Think Global act locally with the World Development Movement

lSeptember 2014

Brighton and Hove W

DM

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Contents

letter from the activism team

action checklist

Campaign update: food sovereignty

Campaign update: climate and energy justice

Reluanch update

Campaign update: trade justice

Events

Groups

Current materials

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inserts• Energy justice briefing – Groups only• World food day action pack – Groups only• Agribusiness MP talking points – Groups only• Isvara sub-grants overview – Groups only • Fuel Poverty Action’s energy bill of rights – Groups only

You can request copies of inserts that aren’t available online by emailing activism@wdm.org.uk or calling 020 7820 4900.

Bexhill and Hastings WDM on the TTIP day of action in July

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letter from the activism team

Climate and energy justice• UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is holding an extra climate summit in New York on 23 September,

inviting governments, business leaders and some civil society groups. Several of our global allies have criticised this event, which looks set to give multinational corporations a major voice.

Trade• 150,000 people responded to the European consultation on ISDS rules in TTIP, with 50,000 from

the UK alone. We will have to wait until the end of the year to get a full response from the European Commission to the submissions.

Food• The New Alliance’s latest annual progress report showed little accountability and transparency and

offered no assessment of the Alliance’s direct impact on food security and nutrition.

news bites

Dear friend,

This month we’re excited to be welcoming two new members of staff to the activism team. Ed Lewis has just started as Sarah Reader’s replacement as groups officer. Ed was until recently a north London teacher, but has plenty of activist experience too. He was a founding editor of New Left Project (www.newleftproject.org), and most excitingly for WDM he has lots of experience of engaging young people in social justice issues, most recently through Demand the Impossible, a week-long summer school for London teenagers particularly aimed at working class communities. You can reach him on ed.lewis@wdm.org.uk or on the normal WDM phone number.

We’re also welcoming Cat Rowe to a new temporary role supporting local groups through the relaunch. Cat is a Brighton and Hove local group member, so will bring an on-the-ground understanding of how groups work to the role. She has also been heavily involved in Food Sovereignty Sussex. She starts on 10 September and will be with us for six months.

This means that for the next six months, the activism team will be:

• Senior activism officer: Katharine Talbot/James O’Nions (full time; jobshare)• Groups officer: Ed Lewis (full time)• Events and activism assistant: Ralph Allen (3 days/week)• Groups assistant: Cat Rowe (3 days/week)• We are looking forward to seeing lots of you at our AGM and groups conference in Nottingham on 13 September and if you haven’t yet booked your place there is still time; please email activism@wdm.org.uk or call 020 7820 4900.

Happy campaigning!

Katharine Talbot

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action checklist

Food sovereignty

Organise a lobby meeting with your MP(s) to discuss the problems with the New Alliance.

Trade justice

Sign our action card asking MPs to demand transparency on TTIP.

Make contact with local groups near you also campaigning against TTIP. The European-wide day of action on 11 October is one opportunity for joint work but there will be more.

Energy justice

Sign up to Fuel Poverty Action’s Energy Bill of Rights.

Write to your local paper to highlight Reclaim Power week and that you have signed Fuel Poverty Action’s Energy Bill of Rights.

Things you can do as a group:October is a busy month! You could…..

Plan to take part in the European-wide day of action against TTIP on 11 October.

Run a joint event with a local food group on 16 October (World Food Day).

Organise a stall or stunt during Reclaim Power week (10-17 October).

Manchester groups during the TTIP day of action in July

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Campaign update: Food sovereignty

Food Day - 16 October. The idea is to celebrate the growing number of groups and community projects around the UK that are involved in food sovereignty. It is also aimed at bringing in people who are involved in the local food movement but do not necessarily realise that they are articulating food sovereignty.

As WDM, we can use this as an opportunity to bring an international solidarity perspective to UK actions and help link up the struggle for food sovereignty in the UK to the global movement. See the enclosed action guide for ideas (this was also circulated to groups by email in August).

MP lobbyingSince the launch of the campaign, action cards have been sent to MPs calling on the secretary of state for international development, Justine Greening, to stop UK support for the G8 New Alliance. It would be good to follow up these action cards with a visit to your MP this autumn for a lobby meeting. This will provide an opportunity to discuss the issue with your MP and to ask them to help put pressure on Justine Greening.

In August, the New Alliance released its latest annual progress report at the Africa Leaders’ Summit, hosted by President Obama in the US. The report showed:

• Lack of accountability and transparency. Of the 277 companies that had pledged to make investments, only 65 had reported any data on the social impacts of their investment.

• Only 21 per cent of small scale farmers that have been ‘reached’ by corporate projects are women with no explanation or detail about what ‘reached’ means.

• No assessment of the New Alliance’s direct impact on food security and nutrition.

The New Alliance prioritises the role of big corporations in addressing food security in Africa and yet even its latest progress report produces very little evidence of the positive impact on people and communities.

Also, during the same summit, Coca Cola announced its plan to expand its business activities in Africa. As part of its new investments, Coca Cola are launching Source Africa, a partnership with the New Alliance and Grow Africa, to source “consistent and sustainable” local ingredients in African countries.

You can read more about WDM’s response to these announcements on: http://www.wdm.org.uk/food-and-hunger/coca-colas-investment-africa-not-about-solving-hunger

And we also got a mention in this article on the Guardian development site: http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2014/aug/07/us-criticised-private-sector-investment-africa

Take action

World Food DayThis year the UK food sovereignty movement will be holding a national day of action on World

Shropshire WDM

agribusiness stall

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There are a number of MPs who we think are particularly useful to target:

MP Party Constituency Role

Jim Murphy Labour East Renfrewshire Shadow secretary for international development

Alison MacGovern Labour Wirral South Shadow minister for international development

Gavin Shuker Labour Luton South Shadow minister for international development

Huw Irranca-Davies Labour Ogmore Shadow minister in department of energy, food and rural affairs

Kerry McCarthy Labour Bristol East Shadow minister in foreign and commonwealth affairs

Lynne Featherstone Lib Dem Hornsey and Wood Green Minister in department of international development

Julian Huppert Lib Dem Cambridge Involved in three parliamentary groups: international development and the environment; international corporate responsibility and business; human rights and the environment

However, if your MP is not in this target list, we still think it is worth meeting them if you can as many MPs are still not aware of this issue.

To help you with MP lobbying, we have enclosed a briefing which provides you with key talking points that you can use in a meeting with your MP. You can also call up the office to speak to a member of the food campaign team if you have questions or need help to prepare for a meeting.

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Energy justice briefingThe team have been working hard over the summer on the new phase of our climate and energy campaign. This will focus on energy justice - systems in which energy is fairly distributed, democratically controlled and managed to recognise the planet’s limits. Local groups will find enclosed a copy of a discussion paper we’ve produced to introduce the concept of energy justice and help you explore what it could mean.

We don’t expect that all members of the group will have time to read the whole thing, so we have provided a couple of extra copies of the short summary on the first page, which you can refer to if you don’t have time to read the entire briefing. We’ve also included some questions which you may find useful to get the discussion flowing.

We’d love to hear your feedback on the briefing. Was it useful? Were any parts unclear? Please send any feedback or questions to sam.lund-harket@wdm.org.uk. Please also contact Sam if you’d like extra copies of the briefing or summary for other members of your group.

The briefing is not designed for using on stalls or with the public. We will be producing separate materials, including a brief introduction to energy justice and an ‘energy alternatives’ booklet, for this purpose, over the next couple of months.

Reclaim Power week of action 10 – 17 octoberGroups around the world campaigning for energy and climate justice are organising Reclaim Power. This is a global week of action on energy to highlight the urgency of transforming our energy systems at local, national and global levels, and to demand a shift from corporate-controlled fossil fuels to clean, fair and democratic energy systems.

We’re aware that groups may be busy with activities for World Food Day and trade

Campaign update: Climate and energy justice

campaigning at this time, but there are some simple ways that you can participate:

Sign up to Fuel Poverty action’s Energy bill of RightsThis winter, we’ll be working with grassroots group Fuel Poverty Action to make the links between fuel poverty and the big six energy companies’ control of our energy system in the UK and energy injustice at the global level.

We’ve included a copy of their Energy Bill of Rights with this copy of Think Global; you can also find it online at http://tinyurl.com/FPARights.

We’ve already signed up with this statement from our director Nick: “In a just world, everyone would have access to affordable, sustainable energy. But today, because corporate control puts the profits of the few ahead of the many, billions of people are locked out of energy justice. The Energy Bill of Rights says people must come before profits. We believe that applies all round the world. The Energy Bill of Rights provides a framework for wresting control of energy away from big corporations, to place it in the hands of people.”

It would be great if WDM groups around the country could also add their support. Email fuelpovertyaction@gmail.com to sign up (and please copy in sam.lund-harket@wdm.org.uk so we can keep track of support).

Write to your local paper Highlight Reclaim Power week and the fact that you’ve signed up to Fuel Poverty Action’s Energy Bill of Rights. You should find some information in the energy justice discussion briefing which will help to make the links between fuel poverty and corporate control of energy in the UK and globally.

hold a local stunt If you want to do more locally in Reclaim Power week, you could use the materials from the carbon bubbles or extraction site stunt packs to highlight the problem of dirty, corporate-controlled energy

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systems around the world. If you need any extra materials (e.g. hazard tape), please contact Sam in the office on 020 7820 4900 or sam.lund-harket@wdm.org.uk and we’ll do our best to supply them. In next month’s Think Global we will be including copies of a short introductory leaflet on energy justice which could be useful for your stunt. Please contact Sam if you’d like extra copies of this.

Global action on climate changeIn addition to the annual UN climate change negotiations (‘COP’) which will be held this December in Lima, Peru, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is holding a climate summit in New York on 23 September, inviting governments, business

lRelaunch updatel

WebsiteThe communications team is currently working on a new website for the organisation. This would have been necessary anyway, regardless of the relaunch, since the system we use to manage it is now out of date and our current hosting package is now insufficient for our needs. Because of the urgency of this work, the new website will be launched in October, and will initially carry the WDM logo even if the AGM votes to change our name in September. The new site should be quicker to update for staff and a better experience for the user.

We are also developing a social networking part of the site to allow groups and activists to communicate directly with one another. This will be something you can log into, post on and even use for inter-group communication if you wish. It is still in the development stage, and we will do some testing before launching it to ensure it is meeting group needs. Watch this space.

Finally, your group websites are not initially affected by the new main website since they are hosted separately, and we can update the look and feel of them centrally. However, if you don’t use

leaders and some civil society groups. Several of our global allies have expressed criticism at this event, which looks set to give multinational corporations a major voice.

Here in the UK, the demand is ‘Action, Not Words: Divest now!’ Over the weekend of 19 - 21 September, people around the world will be organising local events and divestment-themed actions to send a clear message to global leaders; we must confront the power of the dirty energy industry in order to address the climate crisis. To find out about events near you, visit http://peoplesclimate.org

your site much, and it mainly just carries contact details, you will now have the option to just have a page on the main site instead. We will be in touch with you about all this during the autumn.

Groups’ and activists’ conferenceThere will be a special session at the groups conference on 13 September to discuss how to get the most out of the relaunch. The activism team will update you on what concrete resources, new materials and support you can expect from us, and we’re sure groups will have ideas to share too, as well as questions to ask.

If you’re reading this as an activist in an area where there is no group, and you’re interested in using the relaunch as an opportunity to get something going locally, please get in touch with our new groups officer, Ed Lewis: ed.lewis@wdm.org.uk

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Campaign update: Trade justice 12 July day of actionThousands of people took part in the day of action on TTIP (the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership) on 12 July. Many WDM groups were involved and together with other groups, like trade unions, Friends of the Earth and Occupy, we made the day a spectacular success.

In London, over a thousand people gathered outside the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) in London to protest against the TTIP trade deal. We marched past the Houses of Parliament and held a rally outside the UK office of the European Commission. There was a carnival atmosphere, with stilt walking business men, workshops, speeches and children’s activities.

Almost 20 similar events took place around the UK, including dancing robots in Edinburgh and a No TTIP conga in Manchester. Resistance is growing and No TTIP campaigners across Europe are now planning a European Day of Action on 11 October.

local papersWe asked you to write to your local papers to express concern about TTIP and you responded in force. Over 90 local newspapers have printed No TTIP letters, demonstrating that there is UK-wide opposition to the deal.

Speaker tourIn the run- up to the day of Action, WDM worked with War on Want, UNISON and the Rosa Luxemborg Foundation to put on a speaker tour on TTIP in Manchester, Birmingham and London. Over 500 people came along to find out more about TTIP.

European consultation on iSDS rules in TTiPDespite the technical questions and the quantity of jargon in the European consultation on new rules to protect investors (known as ISDS) in TTIP, the response by European citizens broke all records. 150,000 people responded altogether, with 50,000 from the UK alone. We will have to wait until the end of the year to get a full response from the European Commission to the submissions. However, we are confident that the

majority of submissions expressed concern or outright opposition to new rules for investors.

6th round of TTiP negotiationsBetween 14 and 18 July European and US trade negotiators met in Brussels for the 6th round of negotiations. The secrecy of the talks makes it hard to report on the outcomes, but it is clear they are making little progress. There have been fresh leaks of some draft texts from the negotiations, including ones which demonstrate the lower food standards the US food industry is lobbying for. The 7th round of negotiations take place in September in Washington.

autumn activitySeptember and October will be a busy period for No TTIP campaigners. Look out for new materials, including an introductory leaflet, a second edition of The NoTTIP Times, a range of policy briefings on key issues in TTIP and a leaflet we are using in a trade appeal mailing. The first will be written by University of Manchester academic, Dr Gabriel Siles-Brugge, and explains why the growth TTIP is argued to bring to the UK economy is wildly exaggerated.

WDM will continue lobbying MPs and MEPs, including at the Labour Party Conference, where we are organising a fringe meeting, chaired by Larry Elliot, economics editor of the Guardian with several general secretaries of UK trade unions and UK MEP David Martin.

There will be many opportunities for WDM groups to take action. On 11 October, there is a European Day of Action. Contact activism@wdm.org.uk for more information on this and for a full list of all the groups campaigning locally on TTIP, to help you make local links. You can also check out www.nottip.org.uk for this list on the homepage.

WDM is supporting a European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) to stop TTIP. This EU wide petition needs 1 million European citizens to support it in order for the European Commission to respond. The ECI is expected to be launched in September and we will need all your support to get the necessary signatures in the UK.

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lEventsl

WDM aGM and groups conferenceWhen: Saturday 13 September, 10am to 6pm (including AGM)

Where: Nottingham Friends Meeting House, 25 Clarendon Street, Nottingham, NG1 5JD

2015 will be a hugely important year for WDM. The renaming and relaunch proposal which will be put to the AGM could be a real opportunity to push out with our influence and bring lots of new people on board to take action for global justice.

Sesssions and workshops:

• Opening plenary with Lisa Nandy MP (shadow minister for civil society) and Richard Solly of London Mining Network.

• Campaign updates and discussions on trade, agribusiness and energy justice

• What does the relaunch mean for your group• Organisational strategy discussion• Activism and social media • The Attac network and fighting corporate

globalisation

We will be providing refreshments and lunch, and we’ll also be inviting members to join us for a drink after the event before staff return to London.

It’s not too late to book your place, register online at https://www.wdm.org.uk/activism-conference or call 020 7820 4900.

Scottish referendumScotland goes to the polls this month to vote on whether to become independent. Regardless of the outcome, the referendum itself is having a profound effect on the political and social landscape in Scotland, in particular at a grassroots level, with huge engagement around not just the issues relating to independence and the Union, but also the principles of democracy, sovereignty, creating a more equal and just society and, perhaps more generally, the prospect of change.

Throughout this year, WDM Scotland has been part of a coalition of NGOs running a programme of events, blogs and social media activities under the banner ‘2014 Matters’ (www.2014-matters.org). Our aim has been to create space to discuss and debate international issues, social justice and the environment as part of the referendum debate. There will be one more event after the referendum: ‘Global Justice in a new Scotland: an open space’, in early October in Edinburgh. This will be an opportunity for activists in Scotland to take stock, and consider what’s next for us. More information in next month’s Think Global, or on our website soon.

a Dangerous GameThis film follows the activities of Donald Trump and others ignoring environmental and social concerns to build golf courses for a handful of wealthy people, often as a smokescreen for creating luxury resorts.The documentary focuses on the resistance to this behaviour, from a broad swathe of people.

For more information and a full list of screenings go to www.adangerousgame.org

Take one action WDM Scotland are showing two films at the Take One Action film festival this year. Both films will be followed by audience discussions with speakers from WDM and other linked organisations explaining some of the issues the films raise in more depth, and encouraging people to take action. Visit www.takeoneaction.org.uk for more information

one World Week 2014 One World Week is taking place this year from 19-26 October. A few WDM groups organise events for it. We included a flyer for it with the June issue of Think Global. If you would like more information about it, visit the websitewww.oneworldweek.org or contact oww@oneworldweek.org

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brighton & hove WDM held an agribusiness stunt with an Africa shaped cake, alongside a stall in their friendly local ethical supermarket, and successfully got some press coverage.

Cambridge WDM joined the Cambridge launch of the Amnesty Stop Torture campaign earlier in the summer, people attending included the local MP Julian Huppert and the event was covered in the local press.

Reading WDM held an agribusiness stall at the Earley Green Fair in August.

leicester WDM organised a well-attended talk about agribusiness, given by WDM campaigner Christine.

Worthing WDM organised a ‘stop bank-rolling coal’ walking tour around central Worthing banks. Their efforts resulted in press coverage, including a short film of the tour.

bradford WDM and kirklees Climate action organised a joint Carbon Capital / UK Frack Free stall in central Bradford.

Shropshire WDM organised a creative agribusiness stall.

bexhill and hastings WDM have had a busy summer, with a well attended stall at St Leonards gardens which resulted in some good new contacts for the group. The group also shared a pitch with Fairtrade at a pre-carnival event earlier in the summer, and organised a ‘stop bank-rolling coal’ walking tour.

East Cleveland WDM ran an agribusiness stall at which they distributed 150 action cards and had the opportunity to talk to their newly elected MEP about the issues.

Watford WDM held a public meeting with Richard Howitt MEP in July.

Several WDM groups took part in the TTIP day of action on 12 July, including Manchester, Glasgow,

Sheffield, Brighton and Hove, Nottingham, Bexhill and Hastings, Edinburgh and South Essex Global Justice.

Growing our supporter base with More onionThroughout September and October, we will be working with online campaigning specialists More Onion to get our campaigns out to a wider audience. They will help us to make creative and effective campaign actions and make good use of social media tools to increase the size of our e-list and reach new potential members and supporters. We think it’s vital to keep growing our supporter base to ensure our campaigns have a high impact and really make the changes we want to see. Those who are most engaged with the campaign and give their name and address details without opting out of further communications may receive a telephone call from Ethicall, our telemarketing agency. A key part of our fundraising strategy is to recruit new direct debit givers and we hope that this new approach will be something we can invest more in if it proves successful. This is a joint campaigns/fundraising initiative to invite new people to join the WDM community so that we can keep building a strong and effective grassroots movement.

The series of emails and online actions will focus on the agribusiness campaign and will tell a spoof story of secretary of state for international development Justine Greening’s travels in Africa and the US to promote the New Alliance. We will be using a variety of campaign tactics targeting big players in the current drive for corporate agriculture in Africa, aiming to make a big noise about the campaign. If you are on our e-list you will receive these campaign actions in your inbox from September; otherwise you’ll be able to find them on our website.

lGroupsl

Current materials

Food campaign materials• REPORT: Carving up a continent • BRIEFING: A new wave of colonialism• STUNT PACK: Stop the corporate takeover of African food • BOOKLET: Stop the corporate takeover of African food• BRIEFING: Questions and Answers• ACTION CARD: Stop corporations from slicing up Africa• BRIEFING: MP talking points *new*• ACTION GUIDE: World food day *new*

Food sovereignty• BRIEFING: Collective solutions to changing food prices.• BRIEFING: Food sovereignty• BRIEFING: Food sovereignty tricky questions• FILM PACK: Whose food? Our food! Includes discussion guide• DVD: Growing Change plus promotional leaflet• DVD: Seeds of Freedom• DVD: Best Before

Carbon Capital• ACTION CARD: Stop bankrolling coal • LEAFLET: Stop bankrolling coal • REPORT: Banking while Borneo Burns• CAMPAIGN BOOKLET: Carbon Capital• LEAFLET: Injustice in Indonesia• LEAFLET: Mapping dirty finance• FILM PACK: Carbon Capital film pack, includes WDM’s film about mining in Indonesia• ACTION PACK: Bringing the extraction back to the banks• BRIEFING: Energy justice introduction (for groups use only)*new*

Trade• BRIEFING: Profiting from people and the planet: How new trade deals threaten democracy,

development, public services and the environment• ACTION CARD: Stop the corporate takeover• LEAFLET: Stop the corporate takeover• BOOKLET: ‘Rough Trade’ - a collection of articles on the new trade deals published in Red Pepper• GUIDE: Building a Europe for people not profit - lobbying pack for WDM activists around the European

elections

General materials• DVD: Making Another World Possible: Talking alternatives at the World Social Forum (made by WDM)• LEAFLET: Join a local group leaflet (can be overprinted with groups’ contact details)• BOOKLET: Fighting the cuts, lessons from around the world