work from local artists plus jewellery, greetings
cards, second-hand books, wood-turning, raffle and refreshments. Contact John Jackson on 01934 517850 or at john. wsm@givemail.co.uk FIRST FRIDAY OF EACH MONTH Christian Aid Lunches 12 noon-1.30pm Vicarage Street Methodist Church, Yeovil. Lunches in support of Christian Aid: soup, salads, sweets, tea and coffee. Contact Alan Grassam on 01935 863 673.
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AROUND WALES
‘I gave up a holiday to help Haiti’ A 12-year-old Rhondda schoolgirl pulled out of a trip to Disneyland Paris, in order to raise money for Christian Aid’s Haiti Appeal ON MONDAY 15 FEBRUARY, Nia Rees was singing with Côr y Cwm in a celebrity concert at St David’s Hall, Cardiff, to help the people of Haiti – although she had planned to go to the Paris theme park. Three days before she was due to go, the choir was invited to sing on stage with X Factor star Rhydian Roberts and some other celebrities. Nia, a pupil at Ysgol Gyfun y Cymer, admitted that the decision was a difficult one. She said: ‘I cried at one point – I didn’t know what to do! It was either singing with famous stars and raising money for Haiti, or going to France. ‘Then I thought that I could go to France another time, but that an opportunity to sing in St David’s Hall might not happen again.’ Nia’s mother said: ‘Nia is old enough to make her own decisions. Although worried about the money, she said that if we didn’t mind she would rather sing in the concert and raise money for Haiti.’ Standing on stage, Nia knew that she had made the right decision. ‘I had been wondering if I should have gone to Disneyland Paris; but then I knew that this was where I wanted to be.’ Among the other stars were Ruth Jones of BBC sitcom Gavin and Stacey, international opera star Dennis O’Neil, the cast of Pobl y
Nia Rees with X Factor star Rhydian Roberts
‘I had been wondering if I should have gone to Disneyland Paris; but then I knew that this was where I wanted to be’ Cwm and Elin Fflur. The concert was televised by S4C and so far has raised over £20,000 for Christian Aid’s Haiti Appeal. This story was adapted from an article which originally appeared in GOLWG.
Church denomination shows great generosity NOT CONTENT WITH RAISING more than £200,000 in 2009 for Christian Aid’s work in South Africa, the 31,000 members of the Union of Welsh Independent Churches have responded magnificently to our Haiti earthquake appeal. When news of the earthquake broke, UWI general secretary Rev Geraint Tudur made a personal appeal to the
churches to support Christian Aid’s Haiti fund. ‘This is not the time for delay, to make excuses or to be hard-hearted,’ he said. ‘The people of Haiti need our help. In the name of God, in the name of Jesus Christ, let us help them.’ To date, the UWI churches have contributed more than £52,000.
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CHURCHES UNITE FOR ANGOLA FUND
LEARNING ABOUT ANGOLA, through Christian Aid’s Act Justly study course, has inspired churches in Mold to think about raising money for
Christian Aid’s work in the country. The project Cronfa Angola Fund was set up to raise £3,600 over three years, and was launched in October 2008 with the proceeds of a joint coffee morning – and boosted by a Harvest Service Collection of £300. Soon other churches in the surrounding area were holding coffee mornings and frugal lunches. Collections
from services and concerts saw the total reaching £3,000 by the end of the year, and by early 2009 they had achieved their target. Then a local school, Ysgol Maes Garmon, donated £1,000, collected in memory of one of their teachers, Mrs Ann Richardson, who had worked overseas and was present at the launch of the Angola project. The head teacher, Mr Huw Alun Roberts, felt that supporting education in Angola would be an appropriate way of remembering Ann. Eirlys Gruffydd, a founding
member of the project, said: ‘Working towards the common goal of raising money for Angola has brought us all much closer together. We have come to know and care for each other as Christians should.’ If your church could benefit from taking part in a similar project, why not contact one of Christian Aid’s Welsh offices and ask about the Church Partnership Scheme? • Contact Cardiff 029 2084 4646, Bangor 01248 35357 or Carmarthen 01267 237357.
EVENTS IN WALES – DIGWYDDIADAU YNG NGHYMRU FRIDAY 7 MAY Concert with the Minnesingers Male Chorus 7:30pm at Zoar Presbyterian Church, Bonvilston. An evening of traditional, folk, modern and classical songs and ballads to suit all ages and tastes. Tickets £5 from Ann Roach on 01446 781309. SATURDAY 8 MAY Brecon Beacons Sponsored Walk 9.30am, starting from Llangorse Lake. A 10-mile walk through beautiful countryside, with stunning views to raise money for Christian Aid. Details from 01874 658257. SATURDAY 8 MAY Cardiff Plant Sale 9.30am, Llanishen Baptist Church, Fidlas Road, Cardiff. Now in its 31st year, choose from a huge variety of plants and shrubs to make your
garden and pots the envy of the neighbourhood. Various stalls and light refreshments available in the church hall. Information from 02920 844646. SADWRN 8 MAI Bore Coffi Eglwysi Cymraeg Caerdydd 10yb-12.30yp, Festri y Tabernacl, Yr Ais Te, coffi, stondinau amrywiol a nwyddau masnach Deg. Dewch i fwynhau paned a chlonc tra’n helpu dileu tlodi. Manylion ar 029 2084 4646. NOS FAWRTH 11 MAI Taith Noddedig Ar feic neu ar droed ar hyd Lon Arfon, Caernarfon. Manylion gan Anna Jane Evans ar 01248 353574. MERCHER 12 MAI Cyngerdd Doniau’r Dre 6.30yp yn Theatr Seilo. Eitemau amrywiol gan ysgolion a chapeli
lleol Caernarfon. Manylion gan Parch. Ronald Williams ar 01286 672593. FRIDAY 14 MAY Pontypool Christian Aid Week Lunch 12 noon at The Salvation Army Hall, Pontypool. Enjoy a healthy lunch of fresh and homemade produce. Details from Doreen Richards-Clarke on 01495 764553. GWENER 14 MAI Bore Coffi Pwyllgor Pwllheli 10yb-12.00yp yn Festri Penlan. Manylion gan Anna Jane Evans ar 01248 353574. SUNDAY 16 MAY Sankey Evening 8pm at St Thomas’ Chapel, Denbigh. In the company of the Denbigh Male Voice Choir. Details from 01248 353574.
SUNDAY 30 MAY Christian Aid Open Air Service 11am, Valle Crucis Abbey, Llangollen. Bring a chair and a picnic. Details from Rev Andrew Sully on 01978 860231. SATURDAY 8 MAY Christian Aid Week Coffee Morning 10am-12 noon, Overton. Methodist Church, Overton. Information from 01248 353574. 16-18 JULY Art for Africa Catbrook Hall, Catbrook. Christian Aid’s premier fundraising event in Monmouth celebrates its 20th anniversary. Paintings, prints and ceramics by local artists, plus various stalls. Proceeds towards a Christian Aid project in Zimbabwe. For details contact Peter Symes on 01600 860264.
Christian Aid News 29
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A reflection on playing a part in the fight against poverty, and living life in the wider family of Christian Aid
LAST AUGUST, I visited Haiti to see what Christian Aid and its partners were doing in one of the poorest countries of the world. I was deeply impressed. Working in close collaboration with local partners, Christian Aid was helping people rebuild their livelihoods after the disastrous 2008 hurricanes. A network of small, low-tech dairies was processing small amounts of milk from local farmers, giving them an income and providing pasteurised milk for schoolchildren. Rabbits and chickens were providing a regular – and multiplying – food supply. A group of local men were building a hurricane shelter for the livestock. In the adjacent Dominican Republic, Christian Aid’s partners were working with Haitian immigrants – the poorest of the poor, living in fragile and polluted shanty towns. We were surrounded by parents asking anxiously when the school, the beacon of hope for their children, would reopen. Here, as elsewhere, Christian Aid’s partners were also tackling the causes of poverty: monitoring budget spending, campaigning against environmental degradation and discrimination, promoting human rights. Haiti is now, tragically, centre stage. Much will need to be rebuilt – not just houses, schools and hospitals, but hope. Hard-won and precarious livelihoods need rebuilding. Christian Aid will be there, as it was before, not just for the crisis, but for the long haul – when the television cameras have gone and the world’s attention turns elsewhere, standing alongside the poor and ensuring that there is new life for them out of the depths of despair. Haiti is only one of approximately 50 countries in which Christian Aid works – always with partners, always with the marginalised, always trying to change the systems that keep people poor. That work carries on, out of sight of the global media – helping communities in Colombia campaign for clean water, enabling flooded Bangladeshi villages to develop new and sustainable livelihoods, rehabilitating child soldiers
WE’RE HERE FOR THE LONG HAUL After Haiti’s tragedy dominated the world’s media earlier this year Anne Owers, chair of Christian Aid, reminds us that much of Christian Aid’s invaluable work goes on largely unnoticed and unsung Christian Aid/Leah Gordon
LAST WORD
in Uganda. As climate change threatens more of the world’s poorest people, and the global recession creates new challenges, our work is needed more than ever. But what is also important is the faith that lies behind it. Christian Aid is not a faceless, quasi-governmental organisation. It exists because of the work, prayer and giving of individual men and women here, expressing their solidarity with individual women and men there. It is a tangible response to the Gospel commandment to bring good news to the poor: that things can and should be different, and that we are responsible for those we cannot see and will never meet. That will be expressed, in Christian Aid
An earthquake survivor in Haiti receives a health check
Week, in events, collections and services. It will shine through every envelope and collection tin, every cake baked and every prayer uttered. On behalf of all those whose lives are lifted by that Gospel hope, thank you for all you have done and are doing.
MOST OF THE phenomenal sum raised during Christian Aid Week comes from the efforts of volunteers, going from door to door delivering and collecting Christian Aid Week envelopes. If you aren’t yet a collector, will you consider it? Your local Christian Aid organiser or staff in our regional offices will be delighted to hear from you.
30 Christian Aid News
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CHRISTIAN AID INTRODUCES ECCLESIASTICAL
SWITCH YOUR HOME INSURANCE AND IT’S NOT JUST YOU WHO WILL BE BETTER OFF Ecclesiastical has been helping to protect communities since 1887 and our heritage and values are what continue to inspire us today. If you need five-star home insurance, and want to fight for a world free from poverty at the same time, talk to us. We aim to offer the highest standards of customer care and service. Every Christian Aid supporter could save over 25 per cent off Ecclesiastical home insurance. PLUS Ecclesiastical will donate an average of £20 to Christian Aid for every policy taken out.*
Call Ecclesiastical now for a free no-obligation quote, on
0800 731 7616
Or apply online at www.ecclesiastical.com/christianaid
quoting CAN10
from 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays )
*For every contents and/or buildings policy sold, Ecclesiastical will donate 10 per cent of the first annual premium, (on average this is £20 based on a combined building and contents policy) plus a further 5 per cent of your first renewal premium. Remember, as with all home insurance policies, terms and conditions apply. Ecclesiastical Insurance Office plc (EIO) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority registered in England at Beaufort House, Brunswick Road, Gloucester GL1 1JZ (Company no. 24869). Christian Aid, (UK registered charity no. 1105851 Company no. 5171525 Scotland charity no. SC039150 NI charity no. XR94639 Company no. NI059154) is an introducer appointed representative of EIO.
EVERYBODY WINS 13–19 September 2010 Put your brain to the test – it’s fun!
Register NOW
Q
for your free fundraising pack, complete with questions
Text ‘quiz’ to 88802
Visit www.christianaid.org.uk/quizaid
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A DATE FOR YOUR DIARY
Christian Aid has a vision – an end to poverty. Join our next supporter event and join us in strengthening that vision. Hear how we can bring an end to poverty, share in celebrating our achievements, and back our call for change.
Wednesday 20 October 2010 Methodist Central Hall, London, 11–4pm 11am –2.30pm: supporter event, including service 2.30pm –4pm: lobby of Parliament Speakers include Loretta Minghella, director of Christian Aid; Kathy Galloway, head of Christian Aid Scotland and member of the Iona Community, and ‘voices’ from the global South. Lobby of Parliament: put your faith into action by talking to your MP about the importance of tackling world poverty. We’ll arrange for you to meet them and we can give you all the guidance you need. Note: the lobby is likely to be a coalition event.
To reserve a place Please email info@christian-aid.org or register online at www.christianaid.org.uk/actnow or fill in the attached form and return to Christian Aid, FREEPOST, London SE1 7YY
Please reserve me
places at the event.
Name Address
Postcode Telephone no. Email Christian Aid will not pass on your details to any other organisation. If you already receive information from Christian Aid we will continue to send it unless you tell us otherwise by writing to us at Supporter Relations, PO Box 100, London SE1 7RT. If you are new to Christian Aid, please tick here if you do not want to receive information from us.
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