Fairtrade Fortnight event - Broad Street shop 28 Feb

Fairtrade Fortnight (23 February to 8 March) is just around the corner and the Oxfam shop in Broad Street needs extra helpers to work on a stall outside the shop on Saturday 28th February. You would be getting passers-by to taste Fairtrade tea, coffee and other goodies, and also selling Fairtrade goods. Please contact Rachel at volunteer@oxfordoxfamgroup.org.uk if you are able to help.

We have been doing events like this for over a decade, back when Fairtrade was pretty niche - they are usually a lot of fun, as well as being a good way to spread information about Fairtrade. Among our exploits of yesteryear, we organized a "Mad Hatter's Tea Party" for the UK launch of TeaDirect. It somewhat bemused two delegates visiting from the co-operatives producing the tea (it seems that Lewis Caroll is not so big in their part of Uganda). Given the mismatch between my 6'2" frame and the brown plush dormouse costume we had, I am glad that Naveed probably has no photos (though do check the comments box, in case he has!).

More seriously it was very interesting to hear first-hand what Fairtrade could do - their first projects for their Fairtrade premium were to expand the medical facilities they had at their dispensary, and to build a bridge. Without the bridge, some farmers had to trudge for miles on foot with sacks of tea on their backs to get their crop to the co-operative's processing plant. That's the kind of thing buying Fairtrade achieves.

Don't worry - as far as I know, the upcoming event is not fancy dress.

Oxford Book of Soups and Stews - call for recipies

Cyril Edwards has asked me to post this about another fundraising project!

Well, I have no academic book coming out this year, so thought I'd go, in the autumn, for my first cookbook (and also my first self-published book). It's a collaborative effort – I'm just the editor and compiler (and one of the 4 central cooks). Naveed is another. The book will be 128pp, beautifully illustrated, ring-bound and on acid-free paper. Guest recipes have been coming in from far and wide, but no doubt OOG people could offer me more. There will be 3 sections: vegetable; fish; meat, poultry and game. Family recipes are ideal, exotic recipes very welcome, and acknowledgements should be scrupulously made, preferably with an anecdote. So please send me your recipes, preferably by e-mail: volunteer@oxfordoxfamgroup.org.uk

The last date for submission of recipes is April Fools' Day, 2009.

I would welcome help with marketing. Local shops here in Abingdon have been very encouraging. The problem with selling books through Oxfam shops is the splitting of the profits. Oxfam is curiously reluctant about such matters, far too rigid. They shouldn't be. I'm quite happy for half the profits to go to Oxfam, but I would like, in an ideal world, to cover my costs. Laserset in Abingdon will be doing the printing. I estimate the book will cost £6.99 or £7.99.

Oxford Oxfam Group Sponsored Walk

Cyril Edwards, who is organising the walk, asked me to post the following:

As you may recall, we do a sponsored walk every two years. Despite the low number of walkers, the 2008 Shotover walk was a success financially, and it was extraordinarily beautiful.

This year the plan is to start from our Lake Street base, walk to North Hinksey, then across country to Osney, then along the Thames Path to Port Meadow's south side. Thence to Binsey, with a detour to the lovely church, then on to Godstow, and back via Woodcote and the Trap Grounds, returning along the canal path, now so sadly disfigured by new housing developments. Given the weather, I've not yet done the pre-walking, but hope to do so soon. Anyone wishing to join me for the pre-walking is most welcome, if there's a bright day soon contact us on volunteer@oxfordoxfamgroup.org.uk. I'll take my non-digital camera, so the basis for a poster, on past experience, should develop. I'll also write a guide, with a map, and I hope that Oxfam House will print it, as they have done before.

Distance: perhaps 10 miles. Rather shorter than our usual walks, but anno domini!

Provisional date: Saturday May 30th.

What do I ask of OOG?

(i) Cardboard signs. We lost a lot on the last walk, and I've very few left (dating from the Greens). They should be strips of cardboard, with 2 holes, strung, and pointing either right and left, with OOG inscribed upon them. No elaborate artwork necessary, unless you feel so inclined!

(ii) Publicity: Claire Abolins and Rachel Iliffe have been great about this, but we still haven't had many walkers for the last 2 walks (Shotover and the Canal Walk).

(iii) (Wo)manning the reception area. Lake Street must be (wo)manned from 10.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. It need only be one person. There are so many great pubs on this walk (or pub crawl, if you prefer!) that I would not expect many people to get back before 2.00, but walkers feel let down if there is not a warm welcome, and, at very least, a cup of tea. The atmosphere after the return of walkers in 2008, was frankly, wonderful and joyous, and we must try to rescue the photos lots of people took then.

(iv) Most importantly: we need walkers! Despite our best efforts at publicity, the numbers of walkers for the last two lovely walks were low, and this inevitably affects sponsorship negatively. Back in the 90s, we often had mothers walking with prams, and the Port Meadow walk will be, for the most part, flat and not physically demanding at all. (Unless there are floods!) We have, somehow, to make this more of an event with lots of people participating. I'll circulate details in the University, but it doesn't, generally, work well. Ideas, please!

Can you help with any of the above? Contact us on volunteer@oxfordoxfamgroup.org.uk [It would help us if you gave your email the title "Walk"]

In Focus photo project

My colleague Rebecca at Oxfam House has asked me to advertise her photo project aimed at getting 11-14 year olds in Oxfordshire to think about what they'd like to protect from climate change.

The Green Finger project asks children to colour in their index finger in green pen and write on their palm what they want to protect, and then take a photo or video with their palm and Green Finger facing the camera, like this:














Or this:



When children enter In Focus, they join people from all over the world who are telling world leaders and people everywhere to take action and protect the world from climate change, which affects poorest people the worst.

The deadline for entries by Monday 23 March. The best entries will win great prizes! Up for grabs are a Sony Cybershot T77 camera, a Flip Video Mino and digital photo frames. So if you have kids in this age range, or have links with a local school, do let them know about it.

Oxfam Activist News

Read all about it. You can download the latest issue of Activist News (opens as a PDF file) here. Activist News is a monthly newsletter for Oxfam supporters.

Oxford Oxfam Group Sponsored Walk 2009

Plans are getting underway for an OOG sponsored walk this summer. The date is provisionally 30th May. Previous walks have been both a lot of fun and a good fund-raiser for Oxfam. Probably this one will be a circular walk around the Port Meadow area in Oxford. As for previous walks, Cyril Edwards is planning to produce an interesting walk booklet - history and natural history as well as directions. It would not be an OOG walk without there being several good pubs en route.

Watch this space! Come March, both walkers and helpers will be wanted.

Oxford recertified as a Fairtrade City

Good news! Oxford has been recertified as a Fairtrade City in time for Fairtrade Fortnight. This is a process which has to be undergone regularly, and the Oxford Fairtrade Coalition has been working hard to ensure that we still meet or exceed the criteria - which we do! The Coalition, like us, has gone blog-crazy, and you can find details of what's going on during Fairtrade Fortnight on the new site.

In particular, there will be an event on 23 February from 7 till 9pm at Oxford Town Hall to discuss the motion ‘Is trade justice a lost cause?’. Speakers will include Harriet Lamb, Executive Director of the Fairtrade Foundation; John Hilary, Director of War on Want; Fiona Shera, Head of Trade and Development, DFID-BERR; and Edwin Laurent, Former Special Envoy to the EU for the Windward Islands.

This year, the Fairtrade Foundation are asking us to go bananas,and take part in a world record attempt on the biggest mass-banana-consumption event in history (words I would not have anticipated ever having to write). If like me, you think bananas are there to be laughed at and not eaten, then you may be interested in my Fairtrade banana video:



Or then again, you may not.