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Sponsorship gives<br />
her a helping hand,<br />
not a handout.<br />
Photograph for representation only: Jeremy Jackson-Sytner, Nepal.<br />
<strong>common</strong><br />
<strong>cause</strong><br />
the magazine for supporters of<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
SUMMER 2004<br />
SPECIAL REPORT: A HELPING<br />
HAND FOR INDIA’S HOMELESS<br />
FIRST PERSON: MEETING THE<br />
COMMUNITY I SUPPORT<br />
NEW GLOBAL LINKS WEBSITE<br />
A Registered charity no: 274467<br />
Please send me further details about sponsoring a child,<br />
or call 01460 23 80 80.<br />
I’m interested in sponsoring in:<br />
■ Africa ■ Asia ■ Where need is greatest<br />
Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms<br />
Address<br />
Postcode<br />
Tel (Day)<br />
(Eve)<br />
I can’t sponsor a child now, but enclose a gift of:<br />
■ £200 ■ £100 ■ £50 ■ £25 ■ £<br />
10350<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> and our subsidiaries may contact you with more information about our<br />
activities. If you do not wish to receive this information, please tick this box ■.<br />
Make cheques / POs payable to <strong>ActionAid</strong>, and send to:<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong>, FREEPOST BS4868,<br />
Chard, Somerset TA20 1BR<br />
www.actionaid.org<br />
Any hope of ending poverty in the developing world<br />
lies in long term solutions, not short term fixes. And<br />
sponsorship has long been recognised as a viable way of<br />
giving children like Maya a future.<br />
By sponsoring a child you’ll be providing access to safe<br />
clean water, healthcare and education. These basics<br />
which we take for granted are vital to ensure Maya and<br />
her community become self sufficient.<br />
You’ll soon notice the difference that you’ll make in<br />
a child’s community through our supporter magazine<br />
Common Cause, regular updates from local fieldworkers<br />
and messages from the child you sponsor.<br />
Start investing in Maya’s future, get in touch with<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> today. In return, we’ll send you an<br />
information pack with a photograph of a child awaiting<br />
your sponsorship. All you have to do now is complete<br />
and return the coupon or call us today.<br />
Afghanistan:<br />
building bridges<br />
and mending lives
CONTENTS 03<br />
✃<br />
Please send me further information about Will Aid and details of participating solicitors in my area<br />
Name (Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms)<br />
Address<br />
You may contact me by email. My address is<br />
Tel (day)<br />
Supporter reference no.<br />
When you make your Will, you have a unique opportunity to protect your<br />
loved ones for the future – and remember the <strong>cause</strong>s that are close to<br />
your heart, like <strong>ActionAid</strong>.<br />
This November, take advantage of Will Aid and have a basic Will drawn<br />
up by a Solicitor for free. You can choose to make a donation to the Will<br />
Aid charities which include <strong>ActionAid</strong>. Since it began in 1998, Will Aid<br />
has raised over £4 million for charity.<br />
To find your nearest participating solicitor,<br />
call 0870 6060 239, visit www.willaid.org.uk<br />
or return the coupon below.<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> • British Red Cross • Christian Aid • Help the Aged • NSPCC • Save the Children • SCIAF • Sight Savers International • Trócaire<br />
Postcode<br />
Tel (eve)<br />
Will Aid will not pass your details on to any other organisation.<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> is a registered charity, No. 274467<br />
AROUND THE WORLD<br />
Ethiopian radio is a winner<br />
An <strong>ActionAid</strong>-supported Ethiopian radio programme, Yibekal (meaning ‘it is<br />
enough’ in Amharic), has been announced as a winner of the World Bank’s<br />
Development Marketplace Global Competition, an initiative designed to find<br />
innovative new ways to fight HIV/AIDS. The competition attracted more than 2,700<br />
submissions, of which less than 50 won awards.<br />
Yibekal broadcasts information and practical advice on HIV/AIDS three times a<br />
week. It is the only programme in Ethiopia to consistently deal with the epidemic,<br />
and has proved extremely popular. One slot, towards marriage, helps people living<br />
with the virus meet others. Last year alone towards marriage received over 4,000<br />
letters of thanks and satisfaction.<br />
The World Bank award, which included a grant of US$90,000, means that the<br />
programme can expand from FM to shortwave. As a result, Yibekal can now<br />
broadcast to the entire country, giving thousands more people access to<br />
information and services they would otherwise miss out on.<br />
Lessons learned in Pakistan<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> Pakistan recently successfully campaigned to get schools reopened in<br />
the remote area of Johi. All local schools were closed more than seven years ago<br />
through lack of funds, and most had been converted for other uses over time.<br />
Children were left with nowhere to learn, and most ended up working in the fields<br />
or in menial jobs such as rope-making.<br />
When the campaign began, many young people immediately came forward as<br />
volunteer teachers. The community donated space, often one-room straw huts, to<br />
use as classrooms. Along with<br />
our partners, we lobbied local<br />
government to repossess the<br />
original school buildings. It<br />
was decided that, together<br />
with the community, we would<br />
help run the schools and<br />
provide for their maintenance,<br />
teachers’ salaries and text<br />
books. The education<br />
department took over the<br />
supervision of the schools, and<br />
is providing funding for exams<br />
and scholarships.<br />
The partnership has been a<br />
great success, and by<br />
February this year 27 schools<br />
had been reopened, allowing<br />
over 1,000 children a renewed<br />
chance of education.<br />
A successful<br />
campaign by<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> means<br />
that children in<br />
a remote area of<br />
Pakistan now have<br />
renewed access<br />
to education.<br />
JENNY MATTHEWS/NETWORK/ACTIONAID UK<br />
04 news<br />
A licence to kill… poverty<br />
The bigger picture: demanding fair aid<br />
New funding for £1 million<br />
education programme<br />
Mark Thomas: how important<br />
is campaigning?<br />
08 special report<br />
A helping hand for India’s homeless<br />
10 cover story<br />
Afghanistan: building bridges<br />
and mending lives<br />
14 first person<br />
Meeting the community I support<br />
15 lick child poverty<br />
16 fundraising<br />
18 global links<br />
Brand new free website for<br />
kids and teachers<br />
19 miscellaneous<br />
<strong>common</strong><br />
<strong>cause</strong><br />
Chataway House<br />
Leach Road<br />
Chard<br />
Somerset TA20 1FR<br />
United Kingdom<br />
Tel: 01460 23 8000<br />
Fax: 01460 67191<br />
email:<br />
<strong>common</strong><strong>cause</strong>@actionaid.org.uk<br />
website: www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
No. 40 2004<br />
ISSN 0967 0130<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> is a trademark<br />
of <strong>ActionAid</strong><br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> is a registered charity<br />
(number 274467) and a<br />
company limited by guarantee<br />
registered in England and Wales<br />
(number 1295174).<br />
Edited by Stephanie Ross<br />
Produced by <strong>ActionAid</strong>’s Design and<br />
Publications Department<br />
Designed by www.wave.coop<br />
Printed by Avenue Printing<br />
Next issue: Autumn 2004<br />
Advertising enquiries:<br />
Imelda McGuigan 020 7561 7561<br />
The views expressed in<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> are not<br />
necessarily those of <strong>ActionAid</strong>.<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> is printed on<br />
100% recycled paper using<br />
vegetable based inks.<br />
Cover photo:<br />
Jenny Matthews/Network/<strong>ActionAid</strong> UK<br />
To join the fight against poverty, please return the completed coupon to:<br />
Will Aid, FREEPOST SWB11047, Crewkerne, Somerset TA18 7ZB<br />
LG137<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk <strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004
04 NEWS<br />
NEWS 05<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong><br />
demands<br />
licence to<br />
kill… poverty<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> is continuing to put pressure on the UK<br />
government to fulfil its 30-year-old promise to<br />
spend 0.7% of the UK’s wealth on overseas aid by<br />
2008. Currently, the UK has pledged to spend only<br />
0.4% by 2006, less than many other countries with<br />
smaller national incomes.<br />
Two hundred and ninety British charities, with<br />
three million supporters among them, are backing<br />
the campaign. If successful, it is estimated that an<br />
extra one and a half million people would escape<br />
poverty in the year 2008 alone.<br />
You can help put pressure on the<br />
government by emailing Gordon Brown –<br />
visit www.actionaid.org.uk/007 to find out more.<br />
£1 million funding for<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> to educate<br />
KATE STANWORTH/BOND 0.7 CAMPAIGN<br />
The latest campaign was launched on 30 March with a definitive James Bond<br />
theme. Our very own 007s, sporting Gordon Brown masks, handed over their<br />
‘Licence to kill poverty’ manifesto outside the Treasury in London, along with<br />
demands that Gordon Brown announce a timetable to reach 0.7% by 2008.<br />
SOPHIA EVANS/ACTIONAID UK<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> is set to launch education<br />
projects worth £1 million in eight countries,<br />
after winning a European Community grant<br />
to cover two-thirds of the cost. The<br />
remainder of the money will be raised from<br />
private sources including child sponsorship.<br />
The EC’s commitment of £686,000 is a<br />
resounding endorsement of our distinctive<br />
approach to education, which regards<br />
community involvement as the key to success.<br />
David Archer, <strong>ActionAid</strong>’s head of<br />
international education, said: “All the<br />
projects will enable poor people to have a<br />
greater say in what happens in their schools<br />
and the kind of education their children get.”<br />
In Brazil, Ethiopia and Guatemala, we will<br />
use the new funding to support alliances of<br />
local organisations that are driving education<br />
reform. Projects in Nepal and Burundi will<br />
work to make schools more accountable to<br />
the communities they serve. In Laos,<br />
Vietnam and Liberia, the focus will be on<br />
adult education and empowerment, using<br />
the award-winning Reflect approach.<br />
Young and<br />
talented?<br />
We are currently looking for<br />
up-and-coming writers to provide<br />
us with inspired and passionate<br />
articles on a variety of subjects.<br />
Our young journalists have been<br />
quoted by the Guardian and the<br />
BBC, and have reported on a huge<br />
range of issues, from unfair trade<br />
rules, to broken government<br />
promises on HIV/AIDS spending,<br />
to the power of protest at<br />
Reading festival.<br />
If you are (or you know)<br />
someone aged 16-24, who wants<br />
to take advantage of a fantastic<br />
offer to gain valuable experience,<br />
please email us on<br />
actionzone@actionaid.org.uk,<br />
quoting reference ‘CCAZ writers’.<br />
You never know, your article<br />
could be in the next issue of<br />
Common Cause!<br />
A helping hand<br />
Join us in our fight to help some of the world’s poorest children by<br />
giving up a little of your time this autumn. As part of Lick child poverty<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> Week, we are running house-to-house collections from<br />
September 17 to October 3, giving you plenty of time to get involved.<br />
House-to-house remains an excellent way to help out on your own<br />
terms – you choose how much time you put in and how much money<br />
you want to raise.<br />
We will send you everything you need to organise your collection,<br />
so it couldn’t be simpler, and the vital income raised will make a huge<br />
difference to the children we work with across the world.<br />
To be part of our nationwide collections, please call 01460 238000<br />
or email lcp@actionaid.org.uk. For more information and ideas<br />
about getting involved in our Lick child poverty <strong>ActionAid</strong> Week,<br />
please see page 15.<br />
MARK HENLEY/PANOS PICTURES<br />
The bigger picture<br />
Demanding fair aid<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> is launching a brand new campaign<br />
focusing on the unfair conditions that often<br />
accompany financial aid to poor countries.<br />
Controversially, institutions such as the World Bank<br />
and the International Monetary Fund often attach<br />
demands for privatisation of services like water and<br />
electricity in return for financial assistance. In many<br />
cases this leads to massive social unrest.<br />
These conditions were originally devised as a way<br />
to ensure donor money was being used effectively.<br />
But over time they have become more and more<br />
prescriptive, and often go against the wishes and<br />
needs of the country receiving the aid.<br />
In Ghana, for example, massive public opposition<br />
has held up World Bank plans for the privatisation of<br />
the urban water system, resulting in the Bank and<br />
other donors withholding US$100 million of funds.<br />
In India, donor conditions have been crucial in<br />
driving electricity privatisation in the states of Orissa<br />
and Andhra Pradesh. In both cases, the government<br />
had to agree to privatisation before they could access<br />
loans worth hundreds of millions of dollars.<br />
A new report by <strong>ActionAid</strong>, Money talks,<br />
uncovers many more examples of poor countries<br />
being pressured into accepting conditions tied to<br />
loans that often do more harm than good. To read<br />
the report, or for more information on the<br />
accompanying campaign, please visit<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk/moneytalks.<br />
ACTIONAID UK<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004 www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk <strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004
06 NEWS<br />
Citizen’s jury condemns<br />
Brazilian GM<br />
In March <strong>ActionAid</strong> held the latest and largest of its citizens’<br />
juries in Brazil, to put on trial the illegal introduction of GM<br />
crops in the state of Rio Grande do Sul.<br />
More than 3,000 landless and small-scale farmers, activists,<br />
parliamentarians and journalists gathered to form a jury with<br />
potent symbolic and political clout. The aim is to empower<br />
those most affected by food insecurity and give a voice to<br />
those, such as poor Brazilian farmers, who have traditionally<br />
been overlooked by those in power.<br />
The jury convened in Porto Alegre after the Brazilian<br />
government and multinational seed company Monsanto<br />
ignored both environmental law and a legal ruling by<br />
introducing a pesticide-resistant soybean to the southern state.<br />
The jury unanimously decided that there is insufficient<br />
evidence to prove that GM crops would not harm the<br />
environment or human health. They also decided there is not<br />
enough public information available about GM crops – and<br />
until there is, their introduction should be put on hold.<br />
ANDRE TELLES/ACTIONAID BRAZIL<br />
Poor farmers and<br />
citizens in Brazil<br />
made their feelings<br />
clear about GM in the<br />
latest of our citizen’s<br />
juries to be held in<br />
the country.<br />
CAMPAIGNS<br />
Comedian and activist Mark Thomas recently<br />
visited Kerala, India, to see <strong>ActionAid</strong>'s work with<br />
villagers who have been protesting against Coca<br />
Cola for over two years. The company is accused<br />
of using up tens of thousands of litres of local<br />
water, leaving villagers with acute shortages and<br />
environmental contamination. Common Cause<br />
asked Mark why campaigns like this are so vital.<br />
MARTIN HERRING<br />
ActionAfrica<br />
16-25 SEPTEMBER 2005<br />
Introducing our brand new experience of a lifetime –<br />
Walk in the footsteps of the Maasai<br />
The Rift Valley, Tanzania, Africa<br />
LIBA TAYLOR/ACTIONAID UK<br />
CATHERINE SELLING<br />
LIBA TAYLOR/ACTIONAID UK<br />
ANDREW AITCHESON/ACTIONAID UK<br />
Ghanaian flavour for<br />
coffee break launch<br />
This year’s 24 hour coffee break was launched in style<br />
with a celebration at the Ghanaian High Commission in<br />
London on 12 March. Broadcaster Lisa I’Anson, herself an<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> child sponsor, was our host for the evening.<br />
Guests included Ghanaian celebrities, business people, MPs<br />
and <strong>ActionAid</strong> supporters.<br />
Speakers informed guests of the importance of supporting<br />
poor farmers by raising funds and campaigning against<br />
international trade rules. Two cocoa farmers from the<br />
Kuapa Kokoo cooperative in Ghana, Georgina Kwaw and<br />
Elizabeth Adjei, explained the difference in their lives as a<br />
result of working within a cooperative and gaining a fair<br />
price for their produce.<br />
To see just how successful you helped us make this<br />
year’s 24 hour coffee break, please turn to page 16.<br />
New web address<br />
As part of our internationalisation process, the<br />
website address for <strong>ActionAid</strong> UK has changed to<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk. Our international site can<br />
now be found at www.actionaid.org. Please update<br />
your bookmarks accordingly.<br />
Georgina Kwaw and<br />
Elizabeth Adjei, cocoa<br />
farmers from Ghana,<br />
were joined by singer<br />
Mica Paris and<br />
broadcaster Lisa I’Anson<br />
for this year’s 24 hour<br />
coffee break launch at<br />
the Ghanaian<br />
High Commission<br />
in London.<br />
How important is campaigning?<br />
People don’t have a choice about whether they<br />
campaign or not. I genuinely believe that. When actions<br />
are taken in your name, like arms deals or globalisation,<br />
you have to stand up for yourself. That’s what<br />
democracy should be, and ticking a box once every<br />
four years just isn’t enough to give people a voice.<br />
Why Coca Cola?<br />
Be<strong>cause</strong> it was stunningly obvious what was going on.<br />
Remember these are people who have practically<br />
nothing, and they are being forced to fight for a basic<br />
necessity like water. Water is not a commodity; it’s a<br />
basic human right. It is an incredible fight they are<br />
putting up.<br />
What was it like meeting<br />
the protestors?<br />
It was very moving. They are the poorest of the poor,<br />
and yet they are standing up to this giant of a<br />
company. It was absolutely inspiring.<br />
What do you plan to do with<br />
the Coca Cola material?<br />
We will be taking it on the road, campaigning, doing<br />
live shows. I want people to get involved in this – it’s<br />
not just about India, it’s happening all over the world.<br />
People need to know about this.<br />
UPDATE:<br />
On March 15 the Indian government issued a<br />
court order banning Coca Cola from using<br />
local groundwater until the monsoon rains fall<br />
in June. For the latest developments, visit<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk.<br />
Join the famous Maasai warriors on a trip through a landscape rich in acacia<br />
trees, savannah grasslands and volcanoes, on a once in a lifetime journey to<br />
the spectacular Ngorongoro crater. Expect the company of antelopes, zebras<br />
and giraffes as you undertake this demanding, yet infinitely rewarding, trek.<br />
Places are limited so call 01460 23 8047 now for a free information pack, or<br />
email actionadventures@actionaid.org.uk.<br />
ALSO AVAILABLE:<br />
ACTION CHINA TREK<br />
2-10 October 2004<br />
(only one month left<br />
to register!)<br />
HIKE HADRIAN’S WALL<br />
5-10 August 2004<br />
ACTION PERU<br />
TREK<br />
5-14 May 2005<br />
TIBET TREK<br />
15-24 May 2005<br />
OTHER CHALLENGES FOR 2005:<br />
RIDE THE LAND OF THE RAJ<br />
22 OCTOBER-1 NOVEMBER 2005<br />
MONGOLIA CAMEL CHALLENGE<br />
9-19 SEPTEMBER 2005<br />
TREK THE THREE VOLCANOES:<br />
MOUNT ETNA, VESUVIUS AND STROMBOLI<br />
3-8 SEPTEMBER 2005<br />
TREK CUBA<br />
4-13 MARCH 2005<br />
HAVANA-TRINIDAD BIKE RIDE<br />
4-13 NOVEMBER 2005<br />
And, if you still haven’t found what you are looking<br />
for, we work with a tour operator* that offers more<br />
than 30 challenges in various destinations around<br />
the world throughout the year. Call 01460 23 8047,<br />
or email actionadventures@actionaid.org.uk for an<br />
information pack.<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004 www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
*ACTIONAID ONLY WORKS WITH TOUR OPERATORS THAT EMPLOY LOCAL<br />
PEOPLE AND GUARANTEE PROTECTION TO THE LOCAL ENVIRONMENT.<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk <strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004
08 SPECIAL REPORT<br />
SPECIAL REPORT 09<br />
A helping hand<br />
for India’s homeless<br />
FOR ONCE WE CAN<br />
SLEEP IN CALM AND<br />
SAFETY... NOW WE FINALLY<br />
HAVE A HOME<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> India has been working<br />
hard to address one of the country’s<br />
biggest problems: homelessness.<br />
But, with a little determination and a<br />
lot of effort, we are making headway,<br />
says KATHERINE HAYWOOD.<br />
PHOTO: KALPESH LATHIGRA/NB PICTURES/ACTIONAID UK<br />
In Lucknow, the capital of the north Indian state of Uttar<br />
Pradesh, at least 600 homeless people died as a result of the<br />
harsh winter of 2002/03. This winter there was a dramatic<br />
decrease in the number of deaths due, in part, to <strong>ActionAid</strong><br />
and partners’ success at forcing the state government to<br />
open up unused public buildings as night shelters.<br />
The campaign was based on the work of Dr Indu Prakash,<br />
the coordinator of <strong>ActionAid</strong>’s national homeless policy. Dr<br />
Prakash has been highly successful in opening up<br />
government buildings as shelters in Delhi, as part of his work<br />
with street children. This winter the work was rolled out to<br />
four new cities, one of which was Lucknow.<br />
Firstly, local organisations identified several vacant<br />
government buildings in areas where hundreds of homeless<br />
people were sleeping rough. Next, after vigorous lobbying by<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong>, the municipal commissioner agreed to open six<br />
schools and disused buildings that had been lying vacant for<br />
up to ten years. <strong>ActionAid</strong> provided the homes with sheets,<br />
blankets, a caretaker and basic medical facilities.<br />
Residents soon flooded in. Almost all of them are migrant<br />
daily wage labourers in construction work and other physical<br />
activities, with families in the surrounding villages to support.<br />
Most have been homeless all of their adult lives, returning to<br />
their villages once a month.<br />
They earn as little as Rs 50 (65p) a day and, on average,<br />
get only 15 days of work a month. Due to the availability of<br />
cheap labour, they are often forced to work for under the<br />
minimum wage. Even so, their employers often refuse to pay.<br />
It is this type of employment insecurity and exploitation that<br />
the organisers of the shelters want to help combat. <strong>ActionAid</strong>’s<br />
Hanumant Rawat, Lucknow regional manager, says, “We<br />
organised a spontaneous campaign during 2002/03 and<br />
distributed blankets to those on the streets, but we realised<br />
this could never be a long term solution. We wanted to provide<br />
the homeless with more permanent shelter.”<br />
It has been a long battle – many of the shelters are still not<br />
perfect. Some have irregular water supplies or drainage<br />
problems. Others have structural deficiencies. Some people<br />
also found that the shelter isolated them from potential<br />
employers who pick daily wage labourers off the street.<br />
These are all problems that <strong>ActionAid</strong> hopes to address –<br />
but there is a general feeling that a crucial step has been<br />
ACTIONAID IS<br />
DETERMINED TO KEEP<br />
THE REMAINING FOUR<br />
SHELTERS IN LUCKNOW<br />
OPEN, AND EXTEND<br />
THEIR OPENING HOURS<br />
TO THE DAYTIME. THE<br />
RESIDENTS THEMSELVES<br />
SAY THEY HAVE NO<br />
PLANS TO MOVE<br />
OUR BIGGEST<br />
ACHIEVEMENT WAS<br />
INSISTING THAT THE<br />
HOMELESS THEMSELVES<br />
WERE AT THE FOREFRONT<br />
OF THIS CAMPAIGN. THEY<br />
RUN THE SHELTERS AND<br />
SET THE AGENDA<br />
made. Despite the onset of warm weather, the shelters are<br />
growing in popularity, with new arrivals each week.<br />
Yet, despite these obvious successes, the state<br />
government has started to close the shelters now the winter<br />
months are over.<br />
When asked about the closures, one local assistant district<br />
magistrate said, “We don’t see (the shelters) as a permanent<br />
solution.” He went on to claim that: “…most of the time these<br />
people like sleeping under the open sky”.<br />
But <strong>ActionAid</strong> is determined to keep the remaining four<br />
shelters in Lucknow open, and extend their opening hours to<br />
the daytime. The residents themselves say they have no plans<br />
to move. They like the newfound community that the shelters<br />
provide. “We enjoy living collectively,” says Dinesh, 47, from<br />
the Shramik Seva Ashram shelter. “Everyone helps each other<br />
out, like with money or advice. We are like a family.”<br />
And, at a time when religious conflict and hostility is on the<br />
increase in India, the shelters have managed to bridge<br />
divides. Muhammed Israel, 42, a Muslim in a predominantly<br />
Hindu shelter, says, “I feel completely welcome here. We<br />
even celebrate our religious festivals together.”<br />
Sandeep Khare, from local organisation Vigyan (which runs<br />
three of the shelters), wants to build on the community spirit<br />
the homeless shelters have created. “As a group, those living<br />
in the shelters are now more able to move forward on issues<br />
that affect their lives,” he says.<br />
Sandeep is working on mobilising the residents to demand<br />
the necessary renovation work on the buildings. It is early<br />
days yet, but the men of the shelters are already working as<br />
a group. In some shelters they have pooled their money for<br />
purchasing necessary communal items. Others have offered<br />
their skills and time to the renovations.<br />
“Our biggest achievement,” says Sandeep, “was insisting<br />
that the homeless themselves were at the forefront of this<br />
campaign. They run the shelters and set the agenda.”<br />
And it certainly seems to be working. “For once we can<br />
sleep in calm and safety,” says Dinesh. “Now we finally have<br />
a home.”<br />
If you would like to support our work<br />
in India, please visit www.actionaid.org.uk,<br />
call 01460 23 8000 or email<br />
<strong>common</strong><strong>cause</strong>@actionaid.org.uk quoting<br />
your supporter number or postcode.<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004 www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk <strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004
10 COVER STORY<br />
COVER STORY 11<br />
Afghanistan:<br />
building bridges<br />
and mending lives<br />
Afghanistan’s recent history has seen oppressive<br />
leadership, war and natural disasters adding to the<br />
problems of an already hugely impoverished country.<br />
The strict Taliban regime was especially harsh for<br />
women, robbing them of the little freedom they had.<br />
Leadership may have changed, but for women living<br />
in rural areas, the difference to their lives is often<br />
negligible. Since 2002, <strong>ActionAid</strong> has been working to<br />
help these women overcome the hardships they face.<br />
Common Cause investigates the difference it has<br />
made to their lives.<br />
TEXT: CHRISTINE AZIZ<br />
PHOTOS: JENNY MATTHEWS/NETWORK/ACTIONAID UK<br />
THE CAREFUL MAKING OF<br />
THESE CHARTS BY DAASIL’S<br />
WOMEN, MANY OF WHOM HAVE<br />
NEVER HELD A PENCIL BEFORE,<br />
HAS BROUGHT ABOUT DEEP<br />
CHANGES THEY NEVER<br />
DREAMED POSSIBLE<br />
Daasil is a treacherous, bone shaking five-hour<br />
drive away from the capital of the northern region,<br />
Mazar-e-Sharif. The route cuts through some of<br />
Afghanistan’s most dramatic scenery. We drive<br />
through deep, fast-flowing rivers and towering<br />
gorges. There is a sprinkling of snow on the<br />
ground, and much of the wayside is littered with<br />
large red-painted stones – a warning of unexploded<br />
mines – as we arrive at the nearby <strong>ActionAid</strong> office<br />
in the northern district of Khuran Wa Sarbagh.<br />
In the village, a group of animated women and<br />
children are sitting on the earth floor of a<br />
neighbour’s house looking at a series of charts<br />
pinned to a wall. “That’s where we live,” says one<br />
of the women proudly as she points at one of the<br />
charts showing a simply drawn map of Daasil. In<br />
one glance it shows the path of the village’s<br />
aquamarine river, the routes of its rough earth<br />
roads, its outlying fields of walnut, almond, plum<br />
and willow trees, the cemetery made bigger than<br />
it should be by years of civil conflict and war.<br />
But more than that, it also shows the distribution<br />
of wealth throughout the village, identifying the<br />
richest and the poorest of its citizens, its widows<br />
and its disabled.<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004 www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk <strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004
12 COVER STORY<br />
COVER STORY 13<br />
Any visitor entering the room could be forgiven for<br />
thinking that this is a class of some sort – but it is much<br />
more than that. The careful making of these charts by<br />
Daasil’s women, many of whom have never held a pencil<br />
before, has brought about deep changes that have<br />
improved and empowered their lives. The charts are the<br />
first steps in an <strong>ActionAid</strong> programme that has brought<br />
villagers together to work for community changes they<br />
never dreamed possible.<br />
Since 2003 <strong>ActionAid</strong> has been carrying out<br />
developmental activities in three districts of northern<br />
Afghanistan. The spearhead of our rural programme in<br />
the region is a community-based plan for change, a<br />
process that enables villagers to discover, prioritise and<br />
put into action the changes that will improve their lives.<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> staff, including locally employed ‘social<br />
mobilisers’, work directly in the villages, providing<br />
support and encouragement and recruiting organisations<br />
to help fund and partner the various projects. The<br />
process starts with men and women separately<br />
researching their own village to work out exactly what<br />
needs to be changed. They pinpoint the poorest in the<br />
community and highlight the inequalities between males<br />
and females. They then turn their findings into drawings<br />
on charts, and these are constantly referred to as they<br />
begin to make changes.<br />
“Before <strong>ActionAid</strong> came we knew each other, but not<br />
well. It’s hard for women to gather together and we had<br />
to get permission from the men. For a year we were<br />
going into the mountains and sitting there during the war,<br />
hiding in caves together, but we still didn’t know each<br />
other’s thoughts. We are trying our best to do something<br />
and solve our own problems. We are very happy now<br />
and have improved our lives. The men are very surprised<br />
that we have made decisions for ourselves,” says Bibi,<br />
suddenly slapping her chest. “I now have the power to<br />
speak. I am not afraid any more to say what I think and if<br />
there are any literacy courses coming here I will do<br />
them…even though I am 45 and old.” Her companions<br />
laugh and chorus in support of their friend.<br />
In nearby Abashi village, an <strong>ActionAid</strong> income<br />
regeneration programme is underway as part of its<br />
change plan. Nasima Shorkhoki, 40, proudly shows off<br />
the 20 chickens remaining from the 250 she has<br />
managed to raise with the help of an incubator that she<br />
shares with three other families. “I am a widow with four<br />
children and had no money. Now I am selling the<br />
chickens to the villagers. Before, my brother and<br />
relatives helped me. My husband died be<strong>cause</strong> he was<br />
sick and we didn’t have the money for a doctor.”<br />
On a veranda in the same house, another Bibi busies<br />
herself monitoring the progress of a group of women<br />
weaving a brightly coloured carpet. There are ten<br />
families in the village weaving for $2 a day – a lot of<br />
money for rural Afghanistan. “We are the poorest<br />
families and we are selling the carpets and buying the<br />
wool,” Bibi explains, adding that it takes l5 days to<br />
make one carpet. A widow and mother of seven<br />
children, she is happy with the arrangement. “The next<br />
step is for me to get a cow. I want a big one with plenty<br />
of milk.”<br />
ONE ROOM IS SO PACKED<br />
WITH WOMEN AND CHILDREN IT’S<br />
DIFFICULT FOR THE DOCTORS TO<br />
SQUEEZE THROUGH TO GIVE<br />
THEIR HEALTH EDUCATION<br />
PRESENTATION. THE DOCTORS’<br />
VISIT IS A LONG HELD DREAM FOR<br />
THE WOMEN AND THEY CAN’T<br />
HIDE THEIR EXCITEMENT<br />
Nasima wants to say that even though she is a widow<br />
she can marry again. “What do you want a husband<br />
for?” asks Zakiya, who is about 80 years old. “I have no<br />
teeth and nothing else left for a man!” Nasima ignores<br />
her and wants to show us the incubator that hatches her<br />
eggs in a room behind the weaving loom. It’s hard not to<br />
notice the huge gaping hole in the roof. “Bomb,” she<br />
points, “boom, boom,” and everyone laughs.<br />
In the nearby village of Abdul Malik, <strong>ActionAid</strong>’s three<br />
female doctors from the mobile health team are arriving<br />
at a small house, where one room is so packed with<br />
women and children it’s difficult for the doctors to<br />
squeeze through to give their health education<br />
presentation. The doctors’ visit is a long held dream for<br />
the women and they can’t hide their excitement. On a<br />
verandah outside the nearby mosque, 40 men and boys<br />
are listening attentively to their first health education<br />
class given by Dr Rashid, the team’s only male doctor.<br />
The excited, chattering voices of the women can be<br />
heard through the sycamore trees.<br />
In Afghanistan half a million women die each year<br />
from pregnancy-related complications, the <strong>cause</strong>s of<br />
which are exacerbated by poverty and isolation. The<br />
maternal mortality rate is the second highest in the<br />
world, and diarrhoeal and acute respiratory infections<br />
<strong>cause</strong> an estimated 42% of childhood deaths.<br />
Not surprisingly, every village participating in<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong>’s programme for change ranks healthcare as a<br />
priority need, although it is men and boys who are given<br />
priority when it comes to urgent medical treatment.<br />
Charts drawn up by the men and women show that if<br />
men or boys are acutely sick they are more likely to be<br />
transported to the nearest town to see a doctor. Women<br />
and girls tend not to be taken to see a doctor until it is<br />
generally too late to save them.<br />
One woman in a red scarf interrupts: “We need a<br />
clinic especially for the women giving birth,” she says.<br />
“My daughter had problems and wouldn’t stop bleeding<br />
after her baby was born. We took her to town and the<br />
doctor said there was no way she would stop bleeding.<br />
We borrowed the money to see him.”<br />
Looking at the eager crowd of women in the tiny<br />
room, it’s surprising to hear from health programme<br />
leader, Dr Manjusha Gupta, that, at first, gathering the<br />
women together in each village was an enormous<br />
obstacle. “Either some were too busy weaving carpets<br />
and thought their time was too precious to be wasted on<br />
health education, or the male in the family was reluctant<br />
to allow women to participate,” she says. “But this<br />
programme had a major advantage in that the health<br />
team consisted mainly of female doctors and the<br />
women’s immediate medical needs could be attended to.<br />
Each woman here today has brought either her own<br />
health problems or a child’s, and will be treated by one<br />
of the female doctors after the class.”<br />
This is good news for a country that is still struggling<br />
to rebuild itself and provide some sort of infrastructure<br />
for its people. But, until it does, it’s business as usual for<br />
the four doctors bravely travelling to some of<br />
Afghanistan’s remotest villages to meet the demands of<br />
people desperate for medical attention.<br />
WE ARE TRYING OUR<br />
BEST TO DO SOMETHING<br />
AND SOLVE OUR OWN<br />
PROBLEMS. WE ARE VERY<br />
HAPPY NOW AND HAVE<br />
IMPROVED OUR LIVES.<br />
THE MEN ARE VERY<br />
SURPRISED THAT WE<br />
HAVE MADE DECISIONS<br />
FOR OURSELVES<br />
Although we do not have a child sponsorship<br />
programme in Afghanistan, you can still support<br />
our work in the country by means of a donation.<br />
To do so, please call 01460 23 8000 or email<br />
<strong>common</strong><strong>cause</strong>@actionaid.org.uk quoting your<br />
supporter number or postcode.<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004 www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk <strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004
14 FIRST PERSON<br />
LICK CHILD POVERTY 15<br />
Lick child poverty 2004<br />
As part of <strong>ActionAid</strong> Week 2004, we will again be asking you to take<br />
action to help us Lick child poverty for children such as Anguri<br />
(below right). Friday 1 October is Action Day, and already we want<br />
to start getting you revved up with ideas and inspiration. So read on…<br />
ready…<br />
Meeting the<br />
community<br />
I support<br />
On a recent holiday in Guatemala,<br />
supporter Julia Mcgeown arranged<br />
to visit the village where her<br />
sponsored child lives. Here, Julia<br />
describes what it was like to meet<br />
the people she helps out from afar.<br />
It was to be the most memorable day of<br />
my trip. I had seen the beauty of traditional<br />
villages, the lush tropical valleys and the<br />
relaxing beaches. But I hadn’t seen true<br />
Guatemalan life: the everyday reality for poor<br />
people in a world without the basics of<br />
modern living.<br />
I was fortunate enough to have the<br />
opportunity to visit the village of the child I<br />
sponsor, accompanied by a member of<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> staff. It was a small village, a<br />
bumpy nine-hour drive from Guatemala City.<br />
What this community lacks in terms of<br />
material goods, they certainly make up for in<br />
terms of warmth and hospitality. The whole<br />
community wanted to thank <strong>ActionAid</strong> for all<br />
it is doing for them, so our visit had become<br />
something of a community event!<br />
The field was abuzz with children,<br />
parents and grandparents who all wanted<br />
to be involved in the introductions and<br />
speeches. Everyone valued each other’s<br />
opinion and there was a clear sense of<br />
community and team spirit. It was<br />
humbling to hear so many people<br />
expressing their heartfelt thanks to me as a<br />
representative of the sponsors, and I<br />
explained I would pass this information on.<br />
So a big thank you to everyone out there!<br />
The communities really do appreciate the<br />
support <strong>ActionAid</strong> gives, particularly as<br />
they have never had any help from any<br />
other aid agencies. As someone said – it is<br />
as if, finally, somebody out there cares.<br />
Rather than single out the child I sponsor,<br />
I met her along with all the other children<br />
who were eager to ask me questions and<br />
hear me speak English. We tried to teach<br />
each other basic greetings in our respective<br />
languages, but there was far too much<br />
hilarity – especially where my pronunciation<br />
was concerned!<br />
Before I left the village, I wanted to take a<br />
snapshot of the local children, but every<br />
time I got near, they ran away. The moment<br />
I turned around, they would come closer<br />
again. As more and more children heard the<br />
noise, they wanted in on the act! It seemed<br />
to underline how children the world over<br />
have an instinct for fun and laughter, as<br />
long as they are given that chance.<br />
Having seen the enthusiasm of the<br />
communities for current and potential<br />
ventures, and their involvement in the<br />
planning and organisation this requires,<br />
I really feel that, as sponsors, our small<br />
contribution really can make a difference<br />
to a great many lives.<br />
If a supporter wishes to visit the<br />
child they sponsor, we are delighted to<br />
be able to assist. We cannot fund any<br />
part of the visit, but we do have simple<br />
processes in place to help supporters<br />
make the most of their trip. We do<br />
request that sponsors do not attempt<br />
to visit projects unaccompanied.<br />
If you would like to know more,<br />
please call the development team<br />
on 01460 23 8000, or email<br />
developmentteam@actionaid.org.uk.<br />
JULIA MCGEOWN/ACTIONAID UK<br />
SOPHIA EVANS/NB PICTURES/ACTIONAID UK<br />
Ever fancied reliving your childhood? Throwing away your inhibitions<br />
and dressing up like a big kid for a day? Or forgetting your diet and<br />
guzzling on sweeties, cakes and lollipops instead? These are just some<br />
of the surprising things that thousands of people across the UK got up<br />
to last year in support of our Lick child poverty Action Day. Together,<br />
they raised an amazing £76,000 for our work with poor children in<br />
developing countries. This year we are looking for even more people to<br />
act the kid again so we can raise even more lolly. Can we count on you<br />
to be a big kid for <strong>ActionAid</strong>?<br />
steady…<br />
Already there’s plenty to get you started. Firstly, you can order a pack of<br />
our mouth-watering lollipops. Loads of people were happy to give a £1<br />
donation per lolly last year, which was a fantastic success! They are also<br />
a great fun way to spread the word about our work. Secondly, you can<br />
register for our Lick child poverty action pack, filled with ideas and<br />
suggestions on how you can raise funds. From arranging a Pop Idol<br />
event to holding a yo-yo competition…from school discos to fancy<br />
dress parties…from house-to-house and street collecting to major<br />
fundraising events…you’ll find it all in our action pack. We’re not leaving<br />
kids out either – we’ve got loads of fundraising suggestions just for<br />
them, plus interesting ideas and activities to help them understand what<br />
it’s like to be a child growing up in the developing world today. If you’re<br />
a teacher or youth leader, you can download lesson plans, classroom<br />
activities, photographs and fundraising suggestions from our website.<br />
Just visit www.lickchildpoverty.org and click on ‘education materials’.<br />
…go!<br />
What are you waiting for? Whatever you<br />
want to do, we have the action pack for<br />
you. Children all over the world, just like<br />
Anguri, will be glad you chose to help.<br />
Please call 01460 23 8000,<br />
email lcp@actionaid.org.uk or visit<br />
www.lickchildpoverty.org for<br />
more information.<br />
JENNY MATTHEWS/NETWORK/ACTIONAID UK<br />
CASE STUDY<br />
Seven-year-old Anguri<br />
lives in the slums of Dhumankhel in<br />
Kathmandu. She and her family live<br />
hand to mouth, scavenging rubbish and<br />
scraps from the enormous rubbish tip<br />
near their cramped two-room home.<br />
Her father earns less than £1 a day, and<br />
with this he must feed and support his<br />
family. He cannot afford to send Anguri<br />
or her brothers and sisters to school.<br />
All over the world, poverty denies<br />
children like Anguri their basic rights<br />
to shelter, education, healthcare, safety<br />
and the simple freedom of just being<br />
a child.<br />
THE FULL VERSION OF THIS ARTICLE CAN BE FOUND AT WWW.ACTIONAID.ORG.UK<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004 www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk <strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004
16 FUNDRAISING<br />
FUNDRAISING 17<br />
NATIONAL<br />
LOCAL<br />
ACTIVE<br />
PRIORITY PROJECTS<br />
March’s 24 hour coffee break was a resounding success, with over<br />
1,400 events taking place in schools, homes, companies, hotels,<br />
coffee shops, council offices and even a radio station! Coffee and<br />
chocolate lovers around the UK participated in Fairtrade breakfasts,<br />
coffee mornings, quizzes and bring & buy sales to raise pots of<br />
money and highlight the effect of unfair trading rules on poor farmers.<br />
Karen Harrison (pictured), of Guernsey <strong>ActionAid</strong> supporter group,<br />
once again opened her house for 24 hour coffee break and raised a<br />
magnificent £1,487. Karen says: “The guests don’t all come at once –<br />
we start at about 10am and carry on until they stop!”<br />
We launched 2004’s 24 hour coffee break with a celebration at<br />
the Ghana High Commission – for more details, see page six.<br />
Breaking the<br />
chains of poverty<br />
Do you have any broken or unwanted<br />
gold or silver chains, bracelets, earrings<br />
or rings? All over the country, most<br />
people have some old jewellery hanging<br />
around and there’s not a lot they can do with it. It has<br />
little or no value to the owner, but most find it impossible to actually<br />
throw it away. Sent to <strong>ActionAid</strong>, collected and recycled in bulk,<br />
your old jewellery could raise a great deal of funds for our work.<br />
JOHN O’NEILL/GUERNSEY PRESS<br />
New group success<br />
Congratulations to <strong>ActionAid</strong>’s newest fundraising group, who held<br />
their first event in December at the Broadmarsh centre, Nottingham.<br />
An ensemble of women’s voices, Mirabile, performed a selection of<br />
songs while volunteers collected donations. The event was a fantastic<br />
success, raising £160.71.<br />
Ripon Grammar School<br />
Ripon Grammar School nominated <strong>ActionAid</strong> for their charity week<br />
in October. The imaginative pupils organised a series of events<br />
including a slave auction, a Big Brother style pantomime and their<br />
very own Pop Idol contest. They raised £3,581.18 to fund water<br />
projects in some of the poorest areas of Pakistan.<br />
Calling Dorset supporters<br />
Do you want to be a founding member of the new Dorset <strong>ActionAid</strong><br />
Supporter Group? If so, we’re looking for you! Our groups are the<br />
backbone of community fundraising and hold all types of events,<br />
both big and small. It’s very rewarding and is a great way to meet<br />
new people. If you are interested, call us today!<br />
ACTIONAID UK<br />
Sponsored head shave<br />
Jean Griffiths<br />
produced this<br />
fabulous ‘Mandela<br />
Shirt’ quilt and<br />
sold it at the<br />
signature gallery,<br />
Swansea, raising<br />
£255 for vital<br />
HIV/AIDS work.<br />
Staff at Reuters in Nottingham celebrated Christmas by holding a<br />
sponsored head shave! Two brave employees, Mike Peart and Mark<br />
Brodie, had their heads shaved in front of colleagues in return for<br />
donations. They earned <strong>ActionAid</strong> a grand total of £3,000.<br />
Flora Light Challenge<br />
for Women<br />
(London and Birmingham)<br />
5 September 2004<br />
Ladies unite! This 5km race offers a great day out<br />
and a modest challenge for women of all ages. The<br />
atmosphere is fun rather than competitive, and we’ll<br />
even pay your entry fee!<br />
Great North Run<br />
(Newcastle)<br />
26 September 2004<br />
We’ve filled all our places for this year’s<br />
Great North Run, but if you’ve got your own<br />
why not raise money for <strong>ActionAid</strong>?<br />
A different run<br />
altogether?<br />
There are many different marathons and runs held all over<br />
the UK and abroad. Call now and together we’ll find your ideal run!<br />
Flora London Marathon<br />
Huge thanks to our Flora London Marathon 2004 running team for<br />
their dedication and fundraising, it was a memorable day for all<br />
concerned. The cash is still coming in, but we look set to smash our<br />
£60,000 target!<br />
Parachuting<br />
No experience<br />
required! Raise the<br />
minimum sponsorship<br />
and you and your friends can<br />
jump for free! Request your<br />
information pack today.<br />
If you would like to know more about any of these<br />
events, find out what else we can offer you, or get<br />
the details of your nearest local supporter group,<br />
please call 01460 23 8047, visit www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
or email <strong>common</strong><strong>cause</strong>@actionaid.org.uk quoting<br />
your supporter number or postcode.<br />
Women of Chisec,<br />
northern Guatemala,<br />
are discriminated<br />
against for many<br />
reasons – for being<br />
female, for being<br />
Mayan, and for being<br />
poor. This priority<br />
project enables them to<br />
reduce the inequalities<br />
they face. Community<br />
gardens provide them<br />
with extra food for their<br />
families and for sale.<br />
Wider training<br />
opportunities in farming<br />
techniques, basic<br />
administration and<br />
midwifery are also<br />
provided. Strengthening<br />
of organisational skills<br />
and self-esteem helps<br />
the women become far<br />
more active in their<br />
communities.<br />
Seeds and tools have<br />
been purchased to<br />
establish fruit tree<br />
gardens, as well as 24<br />
head of cattle that give<br />
the women milk, meat and further calves to sell. As a result,<br />
diets will be significantly improved. The sale of excess produce<br />
provides additional income for other foods, medicine, clothes<br />
and children’s education. Four motorised corn mills mean far<br />
less time is spent preparing maize dough, enabling women to<br />
take advantage of further training courses.<br />
STEVE MORGAN/ACTIONAID UK<br />
WE HAVE LEARNT HOW TO<br />
VALUE OURSELVES AS WOMEN,<br />
TO LIKE OURSELVES AND TO<br />
SUPPORT OTHER WOMEN AS<br />
WELL AS OUR HUSBANDS,<br />
FAMILIES AND FRIENDS<br />
EMILIA SUCUP SIS<br />
If you, your friends, colleagues or family do have any, check it has<br />
a hallmark, wrap up well in paper (or use a padded envelope) and<br />
send to: <strong>ActionAid</strong>, Freepost (BS4868), Chard, Somerset TA20 1BR.<br />
Your broken chains can help mend lives.<br />
This is a highlight of just one of our priority projects. In order for<br />
us to continue to carry out work like this, we still urgently need<br />
further funding. If you would like to support these projects, please<br />
do get in touch today.<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004 www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk <strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004
18 GLOBAL LINKS<br />
MISCELLANEOUS 19<br />
Global Links<br />
These photos<br />
were taken<br />
by the<br />
children of<br />
Khalipathar,<br />
a village in<br />
Orissa, India, to<br />
show you what<br />
everyday life is like here.<br />
The photos feature on our brand<br />
new free website,<br />
www.globallinks.org.uk.<br />
This fantastic global citizenship<br />
resource for schools boasts<br />
videos, slide shows, games and<br />
much much more.<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong> Recycling<br />
helps schoolchildren<br />
the world over<br />
Primary pupils in<br />
Char Kukri Mukri<br />
in Bangladesh<br />
benefit from<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong>’s supplies<br />
The idea is simple: schools buy low-cost ink cartridges for their laser and inkjet<br />
printers, recycle their used ones, and the money raised goes towards buying basic<br />
school equipment urgently needed by the most disadvantaged children in the world.<br />
Graham Good, <strong>ActionAid</strong> Recycling’s operations manager, says: “Those who benefit<br />
don’t need the latest laptop or newest sports equipment. They just want the opportunity<br />
to go to school, to read and write and help alleviate the problems their family live with.”<br />
If you or your school would like to get involved, please phone 0845 3 100 200<br />
email recycling@aarecycling.org.uk, or visit www.actionaidrecycling.org.uk.<br />
LIBA TAYLOR/ACTIONAID UK<br />
Moving words<br />
Please help us keep in touch by letting us know if any<br />
of your details have changed or are due to change in the<br />
near future – whether you are moving house or<br />
emigrating, we would like to know. On the reverse of the<br />
address sheet there is a section just for this purpose, so<br />
please complete your new details and return it to us at<br />
<strong>ActionAid</strong>, Freepost BS4868, Chard, Somerset TA20 1BR.<br />
It couldn’t be simpler!<br />
Everyone’s a winner<br />
with Will Aid<br />
If you need to make or update an existing will, please<br />
do it through the Will Aid campaign this November. Will<br />
Aid 2004 is a great opportunity to get your affairs in order<br />
and, at the same time, help thousands of people across<br />
the world. Since the scheme began in 1988 it has raised<br />
over £4 million for charity.<br />
Through the scheme, a solicitor will draw up a basic<br />
will for free. You can then choose to make a donation to<br />
Will Aid, and the solicitor passes any donations on. All<br />
donations are shared between the nine Will Aid charities,<br />
of which <strong>ActionAid</strong> is one.<br />
For further information, call the hotline on 0870<br />
6060 239, visit www.willaid.org, or fill out the form on<br />
page two of this issue of Common Cause.<br />
It is aimed at seven to 14 yearolds<br />
and their teachers for use<br />
in geography, citizenship and<br />
PSHE lessons, and actively<br />
encourages users to ask<br />
questions, share ideas, vote on<br />
issues and take action.<br />
Visit<br />
www.globallinks.org.uk<br />
now!<br />
Christmas cards<br />
The sun may be shining, but we wanted to be early<br />
birds and let you know that our Christmas cards will<br />
soon be on sale, with four brand new designs as well as<br />
some old favourites! Keep an eye open for next issue,<br />
where you will find an order form and full details of<br />
how to order by phone, post or web.<br />
Sending flowers to<br />
someone special?<br />
Give Charity Flowers Direct a call<br />
and they will donate 15% of the<br />
value of your order to <strong>ActionAid</strong>.<br />
To order your flowers, call<br />
08705 300 600 and quote<br />
reference AID 10.<br />
<strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004 www.actionaid.org.uk<br />
www.actionaid.org.uk <strong>common</strong> <strong>cause</strong> SUMMER 2004