oxfam

• Changement climatique
• Bangladesh
• climate
• COP15
• Copenhagen
• Enviroment
• floods
• Maldives
• oxfam
• Sea levels
• UN Climate Change Conference
• Oxfam Great Britain

Just to show it's not over 'til it's over - and underline the power of targeted advocacy - the final communiqué on food security from the G8 leaders caught everyone by surprise by boosting the pledge for support to agriculture to US$20 billion.

It may not have been our critique that moved the leaders to set a more ambitious goal but our strong message to governments - and through the media to their citizens - can't have hurt in moving the bar.

Chaque minute, une femme meurt en donnant la vie. Chaque jour, 75 millions d’enfants en âge d’être scolarisé n’ont pas accès à l’éducation. Si les dirigeants du G8 étaient « enceints », ils se sentiraient plus concernés par la vie de ces mères. Si leurs enfants se retrouvaient devant des portes d’écoles fermées, ils en feraient certainement plus pour l’accès à l’éducation. Si leurs enfants n’avaient ni docteurs, ni professeurs, ni eau potable, ils en feraient plus pour éradiquer la pauvreté.

Ce soir à l’Aquila, ils seront plus de 30 chefs d’État à partager le festin du grand dîner officiel du G8. Pendant ce temps, un milliard de personnes sont en danger de mort à cause de la malnutrition. C’est une personne sur six qui est concernée et 16 000 enfants meurent des conséquences de la faim chaque jour.

As photo ops go, it doesn’t get much better. A beautiful Rome morning. The ruins of Nero’s palace on the horizon. A backdrop of leaping flames augmented by fire breathers. And the heads of the G8 countries cavorting about in togas, fiddling while Africa burns.

With a stroke of a hammer the climate change talks were over – two weeks of intense negotiations for… for what actually?

So I'm sitting down to write today's blog, with my socks on the radiator and my free UN mittens on my icy feet, when I get the call. "Al Gore's giving a speech at 1.15!".  I had been about to describe in great detail the new Oxfam ice sculpture that was carved this morning at the entrance to the UN Climate Talks here in Poznan - in two massive blocks of ice - the cold, hard truth - "Delay Kills".

Let's bury the idea that discussions on Climate Change are the preserve of scientists. Sure enough, debates on the issue are dominated by projections as to the speed of global warming, the levels of greenhouse gas emissions and so on, but at the heart of these discussions are people.

The term horse trading is an Americanism that dates back to early 19^th century and refers to intricacies of assessing, bargaining and trading of horses. Apparently one had to be a shrewd dealer in order to obtain the best horse for the best price or vice versa.

Donors and aid recipient’s countries are not the only group interested in development aid. Again and again, civil society organizations from all over the world have been demanding a right to a say in the aid industry.
“Governments from developing countries are shamefully more accountable to donors than to citizens that have queued in poll stations to cast their votes to elect their leaders” – described some of the groups I met with during the civil society for better aid event in Accra.