Oxfam Intermón has supported allies using digital actions to put issues on the political agenda. Rodrigo Barahona, Virginia Vaquera and Patricia Corcuera share seven critical success factors. In recent years Spain has seen the devastating impact of economic crisis, austerity measures, and a rolling back of human rights – including the controversial Citizens Security Law, which has curbed freedom of …
Why care is a political act
Facilitators Shawna Wakefield and Heather Cole outline why self and collective care is fundamental to social justice, and how individuals and organizations can lead by example. There are many ways to understand what care means. Here, we define it as looking after the physical, emotional, spiritual and mental wellbeing, safety and dignity of ourselves and others. Too often, the focus …
Law as a tool to empower and achieve change
Noélie Coudurier, Sreetama Gupta Bhaya and Laura Gyte share a wealth of examples demonstrating how law can help drive positive change. As campaigners, we can feel ambivalent about law. As a product of society, it’s often structured to protect the privileged. Even the most progressive constitutions in the world, forged in times of political transformation and hope, are not yet …
Tax Havens Free Zones. Where think global, act local is more than just a slogan.
Rodrigo Barahona and Susana Ruiz describe how the Tax Havens Free Zones initiative is gathering momentum in the fight against inequality and poverty. When large companies and wealthy individuals divert part of their income to tax havens, this leaves governments without the resources they need to address poverty and invest in healthcare, education and jobs. Oxfam analyzed 200 of the …
New voices tearing up outdated economic norms and practices
Young women in Ghana are calling out the double standards that put them at an economic disadvantage. Kwesi W Obeng draws parallels with Oxfam’s work on tax and gender. Some of Ghana’s brightest and most educated young women are openly criticising deeply entrenched cultural, social and religious norms that restrict women, dim aspirations and undermine their contribution to society. Under …
Using elections to amplify people’s voices
Elections can be an important influencing opportunity for people living in poverty. Rodrigo Barahona and Isabel Crabtree-Condor share what Oxfam has learned from our work in four countries. Elections are a defining feature of democracies. They are a formal moment when the average person on the street can exercise power by voting for the public policies they want to see. Issues …
Should companies act when civic freedoms are under attack?
Mauricio Lazala and Ana Zbona, from the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, discuss how companies can help support civic freedoms and human rights defenders in the countries where they operate. Civic freedoms are being eroded around the world. According to CIVICUS, nearly six in ten countries are seriously restricting people’s fundamental freedoms of association, peaceful assembly and expression. Civil …
Motivating people to take action: towards an Asian narrative on tax justice and financial transparency
Amy Croome, from Oxfam GB, interviews fellow researchers, and civil society actors, on approaches, challenges, and opportunities to tax justice in Asia. For two days academics, activists and civil society actors came together in Delhi to discuss tax justice, illicit financial flows and tax havens in Asia. A key theme was the important role of narratives in motivating people to …
Making change happen
Oxfam GB’s Head of Publishing, Emily Gillingham, explains why and how we developed a free, online course for changemakers, and what the early results show. “I’m hoping this course will help me focus my objectives a bit more and discover what small but important steps I can take towards promoting change, changing minds and minding our community.” This comment from …
Young feminists driving change
Imogen Davies, Oxfam GB’s Global Adviser on Youth, Gender & Active Citizenship, and co-editor of the latest issue of Gender & Development, describes the political approaches young feminist movements are taking to reshape the international development landscape. There are more young people alive today than there ever have been before. Almost one person in four is aged 10-24, with 90 per …
