O.N.E - December 2009

r be m ce De 09 20

CLIMATE CHANGE Sing for change!

10 facts on China One Person in China: Xiao Xin Obama, China and Copenhagen - Yes, We Can? Climate Change, Poverty and the Body Bangladesh, Music and Gardens www.oxfam.org.hk/climatechange

• We need your Voice Send your voice to the UN. On 7 December, we go to Copenhagen for the UN conference on climate change.

Sign your name on www.oxfam.org.hk/climatechange and join the Complaints Choir to sing out your concerns.

• 1O Facts on China On a person by person basis, China can be seen as a leader against climate change.

• ONE PERSON in China University student Xiao Xin will go to Copenhagen as an Oxfam campaigner.

• Obama, China, Developing Countries and Copenhagen What is Obama doing against climate change, what is China doing, and what are developing countries doing?

• Climate Change, Poverty and the Body

An Oxfam report on how climate change is impoverishing the body – our food to eat, water to drink, the diseases we have, where we live, and more.

• Bangladesh, Music and Gardens Lead singer from the band Beyond, Paul Wong, visited

Bangladesh (and took the cover photo above). With all the floods there, farmers are now planting on top of water in carefully constructed floating gardens.

COVER PHOTO: People in northeast Bangladesh are at great risk in the climate crisis / Photo: Paul Wong, Oxfam Ambassador and campaigner against climate change

HAVE YOU SUNG TODAY? Please sing.

Please speak out.

We want your voice.

We will bring these voices to Copenhagen on Tuesday, 7 December, when a crucial United Nations climate change meeting begins.

Please register your name, your voice, here: http://www.oxfam.org.hk/climatechange/ On 29 November, we sang out about climate change in one of Hong Kong’s busiest streets, and on 2 December, we sang again, at Legislative Council, the building where law is made in Hong Kong.

Two lines of the song: Rich: Hang Seng Index's rising, oh yeah, we’re number one Poor: Temperature's rising, we now live in a slum For the full version of the song – in Cantonese – please go to the Chinese version of O.N.E.

All of this has been possible through the power of song. Oxfam has

November and December is dedicated solely to climate change.

been singing with the COMPLAINTS

Oxfam Hong Kong is dedicated

CHOIR, which began on a winter’s

to the fight against climate change.

day in Finland. People were taking a

Around the world, we support farmers,

walk, talking about this or that, saying

fishers and other poor people to assist

how things could be better. In Finnish,

them in adapting to the climate

a group of people complaining is

hazards; we advocate for better local,

called ‘valituskuoro’ which translates

national, regional and global policy;

as ‘a choir of complainers’. Tellervo

and we helped initiate the Harbin

Kalleinen and Oliver Kochta-Kalleinen

Alliance, a global network of disaster

decided to take the expression literally

management organisations, as well as

and make a choir. There are now

the Combat Climate Change Coalition,

about 25 Complaint Choirs around

a net work of Hong Kong - based

the world.

groups. We call on our government

In Hong Kong, the first Complaints

to adopt a holistic climate policy;

Choir action was led by 25-year-old

to support adaptation projects in

Vangi Fong on 1 July 2009, a day

poor countries ; and to make an

when residents takes to the streets

unequivocal target for greenhouse gas

for a variety of causes. The song for

emission cuts.

Causeway Bay, Hong Kong: Stanley So of Oxfam Hong Kong holds the megaphone to amplify the song against poverty by the Complaints Choir / Photo: Sam Wong

Join the campaign: www.oxfam.org.hk/climatechange Complaints Choir in Hong Kong: http://hkcomplaintschoir.blogspot.com/ Complaints Choir, worldwide: www.complaintschoir.org/

O.N.E December 2009

This year on 15 Oc tober, my

The first time I heard about the

a memory. The villagers told us, “In

Qin family who, like everyone else

birthday, I received a special gift. I was

I DO campaign was in July 2009, at a

the 1970s and 80s, water would easily

in the village, has a small water tank

selected as the ‘I DO’ envoy for Oxfam

national conference at which Oxfam

come, just by digging a shallow hole in

right in their courtyard. Grandpa Qin

Hong Kong and would be heading

Hong Kong climate change campaigner

the ground – nowadays, we can hardly

said, “Three years ago, Oxfam made

to Copenhagen to speak out against

Li Ning hosted a workshop. I was

find any water even if we dig down 10

a deep well in our village, and ever

climate change. I DO is the name of the

especially moved by a photograph

metres for a well.”

since then, we have had water so

campaign, and I certainly do want to

he had taken of a one-year-old child

In the mountains, we met a sick,

easily, and directly to our house. I

end climate change.

sitting in the fields, not playing, but

93-year-old farmer who was picking

no longer have to carry water all the

learning how to transplant rice.

beans. She told us that all of her

way from the faraway mountains.

As a postgraduate student, my research has been on eco-socialism:

I know that Oxfam works with

children were living and working out

Life is so much better now. My family

for over four years, I have been

people who are struggling in their

of the village to make a living, leaving

is raising five cows and seven sheep,

researching climate change. Last

lives, such as poor people who are

her alone at home, “I have to work as

and we were able to rebuild our house

summer, I wanted to see what carbon

affected by climate change, including

long as I’m alive,” she sighed.

last year.”

emissions data and what the various

the impoverished family of the infant.

The villagers did not have access

In another village, Huaxianzi,

production and consumption theories

Something inside me pushed me to

to exact information on the rising

smiling children told us, “We’re about

looked like in real life, so I went to

find him after the workshop and say,

temperatures and statistics on carbon

to move to the new classrooms which

Jakarta to do a two-month internship.

"I want to join Oxfam!"

emissions, but they know that the

are made of brick, and the teacher told us it’ll be warm and bright.”

The reason why I chose Indonesia

I applied to be the envoy, and two

climate is changing. They pointed to

was that the United Nations Climate

months after that workshop, I was

the yellowed crops withered on the

In one Gansu village after another,

Change Conference had just taken

lucky to be selected. I joined Oxfam

ground, saying, “Recently, there is

I saw that while life is not perfect,

place there, in Bali.

to visit project sites in the northwest

more and more drought, and our corn

people are making good positive,

Now, in just a few days, I can

province of Gansu, one of China’s

and wheat can hardly grow all the

changes – they are making a safer,

actually participate in the next UN

poorest areas hit by climate change.

way to harvest. What’s worse, there

better future, with more protection

conference – usually called COP15 – a

We talked with farmers and went

was a sudden hailstorm in July, when

against climate poverty. I believe,

major conference in the negotiations

into their homes and their fields,

the whole crop was smashed to the

and could see with my very own eyes,

towards better international policy.

directly experiencing what ‘climate

ground. That means there will be no

that these positive things can happen

Being the I DO envoy and going to

poverty’ is.

income this year.”

through some practical community

this Copenhagen meeting all feels a

We v i s i t e d a v ill a g e n a m e d

Yet, even though life is such a

bit like a fairy tale, a kingdom where

Xiangquan which means ‘nice spring’

struggle every day, people are not

my dream of fighting against climate

because of its abundant underground

giving up.

change can come true.

water. It turns out the name is part of

In Houlianwan, we visited the

China and Copenhagen:

Poverty and Fairytales

By Xiao Xin

projects and through education about climate change.

That’s what I want to share with the whole world in Copenhagen.

Xiao Xin, 24, is a graduate student at Nankai University and lives in Tianjin. As a campaigner against climate change as the Oxfam Hong Kong I DO envoy, she has spoken at schools, met with the media, and will soon be in Copenhagen for the UN conference.

For more information: Oxfam Hong Kong’s I DO campaign in Mainland China: <http://www.oxfam.org.cn/ ido/> (in Chinese) Xiao Xin’s I DO blog against change: <selenexiao.blog.sohu.com> (in Chinese)

O.N.E December 2009

on China The environmental impact of China is significant, with its large population, large reserves of coal, a fast-growing economy, and not being bound to international greenhouse gas emissions targets. Yet, when determining which countries are responsible for climate change, Oxfam sees it as important to see the facts expressed on a per-capita and cumulative basis.

1 A small proportion of

3 Low emissions in transport

6 Less capacity to respond to

9 Energy efficiency

cumulative emissions

The average person in USA

climate crisis

China has reduced the energy

Over the past century, the 23

takes 18 times as many

In China, 35 per cent of the

intensity of GDP by over 60 per

richest countries – representing

airline flights as the average

population live on less than two

cent since 1980 and targets to

14 per cent of the current

Chinese person and is 50 times

dollars per day, and 10 per cent

reduce it by a further 20 per

global population – have been

more likely to own a car.

on less than one dollar per day.

cent by 2010. (2005 figures)

responsible for 60 per cent of 4 Export sector accounts for

accumulated CO2 emissions.

7 A leader in renewable energy

1O High efficiency technology

Mainland China – representing

about one-third of China’s

China ranks second for

Since 2005, the Chinese

20 per cent of the current

CO2 emissions

investments in renewable energy

government has required high-

global population – has been

This is equivalent to the

(about US$12 billion), after

efficiency, super-critical, coal-

responsible for only 8 per cent.

combined emissions of Germany,

Germany (US$14 billion). (2007)

fired technology for new large

France and the UK. Countries 2 Low per capita emissions

that outsource production and

power plants. In 2007, 553 8 A leader in low carbon

smaller inefficient power plants

In 2004, the average person

consume Chinese goods must

transport

with a total generating capacity

in the United States emitted

assume some responsibility.

In 2008, China implemented

of 14.38GW were shut down.

a 36 miles per gallon fuel

20.5 tons of CO2 – equivalent 5 Disproportionately affected

to emissions of 5 people in

economy standard for

China. The average per-capita

by climate change

passenger vehicles, almost 40

level for G-7 countries was

The melting of glaciers alone

per cent higher than in USA.

12 tonnes – the equivalent

could seriously affect the

level for 3 people in China.

water supply of a quarter of a billion people in China.

CO2 emissions % share

World population % share

23.0

25

23.0

21.1 19.2

CO2 Per-Capita (Tons)

21.1

China

20.5 20

19.2

17.3 17.3

17.3

15.4

15.4

13.5

13.5

15 12.1

11.6

United States

10.8 10.5 10

11.6

9.7

9.7

7.8

7.8

5.9

5.9

9.9 8.7 7

5

4 1.1

a

a in

ly

di In

Ch

ce

Ita

UK

an Fr

n

y an

pa Ja

G7

rm

CO2 emissions refer to energy-related emissions.

Emissions from deforestation are not included.

Ge

na

US

A

4.0

Ca

4.0

da

0

Country

Figure 1:

Figure 2 :

% share CO2 emissions versus % share world population

CO2 Per-Capita for G-7 Countries, China and India – 2004 Data

Source: UNDP

Source: World Resources Institute

O.N.E December 2009

Obama, China, Developing Countries and Copenhagen – YES, We Can

By Stanley So

I n m i d - N o v e m b e r, w h e n U S

to abandon the Kyoto Protocol.

President Obama went to China for

Developing countries insist that any

the first time, climate change was near

agreement reached in Copenhagen

the top of the agenda. Obama – who

must include a continuation of the

is sometimes called “Obamao” on the

Kyoto Protocol, in line with common

mainland – was expected to live up to

but differentiated responsibilities.

his slogan “yes, you can” in regards

In Barcelona, the EU changed its

to climate change. Yet, no significant

tone on the prospect of concluding

breakthrough was made.

a new global pact in Copenhagen,

Americans, and people across

further adding to what is becoming

the world have had hope in

a widespread atmosphere of low

Obama’s renewed commitment to

expectations.

multilateralism on global issues, including climate change. He has made

Can the world wait?

several pledges that the US would

The millions of people facing

vigorously re-engage in global climate

serious floods, prolonged droughts,

negotiations. Yet, to date, Obama and

and failed harvest after failed harvest

the US have not shown leadership

will be the real losers if the US,

in the talks ; and many observers

Canada, EU, Japan and Australia

believe that this non-action is, in fact,

continue to behave as blockers to the

dragging down the negotiations.

UN negotiations. Oxfam projects that

O bama c an help change the course. Yes, he can. He must.

the number of people affected by climatic disasters will rise by 54% to 375 million people a year on average

Lack of political will from

by 2015. The world’s poorest countries

rich countries

which are already struggling to survive

The outcomes from the recent negotiations in Bangkok (September)

in the changing climate, need action, not hollow promises.

and in Barcelona ( November) do

In 2005, more than 90 per cent

not look promising. Rich countries,

of the population of people living in

including the US, have not committed

absolute poverty in China was affected

adequate financing to help poor

by climate change; and that figure is

countries adapt to the escalating

expected to rise. Since the 1990s, up to

impacts of climate change and develop

400 million people in China have been

combined cut from national pledges

must be supported by finance and

on a low carbon pathway.

affected each year by weather-related

made by industrialized contries – the

technology transfer from developed

disasters and secondary hazards.

Annex I countries – come up to only

countries.

I n B a n g ko k , t h e EU, J a p a n ,

Page for ‘C’ from the booklet ‘A to Z’ (in Chinese), available from: http://www.oxfam.org.hk/fs/view/right/climatechange/climate_change_glossary.pdf

Delay in reaching a pro -poor

16-23 per cent by 2020 (compared to

Finance: Oxfam estimates at least

developed, industrialised economies

climate deal in Copenhagen would

1990 levels, and excluding the US).

US$150 billion is needed each year

demonstrated their willingness to

pose more risks to poor communities

This falls short of what the climate

for developing countries to take

accommodate the US in a move that

in developing countries. Poor people

science urgently requires: for Annex

mitigation action and adaptation

was widely perceived to reinterpret

emit in signific ant quantitie s of

I countries to cut their emissions by

m e a s u r e s . H ow eve r, d eve l o p e d

the agreed principles of historical

greenhouses gases, yet suffer first,

25-40 per cent. Annex 1 countries

countries have made no firm

responsibility as well as common but

and the most, from climate impacts.

h ave b e e n p u s hi n g d eve l o p i n g

commitments on financing support.

countries to have legally binding

In October, European leaders said

emissions reductions targets as well;

that €22-€50 billion was needed in public finance to help poor countries

Canada, Australia and other

differentiated responsibilities (CBDR), which are enshrined in the United

Sticky issues

Nations Framework Convention on

Currently there are several key

but developing countries emphasise

Climate Change and Kyoto Protocol.

issues blocking the negotiations. Two

that past agreements state that their

tackle climate change. This offer falls

This triggered an angr y reaction

of them are:

mitigation actions are voluntary in

far short of what is required. Also

Emissions reductions targets: The

nature (in keeping with common but

there are no assurances that existing

UNFCCC Secretariat estimates that the

differentiated responsibilities), and

promises overseas aid will not simply

from the developing countries, which saw it as an attempt by rich countries

O.N.E December 2009

During the Climate Change

expectations. But it can be overcome. A

Summit in the United Nations General

month before the 1992 UN Framework

Assembly in September, President Hu

Convention on Climate Change was

Jintao announced China's intention

adopted, at the Earth Summit in Rio

to intensify efforts to improve energy

de Janeiro, we were told it could not

ef ficienc y and to reduce carbon

happen. The Convention went on to be

intensity by a "notable margin" by

signed and ratified by all countries. As

2020 from the 2005 levels.

President Obama has said, “Difficulty

All these efforts are only the tip

Stanley So of Oxfam Hong Kong (far right) and other Oxfam campaigners demonstrate the CO2 emissions of various countries

is no excuse for complacency.”

of the iceberg. They demonstrate and

Obama, yes, we can! And yes,

signify the willingness of developing

you can. You can ensure that the

countries to take action on climate

US leads in climate negotiations. A

change towards securing a climate

fair, ambitious and binding climate

deal that is fair to poor people.

deal is still possible in Copenhagen if rich countries, such as US and EU,

A deal is still possible

demonstrate political willingness

in Copenhagen

an d lea d e r s hip by u n d e r t akin g

be rebranded as climate finance.

the remaining 20 per cent relates to

It is still possible to strike a deal in

dual obligations – drastic emissions

Financial support from developed

industry and farming. This move is a

Copenhagen. Rich countries have no

reductions and adequate financial

countries must be new, additional and

strong “political gesture” aimed at

excuse not to deliver their obligations

support to developing countries.

predictable.

pressing rich nations into agreeing to

in order to combat the climate crisis for

large cuts in carbon.

which they are historically responsible.

Developing countries are taking action

Closer to home, China was ranked

These obligations include substantially

second for the absolute dollar amount

reducing their carbon emissions and

The suffering in poor countries

invested in renewable energy in 2007

supporting developing countries for

due to climate change does not

with approximately $12 billion, just

adapting to climate impacts.

always get headline treatment in

behind Germany, which invested

A call to delay a deal is, however,

rich countries. Media repor ts in

US$14 billion. Further proof that China

expec ted as par t of a concer ted

rich countries tend to focus on the

has done its part is its measure on low

strategy by rich countries to lower

threats posed by the future emission

carbon transport – in 2008, the country

growth of developing countries. This

implemented a 36 miles per gallon

creates a common misperception

fuel economy standard for passenger

that developing countries have done

vehicles, almost 40 per cent higher

nothing to tackle climate change. The

than US equivalents.

leaders of rich countries then take the

There has also been significant

convenient path and shift the blame

progress in energy efficiency – China

to developing countries, instead of

has reduced the energy intensity of

assuming leadership.

GDP by over 60 per cent since 1980,

Despite many development

and has set a target to reduce it by

challenges – such as high levels of

a further 20 per cent by 2010 (2005

poverty and low levels of human

figures). Since 2005, the Chinese

development – many developing

government has required that all

countries have already started to

new large power plants use high

tackle climate change.

efficiency super-critical coal fired

South Africa, for example, has

technology and, during 2007, 553

committed to a 15 per cent renewable

smaller inefficient plants with total

energy target by 2020. Mexico achieved

generating capacity of 14.38GW were

over 40% reduction in the use of dirty

shut down.

fuels between 2000 and 2006, and

I n J u n e 2 0 0 7, t h e C h i n e s e

committed itself to halve carbon

government released “China’s National

dioxide emissions by 2050.

Climate Change Programme”. It also

B razil h a s p l e d g e d to m a ke

established the National Climate

significant emission cuts, and

Change Coordination Committee. This

will take proposals for voluntary

climate change work is led by Premier

reductions of 38- 42 per cent by

Wen Jiabao, which illustrates the high

2020 to Copenhagen. The reductions

priority given to climate change in the

are from projected 2020 emission

political agenda.

Otherwise, delay kills.

Stanley So is Campaigns Coordinator with Oxfam Hong Kong. He participated in climate change negotiations for the UN conferences in Poznan and Bangkok, and will also be present in Copenhagen.

levels if no action was taken. Half of Brazil’s proposed cuts will come from a reduction in deforestation, while

Oxfam ice figures in Hong Kong (top) and Poznan (bottom).

Top photo: Boogie Chiu

O.N.E December 2009

climate change, poverty and the body Oxfam research with farmers and fishers in over 15 countries reveals how climate change is affecting basic aspects of life for poor people – food to eat, water to drink, diseases people catch, where people live, and survival itself.

TO EAT

HOMES

“We are eating nothing.”

“As soon as people see clouds forming, they put together their stuff and head for the hills.”

Mukelabai Liywalii, Farmer, Zambia

Climate-related hunger could be the defining human tragedy of this century. Rice, which more people depend on than on any other crop, is a very climate-sensitive plant: for every 1ºC rise in minimum temperature, the yield drops 10 per cent: in the Philippines alone, people might have 70 per cent less rice. Maize, a staple for more than 250 million people in Africa is also vulnerable to heat changes and water stress.

Gary Novamn, farmer, survivor of hurricanes in Haiti

DISEASE

OTHER WORK

“Last month my daughter was infected by dengue fever, now my third daughter is. It’s been too heavy for me.”

“Working under the open sun during summer has become nearly impossible in the past four years or so – for farmers and their cattle alike.”

Iha, Indonesia

Mir Ahmed, Farmer, Bangladesh

Diseases of the tropics such as malaria are spreading to new areas such as Russia, where people lack immunity or the knowledge and healthcare infrastructure to cope.

Rates of bilharzia, the second most economically devastating disease after malaria, are increasing in China. Dengue, encephalitis, yellow fever and many other water- or insect-borne diseases are on the rise. / Photo: Dengue patient and mother, Indonesia / Oxfam

SURVIVING “Nature has got much worse, people have offended nature.”

Gregory Rykhtyn, Siberia

FARMING AND FISHING WORK “We’ve stopped even adopting seasonal planting, because it’s so useless. Now we just try all the time… Now we plant and plant again. We waste a lot of seeds that way, and our time and energy…

Sometimes you feel like crying.”

TO DRINK “The rich are still swimming in their pools while we are dying of thirst… we have got almost nothing to drink.”

Graciela Martinez, Mexico

Florence Madamu, Farmer, Uganda

Water supplies are becoming so acutely challenged that major cities such as Kathmandu and La Paz – fed by water from the Himalayan and Andes glaciers – will cease to exist in their current form. In Mexico City, the largest city in the Americas with a population of 22.9m, taps ran dry for several months of 2009.

Between one and two billion people in China will face water shortages if the Himalayan glaciers fail. / Photo: Water sources drying up in Pakistan / Sarfaraz Ahmad, Hunderkada, Oxfam

Rising temperatures will make it impossible for people to work at the same rate on hot summer days without serious health impacts with huge ramifications for labourers paid by the hour and the wider economy. Tropical cities such as Delhi could see a drop in worker productivity of as much as 30 percent. Hong Kong is also at risk.

An estimated 26 million people worldwide are displaced as a direct result of climate change. Whole communities in Vanuatu, Tuvalu and the Bay of Bengal have already relocated because of sea level rise, and 16 million Egyptians may also have to leave their homes. Violence is another factor in the decision to leave one’s home; 40 per cent of intra-state conflicts are linked to disputes over natural resources. / Photo: Uganda, storm clouds / John McGrath, Oxfam

Farmers are no longer able to rely on weather patterns and the seasons – it is changing too quickly; generations of experience is no longer relevant.

The 2.6 billion fishers around the world are also at risk: ‘dead zones’ are appearing in the Indian Ocean, and 90 per cent of food in the ‘coral triangle’ of the western pacific may disappear. / Photo: Bangladesh: The crops of farmer Mohfiz Prodhan, 77, are dying in the erratic floods / CSRL and Daily New Age

Disasters are becoming the norm, not the exception. Three times as many climate-related disasters such as floods, typhoons and drought are expected to occur, affecting about 375 million people each year. Poor people are always hit hardest, with the fewest resources to survive, cope, and start again. In rich countries, the average number of deaths per disaster is 23, while in poorer, the average is 1,052. / Photo: After a hurricane in Haiti / Diana Hernandez Cordero, Oxfam

Source: Suffering the Science - Climate Change, People and Poverty, Oxfam International, July 2009. To read the full report, go to www. oxfam.org.hk. (http://www.oxfam.org.hk/ public/contents/press?ha=&wc=0&hb=&hc=&r evision_id=62521&item_id=62520)

O.N.E December 2009

Music, floating gardens, and climate change

By Nicole Lee

When Paul Wong, the lead musician

Far m e r s in Vab anip u r are

floodwaters. Before all the big floods,

now we are trying to grow other

of the Hong Kong band Beyond, visited

experimenting with ‘floating gardens’

the family used to earn an average

crops such as tomatoes, herbs and

the northeast Bangladesh village of

which mean that even with floods,

HK$650 each month from the rice;

vegetables. We have also shifted to

Vabanipur, he could see and feel how

they can still farm – not into the

they have expec tations that the

growing a kind of rice with a shorter

the climate is changing.

earth, but on top of floodwater. This

floating gardens will once again be

growing time, hoping to harvest them

”We traveled to the village by

innovative project is through the

able to provide for the family.

before the flashfloods come.”

boat. On the way, I saw what looked

Center for Natural Resources Studies,

Paul was particularly touched

“Without these climate-sensitive

like an ocean – it had originally been

a Bangladesh NGO, and supported by

by Shefali, a 45-year-old rice farmer

farming methods, Vabanipur might be

a vast field of rice. People told me

Oxfam Hong Kong. Over the past few

who told him that when she was

in ruins,” says Paul. “The new methods

that it is flooded for six to seven

years, Oxfam has learned that in order

young, they used to have six seasons,

seem to be off to a great start, and

months of the year now. They said that

to assist communities to maintain and

including the monsoon seasons. The

people like Shefali and Mrithunjoy

the weather has been so abnormal

improve their livelihoods in the long

weather was milder, with summers

are full of hope. Oxfam has also

recently, with the monsoon seasons

run, we now have to introduce climate

not too hot, and winters not too cold.

been supporting the building of an

earlier, rainstorms heavier, and their

adaptation measures alongside our

Nowadays, the six seasons are not

education centre right in the village

harvests smaller. The evolution of

usual poverty-reduction work.

clearly distinguishable. The summer

– in the past, floods blocked all the

Vabanipur clearly indicated to me just

A farmer named Mrithunjoy is

is longer and harsher, as if the winter

transportation in and out of the village

how badly climate change has hit this

the first person in the village to try

season has almost disappeared. What

and kids could not get to school. We in

farming village.”

farming on floating gardens, and he

she fears most is the flashfloods. Paul

Hong Kong may not realise that carbon

A lre a d y o n e of t h e p o o re s t

is very happy with the ‘invention’,

can still sense the chills when Shefali

dioxide and other greenhouse gases

countrie s in the world, with 37

saying, “This 10 x 30 foot farm is

talked about the flashfloods.

we emit every day are changing the

million of its 150 million people living

built on a wood frame. I fixed its

“When I was young, there were

climate around the world, including in

in ex treme pover t y, Bangladesh

position with string, which helps to

no flashfloods like that,” Shefali.

Bangladesh. The average Hong Kong

is at risk of even worse pover t y

prevent it from being washed away

“Even though there was rain in the

person emits twice the global average,

due to climatic changes. Weather is

by floodwaters, and filled the frame

summer, it seldom caused any real

and our excessive emissions essentially

unpredictable, seasonal patterns are

with soil. It’s ready now!”

damage. Now rainstorms are fiercer

mean more suffering in at-risk, low-

changing, flashfloods are getting

Mrithunjoy has to support a large

and the monsoon winds are as early

lying countries like Bangladesh. I feel

more dangerous, and temperatures

family through these rice harvests:

as April, suddenly causing these new

responsible for their suffering.”

have increased over the last 20 years

he lives with his parents and six

flashfloods. We have felt so helpless,

Paul Wong wonders. What is the

(in May, for instance, it’s 1°C hotter

younger brothers and sisters. Without

with nothing to do but watch our

sound of the climate changing? Can

and in November, 0.5°C hotter), and

the floating gardens, the family

precious crops be destroyed by floods

music make a difference? Let’s see

the northeast (where Vabanipur is

crops were all being destroyed, and

that came too early, before harvest.”

what songs the Oxfam Ambassador

located) faces floods for more than

they would lose one fourth of the

Besides the new floating gardens,

half of the year. Agricultural experts

family income ; they also had to

Shefali, Mrithunjoy and other farmers

estimate that climate change has led

spend an extra HK$2,860 to raise the

in Vabanipur are trying other ways of

to a 13 to 17% drop of agricultural

homestead about every two years to

farming to adapt. Shefali explained,

products nationwide.

keep the house safe from the rising

“In the past, we only grew rice, but

Floating gardens in flood-prone Bangladesh: tomatoes, vegetables and soon, rice / Photo: Chun Wai

might write now.

Nicole Lee, a campaigner against climate change with Oxfam Hong Kong, accompanied Paul Wong to Bangladesh in October 2009.

Photo: Chun Wai

O.N.E December 2009

desh Bangla

BANGL IN IS IS R C THE CLIMATE Wong ul Photos by Pa

ADESH

For more photos by mus ician Paul Wong, an Oxf am Ambassador against clim ate change, please visit his blog: http://hk.myblog.yahoo .com/wongpaul_hk

O.N.E December 2009

ACTION in HONG KONG

SIGN

Send your voice to the UN

www.oxfam.org.hk/climatechange

join

Climate crisis group on Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=34678733199

SIng

2.12, outside the Legislative Council, Central, Hong Kong

http://hkcomplaintschoir.blogspot.com

walk

12.12 is the Global Day of Action Action is happening in over 100 countries Hong Kong joins with WALK FOR OUR WINTER Walk for Winter: http://www.facebook.com/walk4winter?v=info

Walk for Our Winter, 12.12,

Global Day of Action: http://www.globalclimatecampaign.org

Avenue of the Stars, Tsimshatsui, Hong Kong

www.facebook.com/walk4winter

read

‘A to Z’, easy-to-read tips (in Chinese)

www.oxfam.org.hk/fs/view/right/climatechange/climate_change_glossary.pdf

See

Bangladesh / in a video with Oxfam Ambassador Paul Wong of Beyond fame

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cn7JPNJt2Jk Peru / by model and photographer Helena Christensen

www.proud.co.uk/Meltdown-Images-of-Climate-Change-Helena-Christensen.aspx Vietnam / by Magnum photographer Martin Parr

www.oxfam.org.uk/get_involved/campaign/climate_change/ 14 countries / in an exhibition ‘Canvas for Change’

www.flickr.com/photos/oxfam/sets/72157609272781509/show/

play

An interactive game on climate change

www.oxfam.org.hk/climatechange/youth2008/game1_en.html

Support

Combat Climate Change Coalition: A coalition of 29 (and counting) groups in Hong Kong, initiated by Greenpeace China, Oxfam Hong Kong, and World Wide Fund for Nature, Hong Kong

The 29 members: Breakthrough Limited / Catholic ‘Messengers of Green Consciousness / Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong / Clear The Air / Eco Association / Friends of The Earth (Hong Kong) / Green Council / Greenpeace China / Green Power / Greeners Action / Greensense / Hong Kong Church Renewal Movement / Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions / Hong Kong Federation of Women's Centres / Hong Kong People's Council for Sustainable Development / Hong Kong Social Workers' General Union / Neighbourhood and Worker’s Service Centre / Oxfam Hong Kong / Produce Green Foundation / Senior Citizen Home Safety Association / St. James' Settlement - Community Oriented Mutual Economy / The Boys' & Girls’ Clubs Association of Hong Kong / The Conservancy Association / The Hong Kong Allergy Association / The Hong Kong Asthma Society / The Professional Commons / The Roundtable / World Wide Fund for Nature Hong Kong / Youth Voice

O.N.E December 2009

10

Every day, Oxfam Hong Kong

3

N e w PartnerOrganisations

works alongside hundreds of groups around the world, from

Oxfam Books

EARTH, AIR, FIRE, WATER

small NGOs to international bodies,

OX-Tales is a series of four paperback originals that highlight Oxfam’s

from government departments of

work for the world: Earth (from land rights to farming), Air (campaigning to

developing countries to community

climate change), Fire (supporting survivors of conflict) and Water (safe water

groups based in Hong Kong. Here are

in emergencies).

3 ‘partner organisations’ that we are

OX-Tales features 38 authors – including Hanif Kureishi, Ian Rankin and

supporting for the first time.

Jeanette Winterson – who have donated their writing to Oxfam. In Hong

HONG KONG

Kong, the books are available at selected Dymocks, Metrobooks and Page

• KEEP Consulting Ltd

One bookshops.

• Women's Network and Training Center BEIJING

• Chengbiancun Project Group for Migrant Workers Website

In this edition of O.N.E, we highlight the Chengbiancun Project Group for Migrant Workers Website, www.chengbiancun.com, a website (in Chinese) with comprehensive information on culture, work, health and legal rights for migrant workers. It is due to be launched in January 2010.

Migrant workers often face boredom and monotony in their jobs, in their lives, and internet surfing has become a main recreational activity of the current generation of workers – often called the ‘newborn’ or ‘second’ generation.

Internet cafes are popular around the Yangtze and Pearl rivers, where many migrant workers are based. Several websites have been set up with these workers in mind, yet, the Chengbiancun Project Group feels that many of the sites only have limited content on useful things such as job recruitments, legal information, creative writing by migrant workers, and relevant statistics and research on migrant labour. They also feel that the information that is available tends to scattered on various sites. Through the new site, they aim to be a source of authoritative and comprehensive information, to provide a platform for migrant workers to voice out their needs, and create space for concerned people to advocate for better conditions for migrant workers.

The Project Group was established by migrant workers, NGO workers, graduate students, and others who are concerned about migrant worker issues; most of the co-founders had previously served as interns with Oxfam Hong Kong on migrant worker programmes. Nowadays, they are the ones Nowadays, they are the ones who provide training for volunteers and interns on offering services with migrant workers.

For more information, visit: www.oxfam.org.uk/books

MOKUNG

ONE

MOKUNG is a full- colour, 28-page magazine

O.N.E – Oxfam News E-magazine – is uploaded monthly at www.oxfam.org.hk/one.

published every two months, and each time, it highlights

To receive a copy in your inbox, please subscribe – it is FREE.

a different topic. In Chinese, MOKUNG means both

To subscribe: www.oxfam.org.hk/one/subscribe.html

'infinity' and 'no poverty' – there are so many things to be done to stop poverty and its injustice. The current edition focuses on youth unemployment and the

O.N.E (Oxfam News E-magazine) is published monthly by Oxfam Hong Kong, 17th

minimum wage in Hong Kong. The next edition will be

Floor, China United Centre, 28 Marble Road, North Point, Hong Kong. The publisher

on Climate Change.

does not necessarily endorse views expressed by contributors. For permission to

In print (subscription is HK$20/year) and on-line (www.oxfam.org.hk).

To subscribe: www.oxfam.org.hk/public/bookstore/?lang=big5 Mokung is online at www.oxfam.org.hk/public/contents/category?cid=1017&lang=big5

reprint articles, please contact us; normally, we grant permission provided the source is clearly acknowledged. O.N.E is available free to all, in both an HTML and PDF version, and in Chinese and English.

Oxfam Hong Kong 17th Floor, 28 Marble Road, Northpoint, Hong Kong

www.oxfam.org.hk Hong Kong

O.N.E is also on-line: www.oxfam.org.hk/one Editor: Madeleine Marie Slavick (emagazine@oxfam.org.hk)