CHRISTIAN AID NEWS

CHRISTIAN 

AID NEWS 

Issue 54 Winter 2012 christianaid.org.uk 

WE 

NEED 

YOUR 

HELP 

NOW! 

Pledge your support for 

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Christian aid introduCes 

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020 7620 4444 

CONTENTS 

F1986 

EDITOR’S 

LETTER 

EVERY YEAR one date is 

always first into the 

Christian Aid calendar: 

Christian Aid Week. And 

while it may only be 

January, preparations are 

well under way for the 2012 

Week from 13-19 May. 

And this year, more than 

ever before, we need your 

help to make this fantastic 

feat of fundraising a huge 

success. Could you lend a 

hand to your local church 

organising committee, 

carry our message into 

schools and community 

groups, or take part in an 

event Or could you 

volunteer to pound the 

pavements in your village, 

town or city as one of our 

army of house-to-house 

collectors However you 

could help, we would love 

to see as many of you as 

possible getting involved. 

Whether this is your 10th 

year of collecting for 

Christian Aid, or the first 

time you’ve considered it, I 

hope that our special 

feature calls you to get 

involved as never before. 

We need you! 

Finally, after an autumn 

during which many 

supporters took part in 

walks to support an Indian 

land-rights movement, 

read our report on page 12 

on preparations in India for 

a 2012 march. Inspiring. 

Roger Fulton, Editor 

Christian Aid News 

is printed on 100 per 

cent recycled paper 

24 

Collector Peter Murray 

on a fact-finding trip to 

Sierra Leone, ahead of 

Christian Aid Week 2012 

REGULARS 

■ 4 THE BIG PICTURE 

One telling image. 

■ 6 NEWS 

Beverley Knight in Malawi, 

east Africa update and our 

take on the Durban climate 

change talks. 

■ 14 CAMPAIGNS 

Taking the climate change 

message to the UN talks in 

Durban. Plus, Bearing 

Witness and a timely tax 

reminder. 

■ 24 LIFE AND SOUL 

How a Good Little 

Company turns sausages 

into funds for Christian Aid. 

■ 25 INPUT 

Your feedback. 

■ 26 EVENTS 

Santa Dashes to the Big 

Christmas Sing: fundraising 

6 

26 

30 

with a festive twist. And 

dates for your 2012 diary. 

■ 28 YOUR 

CHRISTIAN AID 

Events and stories from 

your part of Britain. 

■ 30 LAST WORD 

Meet Jean, a woman living 

alongside a community 

under occupation. 

SPECIAL 

FEATURES 

■ 12 FRONTLINE 

On the move with the 

protestors marching for 

land rights in India. 

■ 18 CHRISTIAN AID 

WEEK 2012 

It’s never too early to get 

involved in Christian Aid 

Week! Our Life and Soul 

special looks at how you 

can help make our 2012 

event a wonderful success. 

UK registered charity number 1105851 Company number 5171525 Scotland charity number SC039150 Northern Ireland charity number 

XR94639 Company number NI059154 Republic of Ireland charity number CHY 6998 Company number 426928. The Christian Aid name 

and logo are trademarks of Christian Aid; Poverty Over is a trademark of Christian Aid. © Christian Aid January 2012. The acceptance of 

external advertising does not indicate endorsement. If you wish to receive this magazine digitally, go to digitalcan.christianaid.org.uk 

Christian Aid/Antoinette Powell 

Christian Aid 

is a Christian 

organisation that 

insists the world 

can and must be 

swiftly changed 

to one where 

everyone can live 

a full life, free 

from poverty. We 

work globally for 

profound change 

that eradicates 

the causes of 

poverty, striving 

to achieve 

equality, dignity 

and freedom for 

all, regardless of 

faith or nationality. 

We are part of a 

wider movement 

for social justice. 

We provide 

urgent, practical 

and effective 

assistance where 

need is great, 

tackling the effects 

of poverty as well 

as its root causes. 

■ Front cover Long-term supporter Peter Murray collecting for Christian Aid Week in Darlington station. Photo: Christian Aid/Chris Booth ■ Pictures Joseph Cabon, Matthew 

Gonzalez-Noda ■ Sub-editors Caroline Atkinson, Catriona Lorie, Louise Parfitt ■ Circulation Ben Hayward ■ Design and production Becca Higgins/Syon Publishing, 020 8332 8407 

■ Christian Aid head office 35 Lower Marsh, London SE1 7RL ■ Tel 020 7620 4444 ■ Fax 020 7620 0719 ■ Email info@christian-aid.org ■ Online at christianaid.org.uk

THE BIG PICTURE 

THE BARRIER 

OF IGNORANCE 

Christian Aid/Olivia Arthur/Magnum Photos 

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO, Kenyan church leader 

Reverend Rahab was shocked to discover that she 

was HIV-positive. She thought of herself as a good 

Christian and believed that HIV was an illness of 

prostitutes: ‘When you have a sexually related 

disease, sometimes it is like a shame. At that time I 

was feeling I would want to die. When I entered 

vehicles I wished they would have an accident and 

then people would say, “she died in an accident”.’ 

When the Church found out about Reverend 

Rahab’s status, she says it convinced her fiancé not 

to marry her. Soon after, she was relocated from a 

successful urban parish to a failing drought-stricken 

area in the countryside. Hurt and confused, she 

decided to remain quiet about her HIV status in her 

new parish: ‘If I could be sure that if I said I am 

positive to the members, I would not be chased 

from the Church, I would be comfortable. At this 

present time I will keep it mum.’ 

Reverend Rahab’s story is one of several told 

in Stigma Under the Lens, a compelling new 

audio-visual exhibition organised by Christian Aid 

in partnership with international photo agency 

Magnum Photos. It examines how stigma 

manifests itself in everyday life for someone who 

is HIV-positive, and goes some way to explaining 

why thousands would rather not know their status 

than face discrimination at home, in their 

community, at work, and within their faith. 

Four Magnum photographers (Alessandra 

Sanguinetti, Peter van Agtmael, Olivia Arthur – 

whose photograph is featured here – and Patrick 

Zachmann) travelled to Bolivia, Britain, Kenya, 

India and Tajikistan to record powerful testimonies. 

Reverend Rahab now helps to educate the local 

population about HIV. She is part of KENERELA, 

a network of faith leaders living with and affected 

by HIV, working to fight HIV-related stigma within 

the churches. 

Stigma Under the Lens launched for World AIDS 

Day on 1 December 2011. It received widespread 

press coverage, including on the BBC and Sky 

News and in the Mirror, Independent and 

Guardian newspapers. 

• To view the audio gallery, please go to 

christianaid.org.uk/hiv 

4 Christian Aid News

To view the 

audio gallery, 

please go to 

christianaid. 

org.uk/hiv 

Christian Aid News 5

NEWS 

Beverley 

Knight with 

local school 

children 

Christian Aid/Lee Thompson 

malaWI 

KNIGHT lIGHTS 

up THE dayS 

Beverley Knight hardly left her 

day job when she travelled 

to Malawi as a Christian Aid 

ambassador 

On visiting ‘in tune fOr Life’, 

a recording project part-funded by 

Christian Aid, where musicians create 

songs and video content with Hiv-related 

educational messages, the MOBO 

award-winning singer gave local school 

children an impromptu concert. 

While seeing our Hiv work in Malawi, 

Beverley took the opportunity to play the 

continent’s biggest annual pop festival, 

the Lake of stars. ‘i passionately believe 

that music can be used as a tool to effect 

change. the performance of music and 

drama here is so strong and powerful, 

and when they talk of Malawi as the 

warm heart of Africa, they really aren’t 

kidding. i had a wonderful reception.’ 

in her second trip with Christian Aid 

(the first was to Brazil in 2002), the singer 

met partners including theatre for a 

Change and MAnereLA+ (a group of 

religious leaders living with the virus), 

who are using education and healthcare 

to deal with the continent’s Hiv crisis. 

‘the scale of the Hiv pandemic here in 

Malawi is huge. some 11 per cent of the 

country’s 15 million adults are living with 

Hiv. Christian Aid and its partners are 

trying to slow it down. 

‘the stigma is the real killer. the 

biggest surprise for me is the Church’s 

attitude towards Hiv, in terms of 

educating about transmission and caring 

for people living with Hiv. it is getting in 

and among the people, and setting up 

schools, clinics and first-aid centres on 

chapel land.’ 

Beverley also met grace Mathanga, 

a former sex worker whose first two 

children died from Hiv-related illnesses. 

Once she was diagnosed, grace 

sought help from theatre for a Change, 

which taught her about preventing 

transmission from mother-to-child. 

grace's daughter Chisomo (which 

translates as grace) is, as a result, Hivnegative. 

‘Because of theatre for a Change, 

grace and little grace both have a future,’ 

Beverley said. On her return, she spoke 

to the Daily Mirror, Hello magazine, itv’s 

This Morning programme and 15 BBC 

radio stations about the projects to help 

promote the 2011 Christian Aid Christmas 

appeal. 


malawi 

Grant funds 

£10.1m climate 

programme 

IN octoBer 2011, christian Aid 

launched a new programme in 

Malawi with our largest Department 

for International Development 

(DFID) grant to date. The Enhancing 

community resilience Programme 

(ecrP), worth £10.1m, will take an 

ambitious approach to addressing 

climate challenges such as droughts 

and floods. 

this builds on experience gained 

through previous projects in Malawi, 

including work with our partner the 

evangelical Association of Malawi to 

set up warning systems in anticipation 

of disasters such as floods. 

christian Aid will act as lead agency 

of a consortium of international 

agencies, including cAre and 

Action Aid, and 11 Malawian partner 

organisations. the project will work 

to improve local communities’ 

resilience to challenges brought by 

Malawi’s changing climate, including 

the increasing frequency of droughts 

and floods. communities will be able 

to improve their livelihoods while 

making the most of new opportunities 

to take part in decisions affecting 

them. In doing so, they will bring 

sustainable benefits for a more 

secure future. 

UK must do more 

to fight corruption 

Much More Must be done by the 

government to tackle the role that 

British banks and companies play in 

fuelling and facilitating corruption 

overseas, according to a new report 

launched on International Anticorruption 

Day (9 December) by 

an umbrella group of development 

agencies, including christian Aid. 

‘the laws are there to tackle 

corruption but so far the will is lacking, 

particularly when it comes to the 

Bribery Act,’ said eric Gutierrez, senior 

governance adviser at christian Aid and 

one of the authors of the report by the 

Bond Anti-corruption Group. 

‘corruption has devastating effects 

on developing countries, undermining 

good governance and exacerbating 

poverty,’ said Melissa Lawson, 

tearfund policy adviser and Bond 

group chair. ‘the failure to act here 

in the uK when it comes to enforcing 

bribery laws and tackling dirty 

money has huge implications for the 

world’s poorest communities. this 

report shows why the uK must not 

remain ambivalent when it comes to 

addressing the real issues in the fight 

against corruption.’ 

the report notes improvements in 

Britain’s compliance with some of its 

commitments under the united Nations 

convention Against corruption, but 

identifies a series of weaknesses: 

• The Ministry of Justice guidance on 

the new uK Bribery Act is unclear, 

creating potential loopholes and 

confusion for business. 

• The Serious Fraud Office has too 

few resources to ensure the bribery 

legislation is a real deterrent to stop 

companies paying huge bribes to 

foreign governments in return for 

lucrative contracts. 

• According to the Financial Services 

Authority, 75 per cent of British 

banks surveyed don’t know the 

source of the funds of their customers 

who are senior overseas political 

figures, leaving Britain wide open 

to corrupt funds. 

the Bond Group welcomed the Bribery 

Act of 2010, but now calls on the 

government to: 

• ensure sufficient resources for 

enforcing the Bribery Act 

• enforce its own anti-moneylaundering 

laws to ensure British 

banks do not accept corrupt money 

and facilitate corruption 

• extend the UN Convention Against 

corruption and uK Bribery Act to all 

crown Dependencies and overseas 

territories 

• produce a transparent crossgovernment 

anti-corruption strategy. 

central america 

Tropical depression 

brings worsT rain 

for 50 years 

FrOM MID-october countries in 

central America experienced some of 

the highest levels of rain in 50 years, 

caused by tropical Depression e12. 

the countries most affected were el 

salvador and Guatemala, with reports 

that the devastation was worse than 

that created by hurricane Mitch in 1998. 

In el salvador the average annual 

rainfall is around 1,770mm, but 

1,470mm of rain fell in just a few 

days. Around 50,000 people had to be 

evacuated from their homes, and 5,000 

acres of crops were damaged. 

christian Aid is responding through 

seven partners across the region, with 

£50,000 released from our emergency 

funds to help cope with the disaster. 

£170,000 from the consortium of 

British humanitarian Agencies also 

helped meet the needs of those worst 

affected. our partners responded 

rapidly and effectively, often working 

in communities not reached by 

civil authorities. they helped with 

evacuations and provided food and 

basic health care to those in emergency 

shelters. hygiene and kitchen kits were 

also distributed, and water purification 

systems put in place. the next stage 

will be to ensure that communities 

recover their livelihoods, including 

agriculture, fishing and livestock. 

In spite of the magnitude of this 

tragedy, it is notable that the death 

toll remained low, with around 120 

people killed. this is due to the work of 

our partners, who have been helping 

vulnerable communities prepare for 

disasters over the past decade.


EAST AFRICA 

NOW FLOODING 

ADDS TO MISERY 

Flooding in 

Somalia 

AFGHANISTAN 

TIME FOR DONORS TO GET IT RIGHT 

AT THE BONN conference on 

5 December, the international 

community affirmed its commitment 

to peace and development in 

Afghanistan. But no specific pledges 

on aid were made. 

Christian Aid believes the 

international community needs to 

commit to prioritise poverty reduction 

for a country that is still one of the 

world’s poorest, and pursue an 

inclusive, accountable peace process 

that includes all Afghans. 

In the 10 years since the start of 

the international intervention in 

Afghanistan, progress on health, 

education and other measures of 

people’s quality of life has been 

faltering. International governments 

have given roughly US$57bn in aid to 

the country, but much of this has been 

spent on short-term ‘stabilisation’ work 

that has not delivered a stable state for 

the Afghan people. 

The international community of 

more than 100 countries that gathered 

at the conference pledged to support 

Afghanistan for another decade after 

international troops withdraw in 2014. 

Now, after the conference, Christian Aid 

and other NGOs are asking the British 

government to ensure that the years 

up to 2024 follow a new approach: 

addressing the needs of ordinary 

Afghans for jobs and basic services, as 

well as putting ordinary people first in 

the peace process. 

If the international community 

allows a peace process between the 

government and the Taliban that does 

not include all social groups or allow 

the participation of the public, the 

process will be mistrusted by the 

population and will not solve the local 

tensions and conflicts generated by 

30 years of war. That could mean 

that Afghanistan slides back into 

another war. 


afghanisTan updaTe 


AID NEWS 

Issue 53 Autumn 2011 christianaid.org.uk 

EAST 

AFRICA 

CRISIS 

Special report on 

the impact of the 

current drought 

– and how our 

partners are 

helping 

• Afghanistan: the women 

who fear for their future 

• Tax and climate: the 

campaign pressure builds 

In June 2011, after 

two seasons of 

poor rains, rising 

food prices and 

displacement left 

millions in desperate 

need of humanitarian 

assistance, Christian 

Aid launched an 

appeal for east 

Africa. 

Funds raised 

have enabled us to 

respond to the needs of around 270,000 

of those left most vulnerable by the 

crisis across east Africa. Despite the 

challenges posed by insecurity around 

Kenya’s border with Somalia (including 

around Mandera and the Dadaab refugee 

camp), which is making work in the area 

extremely difficult, our partners continue 

to work in Kenya, ethiopia, Somalia and 

South Sudan. 

Liaising with other organisations 

responding to the emergency to ensure 

resources are used effectively, Christian 

Aid has supported local partners to 

provide water, sanitation and nutritional 

support for those most in need within 

Kenya’s Dadaab and ethiopia’s Dollo Ado 

refugee camps, and within communities 

facing hunger and disease. 

This work has included providing 

emergency water supplies and repairing 

existing boreholes, paying a fair rate for 

remaining livestock to reduce the burden 

on families struggling to meet their 

needs, and providing food for women 

and babies. 

The arrival in October of the rainy 

season brought a degree of hope. Yet 

with some areas now experiencing 

flooding, including Dadaab camp and the 

area of Kenya around Isolo, Mandera, 

Marsabit and Moyale, these rains have 

resulted in further misery for many. 

Crops that farmers have managed to 

grow – including maize, beans and 

sorghum – have been wiped out while 

the floods have contaminated some 

communities’ dams and shallow wells 

with silt and other debris. 

Christian Aid will continue to respond 

to the changing situation, helping 

to prevent the spread of waterborne 

diseases in areas affected by flooding 

while supporting other communities to 

rebuild their lives. 

Cover2.indd 1 07/09/2011 13:49 

Reuters/Thomas MuKoya/courtesy alertnet.org 

‘Moral’ prisoner 

wins freedom 

Christian Aid/Sarah Malian 

A FeMALe AFghAn prisoner featured 

in the last edition of Christian Aid News 

is among several whose release has 

been secured by a Christian Aid partner. 

nozeni was accused of running away 

with her boyfriend when she was just 

15 years old. She was given five years 

in jail, while her boyfriend was released 

after seven months. 

Since the last edition of Christian Aid 

News, she has been freed. With the 

help of a lawyer paid for by Christian 

Aid partner the Afghan Women’s 

education Centre (AWeC), she applied 

for a presidential pardon, and has now 

left after spending two-and-a-half years 

in prison. 

A recent un report estimates that 

more than half of Afghanistan’s female 

prisoners have been jailed for ‘moral 

crimes’, such as running away from 

home. These crimes are seen as stains 

on the family’s honour, despite often 

having no basis in law, and repeatedly 

show bias towards men. The justice 

system in Afghanistan is very poor; 

women have no voice in court and often 

they are not even present at hearings. 

numbers of female inmates are on the 

increase, according to un figures. 

Nozeni was 

originally jailed 

for five years 

Christian Aid and AWeC work in 

Faryab women’s jail in the north of 

Afghanistan, providing legal assistance, 

family counselling, literacy classes 

and income-generation activities for 

the women there. AWeC promotes 

economic, social and human rights, 

and dignity, justice and equality for 

marginalised women. 

AWeC has had other successes; Bibi 

gul was given the death sentence for 

the murder of a soldier. There was no 

evidence and she asserts that she was 

framed by her husband’s family. An 

AWeC lawyer took on her case and had 

her sentence commuted to 18 years, 

and recently reduced further to eight. 

She has a young baby girl who is still 

being breastfed so is with her now, but 

will soon be separated from her mother. 

her daughter will be 10 by the time Bibi 

gul gets out. however, her files have 

now been sent to Kabul to see if the 

sentence can be reduced further. 

AWeC continues to work to help 

women in prisons in a country where 

the justice system is very poor, and 

strives at other levels to lobby for 

laws to protect the rights of women, 

including the banning of child marriage. 



cover the cost of training, equipping 

and supporting a volunteer and running 

complementary activities, such as radio 

programmes and sports events, which 

can be used to reach large numbers. 

You can find out more about how your 

church can be involved in this special 

appeal by calling Eleanor Ledesma on 

020 7523 2368 or by visiting christianaid. 

org.uk/tacklemalaria 

Christian Aid/Sarah Filbey 

£500 malaria appEal 

to churchES 

Christian aid is asking churches in 

Britain to join the fight against malaria 

in africa by raising at least £500 each to 

support the work of a volunteer malaria 

control agent for a year. this initiative 

aims to raise funds to start a new antimalaria 

programme in sierra Leone. 

Volunteers play a vital role in 

combating malaria in africa. Kelezo 

nganga from the Western Province 

of Zambia lost her six-year-old son 

to malaria in 2002. determined that 

other parents would not suffer in the 

same way, she trained to become one 

of Christian aid partner the Zambia 

anglican Council’s volunteer malaria 

control agents. 

now Kelezo teaches other parents 

how to reduce the vulnerability of their 

Kelezo Nganga 

with her 

surviving son, Eric 

children to the disease, how to recognise 

its signs and symptoms, and where they 

can go for immediate treatment. Kelezo 

says that she now feels confident about 

keeping her second son, Eric, safe. 

this latest church appeal is designed 

to raise money to start a similar 

volunteer programme in the Eastern 

Province of sierra Leone. Malaria is one 

of sierra Leone’s most deadly diseases, 

accounting for the death of thousands 

of children every year. the project 

is centred on the provincial capital 

of Kenema and plans are in place to 

recruit around 40 volunteers to provide 

communities with life-saving education 

about malaria prevention and treatment. 

at least 30,000 people will benefit. 

the £500 raised by each church will 

Nets for Life hits 

500,000 target 

Four YEars aFtEr Christian aid began 

work with nets for Life in nigeria, the 

500,000th net has been delivered. 

the nets for Life programme works 

across africa with partner organisations 

that distribute insecticide-treated 

mosquito nets and information on 

prevention. it also advocates for 

diagnostic testing and more effective 

drug therapy. Malaria accounts for more 

than a quarter of deaths in children aged 

under five in nigeria, and has a huge 

impact on the country’s economy due to 

work days lost and the cost of treatment. 

so combating the disease is critical. 

Providing nets and educating people 

about protecting themselves is a costeffective 

way of preventing malaria. 

‘these nets have such an impact on 

reducing frequent malaria cases,’ 

explained daniel shitindi from local 

partner adds Makurdi. ‘these villages 

where we work have a very high 

incidence of malaria and it really helps to 

reduce their visits to clinics, save them 

money on drugs, and increase their 

strength for income generation.’ 

in the coming year, Christian aid will 

continue to work with partners to educate 

communities about malaria and to 

ensure that the nets they have provided 

continue to be used effectively to ensure 

a healthier population. 

drc 

ChristiaN aid joiNs 

eLeCtioN observers 

as CitiZEns in thE democratic 

republic of Congo (drC) went to vote 

in elections for the second time in 40 

years, Christian aid was part of a team 

of 100 international election observers 

in the country. Working alongside 

national civil society organisations, the 

observers from EuraC – a European 

network of 50 non-governmental 

organisations focused on central 

africa – collated reports to assess how 

effective and fair the elections were. 

delivering democratic elections 

here is rife with challenges – financial, 

logistical and political. Christian aid 

has been working on accountable 

governance with our partners in the 

drC for many years. 

donatella rostagno from EuraC said: 

‘Civil society groups such as Christian 

aid’s partners face big challenges but 

do a lot with the little they have.’ 

the results were still being collated 

as Christian Aid News went to press 

but to hear a podcast about work 

in the drC visit christianaid.org.uk/ 

whatwedo/africa/ 


Climate Change: 

talk is just not enough 

Christian Aid journalist 

Rachel Baird was in Durban 

to follow the twists and turns 

of the UN climate change 

talks. Here, she analyses 

an outcome that has left 

Christian Aid campaigners 

still concerned but determined 

to keep fighting 

It’s always ImpossIble to know 

exactly what will emerge from the United 

Nations climate change summit held 

every December. but one safe bet is that 

governments will put off big decisions 

altogether, if they can. In the short term, 

it’s easier than agreeing to something 

potentially unpopular at home. 

this year was no exception. although 

many negotiators left the summit in 

Durban, south africa, claiming success, 

the truth is that they simply agreed to 

keep talking. In a world in which global 

emissions of greenhouse gases are 

rising steadily, with scientists warning 

that urgent action is needed to avoid 

dangerous climate change, talk is not 

enough. the ‘breakthrough’ claimed 

was that the more than 190 countries 

present agreed to work towards a new 

international climate agreement, which 

for the first time will, in theory, cover 

every country, including the world’s two 

biggest polluters – China and the Us. 

the UK and european Union, with 

allies from the least developed and most 

vulnerable countries, pushed hard to 

maintain the existing carbon-capping 

legislation, the Kyoto protocol, and 

forge a new deal to come into operation 

by 2015 with all countries included, 

meaning binding commitments for all 

big emitters. but in the end they were 

overpowered by the self interests of 

big, wealthy emitters including the Us, 

Russia, Canada and Japan, who refused 

to accept any binding commitments until 

2020. without such countries on board, 

India and China also refused to support a 

more ambitious deal. 

Indeed it is likely that had not UK 

secretary of state for Climate Change 

Chris Huhne stood beside the european 

Christian Aid/Ally Carnwath 

Commissioner Connie Hedegaard 

in pushing hard for a road map to a 

globally binding deal then the outcome 

would have been worse, with possibly 

no binding commitments and no room 

for further negotiations. 

Nevertheless, while a global deal could 

– if done well, with proper protection for 

people living in poverty – be an excellent 

weapon to curb emissions, Christian aid 

remains deeply concerned about the 

Action in 2020 will come 

a decade too late for poor 

people on the front line – 

they need it now 

Durban outcome – commitment to act by 

2020 is simply too late. 

experts such as the International 

energy agency and the world 

meteorological organisation were 

practically queuing up in Durban to 

warn of the urgent need to cut global 

emissions, which threaten to push the 

average global temperature rise above a 

generally recognised ‘safe’ limit of 2°C. 

mohamed adow, Christian aid’s 

climate talks expert, judged the outcome 

‘a political compromise which saves 

the climate talks but endangers people 

living in poverty.’ His warning was bleak: 

‘action in 2020 will come a decade too 

late for poor people on the front line – 

Campaigners 

found a novel 

way to urge the 

EU to commit to a 

Kyoto-style deal 

they need it now. their lives are already 

ravaged by floods, droughts, failed rains, 

storms, hunger and disease. these will 

worsen as climate change bites.’ 

the Kyoto protocol, which Christian 

aid supporters have campaigned 

vigorously to defend, he says is now 

‘Kyoto in name only’. 

even though some governments 

agreed that they will extend it into a 

second commitment period, in truth this 

now amounts to little as so many of its 

provisions – notably ambition to stay 

below 2°C and fair action by developed 

countries – have been removed. 

one positive Durban development was 

that the Green Climate Fund, set up to 

help poor countries cope with the effects 

of climate change and develop in a 

carbon-clean way, will be given staff and 

an office, although as yet very little cash. 

Christian aid will continue working 

for urgent action on climate change. 

above all, governments must commit to 

deeper emissions cuts to come into force 

before 2020. much is technologically and 

economically feasible, such as investing 

in renewable energies, energy efficiency 

and better-utilised public transport. 

Christian aid will continue to call 

on governments, as well as private 

companies and organisations like the 

world bank, to use their power to reduce 

reliance on fossil fuels and help create 

sustainable, green economies. 


FRONTLINE 

Stories from around the world 

showing how Christian Aid 

and our partners are working 

to empower people to shape 

a better future for themselves 

and their communities 

christian aid/sarah Filbey 

Last autumn many Christian Aid supporters took part 

in sponsored walks in solidarity with a land-rights 

protest march being planned in India. This year many 

more will march again. Sarah Filbey joined our 

partner Ekta Parishad as it prepares for its marathon 

month-long 100,000-strong trek in October, to discover 

what lies behind this extraordinary campaign 

‘LaNd Is whaT 

wE NEEd TO FEEd 

OuR chILdREN’ 


Every day we hear 

more than 100 voices, 

all sad voices 

Main picture: Kalawati-Bai shows the 

berries the community depends on 

when food is scarce. The white tower 

can be seen in the background. 

Below: a tribal chief and an Ekta 

Parishad rep at a community 

preparation rally in Bajarangpura 

Christian Aid/Sarah Filbey 

A tAll white wAtchtower stands 

majestically at the entrance to Bhatapura 

village. Around it lies an expanse of red 

earth and scrubland where goats graze. 

Some 28km from Gwalior, near to the 

home of the taj Mahal, Bhatapura lies on 

the edge of a stretch of land recently 

designated a Golden Bird Sanctuary by 

the indian government. 

why the government has invested in 

a bird-watching tower mystifies the 

locals, who have lived on this land for a 

century or more. For no one here can 

recall even one golden bird sighting in 

living memory, according to 70-year-old 

villager Munshi Sahariya. 

could this be an elaborate design to 

keep the tribal communities living on this 

valuable stretch of land from claiming 

rights to it with several communities 

deeper into the zone already moved 

from their homes, the families of 

Bhatapura fear the worst. 

this is just one of hundreds of stories 

being heard and collected by members 

of christian Aid partner ekta Parishad. 

A group of 15 are travelling across india 

for a year in a van. on its side, a banner 

bears the faces of ekta Parishad’s leader, 

rajagopal, and Gandhi, whose philosophy 

of non-violent action the group follows. 

ramesh, ekta Parishad’s campaign 

co-ordinator, joined us in our vehicle as 

we followed them for four days of their 

intensive journey. he explained how, 

with little rest or respite, the team travels 

for many hours daily to document local 

land struggles and prepare people to 

march for a month from Gwalior to Delhi 

in october/November 2012 to demand 

land rights and legal reform to help settle 

disputes due to land redistribution. 

‘every day we hear more than 100 

voices, all sad voices,’ explains ramesh. 

‘every day holding that pain, at night you 

can’t sleep properly. the physical 

challenge is much easier – the mental 

accumulation far more difficult.’ 

one such voice might have been that 

of Kalawati-Bai, a mother of four from 

Bhatapura, who is preparing to march in 

2012 with two of her children, aged five 

and six. ‘i don’t want my children to go 

through the same troubles as i have,’ 

she says. ‘land is what we need to 

feed our children – i will do or die in 

the foot march and i will not return 

without our land rights or any promises.’ 

Forbidden to grow crops on the 

protected sanctuary land, Kalawati-Bai 

and her community live in terror of forest 

department officials, who villagers claim 

stop them entering the forest area to 

collect forest produce such as firewood 

and berries, in spite of the Forest rights 

Act, which protects access rights. the 

villagers depend on the firewood to sell, 

and berries to eat when food is scarce. 

this is just one example of how 

despite progressive legislation existing, 

communities continue to be denied 

access to their rights. 

Bhatapura villagers take strength from 

the experience of neighbouring 

Bajarangpura. its villagers were among 

the 25,000 who took part in the Janadesh 

march of 2007. its 350km route will be 

repeated by the Jan Satyagraha march 

in 2012. Bajarangpura villagers secured 

the deeds to the land on which they live 

thanks to the Forest rights Act, the 

greater implementation of which was 

one of the main outcomes of the 2007 

march as part of long-term efforts by 

ekta Parishad and other civil society 

partners. And they persevered, they said, 

thanks to courage drawn from being a 

part of such a large people’s movement 

as Janadesh. 

they now grow mustard plants, wheat 

and potatoes on their modest yet valuable 

23 hectares of land, cradled between two 

small hills. Many in Bajarangpura are 

preparing to march again in 2012 in 

solidarity with others less fortunate. 

of the 100,000 expected to march in 

2012, most will be people from dalit and 

adivasi (tribal) communities, who are 

systematically discriminated against due 

to indian society’s caste system hierarchy 

and ethnic prejudice. Bhatapura and 

Bajarangpura are adivasi communities. 

we followed ekta Parishad to press 

conferences and community meetings, 

where journalists expressed concern, 

and where young and old crowded 

together to share their stories and hear 

ramesh and his colleagues speak. 

And we caught a glimpse of the hope 

their journey brings; that ekta Parishad 

will bring people’s voices and struggles 

to the national and international level. 

’everywhere you can feel that the 

whole campaign is gradually building, 

at every level – in understanding, in 

solidarity, in financial contributions – 

and most of all in terms of opening the 

space for dialogue with our own state,’ 

explains ramesh. ‘we feel it building, 

day by day.’ 


CAMPAIgns 

A brass band leads 

the way on the 

morning rally in 

Kabare, Rwanda 

Photos: Christian Aid/Alexander Carnwath 

‘It’s not the end 

of the struggle – 

It’s the begInnIng’ 


Last November, Christian Aid’s Africa communications 

officer Alexander Carnwath joined a campaigning ‘caravan 

of hope’ as it travelled through 10 African countries, 

carrying an urgent climate change message to the United 

Nations summit in Durban, South Africa. The talks may 

have ended in compromise, but the caravan helped 

strengthen African voices calling for action 

First came a police car, clearing a 

path through the busy streets of 

Bujumbura, Burundi. Next, a crowd of 50 

bicycle taxis, their riders hooting their 

horns and stretching out to hand leaflets 

to passers-by. last of all came the bus 

itself, a giant banner advertising our 

journey covering one side. 

For those who stopped on the 

pavements to watch our colourful, 

chaotic lap of the city centre on 9 

November, this was africa’s first glimpse 

of the caravan of Hope: a 7,000km 

campaigning road trip, organised by 

christian aid partner pan african climate 

Justice alliance (pacJa). 

and for those inside the bus – 

Burundian activists, a handful of east 

african journalists and myself – it was a 

chance to find our seats, buckle up and 

settle in for what would be a very long 

ride indeed. 

the journey had been organised by 

pacJa with two main objectives. the 

first was to raise awareness of the 

impact of climate change in africa. and 

the second was to transport activists 

from 10 african countries to Durban, 

south africa, to campaign at the UN 

climate change negotiations, cop17. 

‘in africa, there is a need to demystify 

climate change so that people can see 

what the link is to their lives,’ explains 

mithika mwenda, head of pacJa. ‘We 

wanted to think of a massive activity that 

would unite the people of africa with the 

UN process.’ 

Suffering the effects 

When we left Bujumbura, we were one 

bus of about 30 people. By the time we 

reached Durban, there were three buses 

packed with more than 150 caravanners. 

these included young people, women’s 

rights campaigners and farmers, many 

of whom were already suffering the 

impact of changing weather patterns. 

Janet mussa, a malawian farmer and 

mother of seven, explains how 

unpredictable rainfall had severely 

reduced her harvests and forced her 

family to leave their home. 

‘the rains start late and finish early, so 

hunger comes now,’ she says. ‘and we 

have been displaced from our homeland 

by floods. i am worried because i don’t 

see any future for my children.’ 

though data on climate change is 

lacking in africa, her account of variable 

rains is consistent with what scientists 

expect to see in the region. and all along 

the route we heard stories like these, 

from those on the bus and from the 

thousands of people who attended 

caravan ceremonies in each of the 10 

countries we passed through. 

No two events were quite the same. in 

Burundi bicycle taxis took the lead, in 

Nairobi we were led through the streets 

by a marching band, and in Zimbabwe 

we processed right to the edge of 

Victoria Falls, whose waters are thought 

by local people to be drying up due to 

temperature rises. But each one was a 

chance for people to share experiences, 

express solidarity and gather signatures 

of politicians (including the vicepresidents 

of Burundi, Uganda, tanzania 

and malawi) on an african people’s 

petition calling for climate justice. 

Strengthening solidarity 

When we arrived in Durban just before 

the start of the talks, there were high 

hopes among us that progress would be 

made on a fair climate deal. at one of the 

campaigning events in Durban, my fellow 

travellers were told by mary robinson, 

the former president of ireland: ‘it’s your 

voices that should be heard at this 

conference. i have heard more urgency 

from you than in the big hall.’ 

at this campaigning rally Desmond 

tutu was presented with a global petition 

of messages calling for climate justice, 

before addressing the crowds. 

But alongside the optimism, there was 

also an understanding that the caravan’s 

demands would not be met overnight. its 

greatest success has been in laying the 

foundations for a unified position on 

climate change among africans and 

strengthening the campaign movement 

for the long struggle ahead. 

‘climate change is not going to be 

defeated by one individual, one country 

or one region [and] cop17 won’t be the 

end of the struggle,’ says mwenda. ‘it’s 

the beginning and i like to think that we 

will be able to continue this solidarity.’ 

• You can see and listen to video and 

audio interviews, at christianaid.org.uk/ 

ActNow/climate-justice/ 

Far left: Mithika Mwenda, head of PACJA, 

addresses farmers, politicians and 

campaigners in Kigali. Left: drumming up 

support. Above: families come out to support 

the caravan launch in Bujumbura, Burundi 


Christian Aid/Matthew Gonzalez-Noda 

SupporterS dema 

‘greener’ leader 

CampaignS 

A wArning to the Conservatives that 

they must not abandon their pledge to 

be the ‘greenest government ever’ was 

delivered by supporters of Christian Aid, 

CAFoD and tearfund at a candlelit vigil 

on the eve of the party conference. More 

than 1,000 people came to Manchester in 

october for the Bearing witness event, to 

put pressure on the government not to 

forget its promise. 

Eighteen months on from David 

Cameron’s ‘green’ pledge, the charities 

came together to urge him to play a 

proactive role in delivering climate policy 

that helps vulnerable communities in 

poor countries that are bearing the brunt 

of climate change. Following an 

afternoon of talks and workshops and 

an ecumenical service in Manchester 

Cathedral, the charities’ supporters 

marched to the conference centre to 

call on the Conservative Party to do all 

it could to make sure the Durban 

summit delivered for the poorest people 

in the world. 

Developed nations pledged in 2009 

that a fund would be up and running by 

2013 to deliver US$100bn of climate 

finance per year by 2020 to help poorer 

countries cope with the impact of climate 

change. But the charities fear that the 

economic crisis may result in rich nations 

not fulfilling this pledge. 

Poor people urgently need climate 

finance to adapt to climate change and 

develop in a low-carbon way. Samson 

Malesi, a climate activist from Kenya, 

who addressed supporters during the 

afternoon, stressed: ‘Climate change is a 

reality, and a very grim reality in the 

African context… but this is the time that 

we can make the change that we believe 

in. the African people are raising their 

voice and crying out for climate justice.’ 

Christian Aid’s director, Loretta 

Minghella, said: ‘we need the 

government to galvanise international 

support for the extension of the Kyoto 

Protocol, without which there would be 

no enforceable rules on carbon 

emissions, and we risk climate anarchy.’ 


nd 

SHip 

Tax havens: we’re 

gaining momentum! 

twelve months ago Christian aid was one of a small 

handful of organisations that came together to create 

a new global campaign to end tax Haven Secrecy, but, 

reports campaigns officer alasdair Roxburgh (pictured 

below), already it has started to win real successes, 

thanks to your campaigning efforts 

CaFOD’s director, Chris Bain, said: ‘In 

2010 David Cameron promised that his 

government would be “the greenest 

government ever”. We’re calling on him 

to hold true to that promise for the 

world’s poorest people by leading 

international efforts to deliver the 

support they were promised.’ 

The charities acknowledge that 

Britain has, in the past, positioned itself 

as a world leader on climate finance 

issues, but that in the midst of the 

economic crisis, such leadership is 

notable by its absence. you can see 

more photos and watch a video of the 

day at christianaid.org.uk/ActNow/ 

climate-justice 


Tax havens play a key role in 

allowing some multinational 

companies to dodge paying the taxes 

they owe in poor countries – it’s one of 

the great injustices of our times. ending 

the secrecy that surrounds these 

jurisdictions would make it much 

harder for companies to dodge the 

taxes they owe, and unlock billions to 

lift poor people out of poverty. 

Throughout 2011 the end Tax haven 

secrecy campaign grew as more and 

more organisations joined the 

movement for change. By the time 

the G20 met in november in France, 

56 organisations from more than 20 

countries were part of the campaign 

alongside Christian aid. 

In the build-up to the meeting in 

France, thousands signed the petition 

for the G20 to act on tax haven secrecy. 

When it seemed as if the G20 might 

renege completely on its promise to 

look at tax havens, thousands of 

Christian aid supporters responded to 

keep it on the G20 agenda. 

Steps in the right direction 

By the time of the G20 meeting, more 

than 40,000 people worldwide had 

called for world leaders to take action 

on tax havens and they did make some 

small steps. 

Action taken by the G20 included: 

• Voluntary sharing of financial 

information between G20 members 

– this is a first step towards automatic 

information exchange between tax 

authorities, which would mean tax 

dodgers would have nowhere to hide. 

however this does not include tax 

havens, which are key in tax dodging. 

• A call for greater corporate 

transparency, which is welcome, but 

we need them to push for a new 

accountancy standard that requires 

firms to publish their accounts on a 

country-by-country basis. 

• Blacklisting some of the world’s worst 

tax havens, including switzerland. 

The rhetoric coming out of Cannes was 

also positive; for example, French 

president nicolas sarkozy, who was 

hosting the G20, said the worst 

offenders ‘will be excluded from the 

international community’. 

Keeping up the pressure 

These small steps leave us with a 

foundation for 2012 when the G20 

meets again in Mexico. We want to see 

world leaders build on the progress 

made in Cannes and push for full 

automatic information exchange for all 

countries, including tax havens, and 

country-by-country reporting for 

multinational companies. 

The global movement continues to 

gain momentum around the world and 

we need to maintain this pressure. 

please help keep up the pressure by 

signing and returning the ‘suitcase’ 

postcard in this issue of Christian Aid 

News to the new G20 chair, president 

Felipe Calderon of Mexico. 

The movement to end the injustice of 

tax dodging is growing. Together we 

can keep up the momentum. Join our 

Trace the Tax campaign at christianaid. 

org.uk/ActNow/trace-the-tax/ 


LiFe and 

souL 

SPECIAL 

CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID W 

Christian aid 

The way we lead our own 

lives can have a tangible 

impact in the fight to end 

poverty. By ‘doing the right 

thing’ we show we have a 

commitment to a sustainable 

lifestyle that places a high 

value on helping others 

Christian Aid Week is a moment 

unique in its power to inspire 

people to give, act and pray in 

support of some of the world’s 

poorest communities, writes 

director Loretta Minghella 

In my first 

18 months 

as director of 

Christian Aid, 

I have been 

inspired and 

moved by the 

dedication 

shown by the 

thousands of volunteers who make 

Christian Aid Week happen every year 

– holding events, raising awareness 

and, most importantly of all, pacing the 

pavements and going house to house to 

raise the money that allows us to provide 

vital assistance to the poorest and most 

vulnerable people in the world. 

We’re all too aware that times are 

tough for everyone at the moment, but 

we don’t want to cut back on any of the 

assistance we provide to our partners 

– which is why we’d love Christian Aid 

Week this year to be even bigger and 

better than ever! We’ll be doing all we 

can to make the week as successful as 

possible this may, bringing in even more 

money and involving even more people 

in the fight to end poverty. 

To that end, we’d love as many of you 

as possible to get involved – perhaps 

through your church, work or community 

group – to ensure this year’s collection 

effort reaches into every corner of 

our communities, or by becoming a 

volunteer speaker and spreading our 

message across your neighbourhood. 

We hope that you’ll join us and help 

make this the biggest Christian Aid 

Week ever! 

18 Christian Aid News 

Christian aid/antoinette Powell 

To find out more about Christian Aid Week 2012 visit caweek.org 

This dedicated area of our website contains all the resources for worship and small groups

WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN AID WEEK CHRISTIAN 

WEEK NEEDS YOU! 

‘We hope 

that you’ll join 

us and help make 

this the biggest 

Christian Aid 

Week ever!’ 

LONG-TIME Christian Aid Week organiser and 

collector Peter Murray – featured on the cover 

of this issue of Christian Aid News – sits in on a 

lesson in a school in Gbap, Sierra Leone. Peter 

travelled to Sierra Leone in June 2011, with two 

other supporters, to see the work of Christian Aid 

partner the Methodist Church of Sierra Leone 

ahead of Christian Aid Week 2012. 

Peter says: ‘Seeing how the money raised 

during Christian Aid Week will be used in some 

of Sierra Leone’s poorest communities was a 

deeply moving experience. Every year we go 

out collecting door to door; and to experience 

for myself how that money is changing the lives 

of our brothers and sisters in Sierra Leone was 

unforgettable.’ 

He adds: ‘Arriving in the capital Freetown was 

the only time in my entire life I’ve ever had the 

passport man actually lean across his desk, 

shake my hand and welcome me to his country!’ 


LIFE AND 

SOUL 

SPECIAL 


Planning for this year’s Christian 

Aid Week is already well under 

way and, says Kate Tuckett, 

it’s an opportunity for churches 

and communities to rise to the 

challenge of giving their 2012 

fundraising efforts a big boost 

Christian aid Week is an opportunity 

to stand together and celebrate the 

possibility for change in our own 

communities and in parts of the world 

where mere survival may seem to be a 

struggle. the current economic climate 

means that many churches are having 

to be increasingly creative with their 

fundraising efforts and to ‘think outside 

the envelope’. Communities up and 

down Britain and ireland are rising to 

the challenge and achieving remarkable 

things together. 

a Christian aid Week committee in 

Gateshead had seen a big drop in their 

income and members were feeling 

apprehensive about going out collecting. 

so Malcolm Meek, the local organiser, 

got representatives from nearby 

churches together, and they thought 

about how to get people excited about 

the Christian aid Week collection. 

the committee, drawn from different 

churches, set themselves a target, sat 

down with a big map and worked out 

which streets were already covered. 

they put up a list at the back of their 

churches, indicating a meeting point, and 

went out together, blitzing the streets 

that weren’t covered. 

Working as a team turned the whole 

process around. Malcolm explains: ‘We 

found that people were more interested 

in going out in a group than on their 

own. they like the companionship and 

chatting.’ People came back night after 

night, and after they’d finished the 

collecting, they’d head to the pub. 

anne Lindsley, a long-term collector, 

says: ‘having been a collector for years 

and years on my own, i was finding it 

depressing at times. But going out as 

a highly visible group is so much more 

rewarding and fun. i went out every 

night!’ the teamwork paid off, and they 

went on to exceed their target. 

Auction appeal 

Charlotte rothwell from London 

organises a different kind of event. her 

Christian Aid/Antoinette Powell 

It’s tIme to 

thInk outsIde 

the envelope 

church has traditionally hosted an annual 

art show during Christian aid Week, 

with a preview evening that included a 

raffle. Charlotte wanted to broaden the 

appeal of the event, and get new people 

involved with an established event, so 

she replaced the raffle with an auction. 

it’s been an inspired way of getting 

the community involved. Local 

businesses were generous and new 

people were drawn in to the event. ‘it 

was a two-way thing,’ explains Charlotte. 

Local organisations received valuable 

promotion, and the auction raised nearly 

£2,000, with no start-up costs for the 

church. ‘i wanted to re-engage people 

in a different way, and be creative,’ she 

says. Charlotte firmly believes in the 

power that local community can have for 

change, but says that this ‘needs people 

to get stuck in’. 

Coming together for change 

real change can take place when we’re 

willing to get stuck in and work with 

those around us. Christian aid Week 

2012 tells the story of the people of Gbap 

(pronounced Bap), a small farming town 



IN FOCUS 

ChrIsTIan aId Week 2012 will feature the amazing work of the people of Gbap, 

in sierra leone. supported by Christian aid partner the Methodist Church of 

sierra leone, communities are using new fishing and farming techniques to work 

their way to a brighter future. By becoming a Christian aid volunteer speaker or 

teacher ahead of Christian aid Week 2012, you will be helping to spread this story 

of hope far and wide. Find out more at christianaid.org.uk/volunteer 

Let’s give the tools… to help people in poverty out of poverty 

Why volunteer 

Because you’re worth it! 

‘Inspirational’ was the verdict of 

community worker llinos roberts 

(also pictured right) on her visit to 

sierra leone. llinos went with fellow 

supporters Peter Murray and Mike 

Burn ahead of Christian aid Week 

2012 to find out how our partner the 

Methodist Church of sierra leone is 

bringing about radical changes in the 

way communities help to shape their 

own future. We’ll be featuring some of 

the inspiring stories in the next issue of 

Christian Aid News, in March 

in sierra leone. The community there 

were helped by Christian aid partner 

the Methodist Church of sierra leone 

to overcome their immediate problems 

of hunger and work together towards a 

better future. Tenneh keimbay, a resident 

of Gbap, tells how much can be achieved 

when the community come together. 

‘What inspires me in life is unity’, she 

says. ‘To me, unity means coming 

together to decide on one thing and take 

that forward.’ 

Christian aid works in 47 countries 

around the world. From sierra leone to 

Tajikistan, from kenya to Bolivia, we are 

helping communities to speak out and 

take their future into their own hands. 

Be a part of Christian aid Week this 

year. Come together, as people like 

Tenneh, Malcolm and Charlotte are 

coming together with their communities, 

and give the tools to help people in 

poverty out of poverty. To volunteer, go 

to christianaid.org.uk/volunteer 

Christian Aid/Jane Widdowson 

Kate Parr explains what being a 

Christian Aid volunteer entails 

We are alWays looking for new and 

enthusiastic volunteers to join us. as 

we prepare for Christian aid Week 2012 

– seven amazing days of fundraising, 

prayer and action – this could be 

the perfect opportunity to take your 

volunteering to new heights! right now 

we are recruiting new volunteers across 

Britain and Ireland to help encourage 

and inspire even more churches, 

schools and communities to take action 

in Christian aid Week and throughout 

the year. 

What does this involve 

your local office will help get you 

started as you begin building 

relationships with churches and/or 

schools in your area. 

you will be provided with everything 

needed to deliver talks, sermons, 

assemblies or classroom workshops. 

There are loads of great resources 

available for you to use ahead of 

Christian aid Week 2012, including 

films, sermon notes, prayer ideas, 

and young people’s and children’s 

resources for both churches and 

schools. To supplement these materials 

you will be invited to a training session 

where you will meet other volunteers 

and receive detailed information about 

the fantastic work of our partner the 

Methodist Church of sierra leone, 

featured in the Christian aid Week 2012 

materials. 

Great resources are available to 

enable the people you visit to put their 

passion into action, whether that’s 

by organising a fundraising event, 

praying or becoming Christian aid 

campaigners. 

above all, through volunteering 

you’ll get the chance to pass on your 

enthusiasm, to celebrate the fantastic 

work of our partners around the world, 

and to be part of building an even 

greater movement of people striving to 

bring an end to poverty and injustice. 

How to volunteer 

If you would like to volunteer to get 

involved this Christian aid Week please 

apply online at christianaid.org.uk/ 

volunteer or call Marie raffay on 0113 

244 4764. your local Christian aid team 

will be in touch and may invite you to 

an informal interview to get to know 

you better. If we think the role suits 

you, you will be given all the support 

needed to get you started.

LIFE AND 

SOUL 

SPECIAL 


Meet the 

volunteers 

Elisabeth Davie (volunteer 

teacher) and Steve Mitchell 

(volunteer speaker) are two 

ordinary people who are using 

their skills in extraordinary ways 

to inspire adults and young people 

to challenge poverty and injustice 

Christian aid’s network of specialist 

volunteers across Britain and ireland 

are using their time and talents to speak 

in churches, community groups and 

schools about the work of Christian aid. 

all our specialist volunteers make a vital 

contribution, helping to raise awareness 

of issues that affect some of the world’s 

poorest communities. they share stories 

from our partner organisations around 

the world and inspire adults and young 

people to make a difference by giving, 

acting and praying with Christian aid. 

Christian Aid News caught up with 

Elisabeth and steve to find out what they 

put in – and what they get out! 

Elisabeth Davie 

How long 

have you been 

volunteering for 

Christian Aid and 

what inspired 

you to get 

involved 

i live in 

Canterbury and 

have been a volunteer for 10 years. i’ve 

got two parts to me: one is my Christian 

faith, which is an integral reason for 

why i live the way i do, the second is 

my ability to teach. When a card fell 

out of the Church Times indicating that 

Christian aid needed volunteer teachers, 

it was a wonderful moment for me; the 

first chance in my life to be able to put 

these two things together. 

What have 10 years of volunteering 

been like For me, volunteering entails 

being linked up with this huge, incredible 

network that reaches from where i am 

to the people who need us the most, 

and, as far as i can see, it’s an unbroken 

chain. Volunteering with Christian aid 

has enriched my life beyond belief. 

When visiting a school, what message 

do you want the students to take away 

i want them to understand that those 

poorer than themselves – whether in this 

country or in other parts of the world – 

are people who are just as intelligent, 

just as funny, just as resourceful, just as 

deserving and just as smart as we are, 

and the only thing that we’ve got that 

they haven’t is a bit more money. 

What do you think volunteers bring to 

Christian Aid We bring who we are and 

our gifts, talents and skills, which are 

used to the full. i once heard a director 

say that Christian aid is a triangle upside 

down: at the top of the triangle are the 

volunteers and at the bottom is the 

director – and i have found this to be true. 

What are your hopes for Christian Aid in 

your local area i want more volunteers, 

because i can’t do it alone. it would be 

terrific to have many more teachers who 

are gifted with different age groups so 

that we can work together. 

Steve Mitchell 

Can you tell us 

a little bit about 

yourself 

i’m steve, i live 

in Glossop, 

derbyshire, and 

i’m married with 

two children and 

10 grandchildren. 

i am a retired police officer and reader 

in the Church of England. since retiring 

i have been on the General synod of 

the Church of England as well as other 

church bodies. i am an evangelical and 

am very keen for people to know Jesus 

and understand his priorities. 

How long have you been volunteering 

with Christian Aid in 1999 i took over 

organising the Christian aid Week 

activities in my town. i rapidly became 

convinced of the work Christian aid is 

doing and so became a volunteer 

teacher in 2002. i was later asked by 

my regional office to speak at a local 

church and i was happy to do this as it 

complemented the volunteering i was 

already involved in. 

What does your role involve Being 

willing to visit churches and assist them 

to raise the profile of Christian aid, their 

church’s overseas development agency, 

in their congregation. 

What do you enjoy most about your 

role helping the church respond to the 

needs of others who are beyond their 

reach, through supporting Christian aid’s 

partner organisations around the world. 

What motivates you to continue 

volunteering i believe Christian aid 

has Jesus’ heart and is a vital arm of his 

church in reaching a broken world. 

What do you hope people will take 

away from your talks i would like 

people to come away from my talks 

wanting a deeper engagement with 

gospel issues, particularly in relation 

to God’s heart for the poor. i have had 

good conversations with people over the 

years and trust i have helped them grow 

in their faith and the application of it in 

their lives. 

Do you have a message you would 

like to give to other supporters who 

are interested in becoming a volunteer 

speaker do it because you can when 

others can’t; use the gifts God has given 

you and God will bless you and those 

you serve. 

If you would like to volunteer, please go 

to christianaid.org.uk/volunteer 




How it all adds up... 

These are the 

figures to end of 

November 2011. 

We expect to 

receive Christian 

Aid Week 2011 

income up to the 

end of the 2011/12 

financial year, so 

this figure will 

keep on growing! 

TOTAL 

£10,938,460* 

SCOTLAND 

SCOTLAND 

£1,667,865 

Without 

the dedicated 

effort of supporters who 

organise fundraising events 

and the country’s biggest houseto-house 

collection, this wonderful 

achievement would not be possible. 

If you want to help your region 

top its 2011 total in 2012, go to 

christianaid.org.uk/volunteer 

or get in touch with your 

local Christian Aid 

branch 

NORTHERN 

IRELAND 

£505,721 

NORTH EAST 

£331,937 

NORTHERN 

IRELAND 

NORTH WEST 

£984,158 

NORTH 

WEST 

NORTH 

EAST 

YORK- 

SHIRE 

YORKSHIRE 

£660,500 

REPUBLIC OF 

IRELAND 

£39,544 

REPUBLIC OF 

IRELAND 

WEST MIDLANDS 

£817,583 

WALES 

£501,139 

WALES 

WEST 

MIDLANDS 

EAST 

MIDLANDS 

EAST MIDLANDS 

£547,041 

EAST OF 

ENGLAND 

EAST OF ENGLAND 

£519,507 

WEST 

£657,543 

WEST 

OXFORD 

LONDON 

AND THE 

SOUTH EAST 

OXFORD 

£872,126 

SOUTH 

WEST 

LONDON AND THE 

SOUTH EAST 

£1,879,446 

SOUTH WEST 

£794,920 

*Total includes £159,430 for anonymous and other donations 


LIFE AND 

SOUL 

The second in a 

series of articles 

exploring Christian 

Aid’s engagement 

with private sector 

companies that share 

our ethics and values 

Kesten Mukango 

outside the house 

he is building for 

his family 

WHAT DO 

SAUSAGES 

have to do 

with Christian 

Aid The 

answer is 

that a bitesized 

chunk 

of every pack 

sold by the Good Little Company (GLC) 

goes towards Christian Aid projects 

around the world. 

Launched in 2009, the GLC specialises 

in making delicious, healthy, ethically 

produced sausages and is committed to 

improving the long-term ability of people 

in the developing world to provide 

food for their families. For this reason, 

the firm partnered with Christian Aid 

from the outset. Business development 

manager Dominic Darby (pictured 

above) explains: ‘We are a little company 

on a big mission – to produce good, 

healthy, well-made food and at the same 

time help families in the developing 

world to feed themselves.’ 

To demonstrate its commitment to this 

mission, the GLC makes a donation to 

Christian Aid every time it sells a packet 

of sausages or meatballs. In fact, each 

donation it makes is enough to provide 

one person in the developing world with 

the seeds to grow a staple meal, every 

day, for one week. 

In this way, it has so far raised more 

than £30,000, enabling Christian Aid to 

help families such as the Mukangos in 

Malawi break free from hunger. 

A decade ago the Mukangos faced 

a daily battle with hunger. Determined 

to free his family from poverty, Kesten 

Mukango, with the help of Christian Aid 

partner ELDS, learned proper farming 

techniques that helped him grow enough 

food to banish the fear of hunger. 

Now the Mukangos not only have 

enough to eat, but enough left over to 

24 Christian Aid News 

Christian Aid/Natalie Dale 

A LITTLE 

COMPANY ON 

A BIG MISSION 

sell to pay for their children’s school 

fees and improve their home. Kesten 

is building a new house with a tin roof 

that won’t leak, his family are now well 

dressed and hopes for the children’s 

futures look bright. 

Darby says that consumers 

wholeheartedly embrace what the firm is 

doing. ‘We use the best ingredients, the 

most sustainable materials and generally 

make sure that we have a positive impact 

on the world. We get emails every month 

from our customers telling us that they 

buy the product because it's helping 

other people.’ 

In response to this, and in recognition 

of the rise in global food prices, the 

company has decided to increase the 

amount that it donates to Christian Aid 

from 5p per packet of sausages sold to 

7p. This could raise around £10,000 more 

for Christian Aid in the coming year. 

Good Little Sausages are available in 

Waitrose stores across Britain as well as 

selected Tesco stores in Northern 

Ireland. Following the success of the 

first two years, Darby anticipates 

continued growth and expansion of the 

product range. 

For updates on the work that Christian 

Aid and the GLC are doing together, visit 

goodlittlecompany.com 

• If you would like to find out more 

about how your company could help us 

work towards ending poverty, contact 

Brendan Brosnan on 020 7523 2474 or 

email bbrosnan@christian-aid.org 

First-class idea 

Despite the growth of email and texting, 

the dear old postage stamp hasn’t 

completely faded away. And if you don’t 

have a use for your used stamps, we 

do. We collect and sell them to a dealer 

and they are made into stamp collectors’ 

packs and sent abroad, raising funds for 

Christian Aid. It doesn’t matter if they’re 

still stuck to the envelope, but do please 

separate foreign and British stamps. 

Please send your used postage stamps to: 

Christian Aid Stamps, PO Box 6198, 

Leighton Buzzard, Beds LU7 9XT.

Inspired Enraged 

Send your views to: The Editor, Christian Aid News, 35 Lower Marsh, 

London SE1 7RL or email canews@christian-aid.org 

INPUT 

POPULATION PRIORITIES 

The first article in the last Christian Aid 

News (Issue 53) brought me to tears. 

Here we can read about two families 

with life-threatening problems. In one 

family there are six children and in 

the other, eight. How can we hope to 

improve the lives of such unfortunate 

people when their lives are so heavily 

handicapped Surely the international 

charities bear a heavy responsibility for 

not spending a larger fraction of their 

resources in the campaign to reduce the 

size of families, which is of particular 

relevance to Africa. 

Dr Sverre Aarseth, 

via email 

Over the past 30 years food shortages 

and famines have frequently occurred 

in east Africa. The latest famine is truly 

dreadful and is made worse by the 

breakdown of law and order in Somalia. 

There have been severe droughts in 

the past two years and this is indeed 

the major precipitating factor. But the 

population of the region, which was 

already experiencing food shortage in 

1984, has been growing very rapidly 

since then. 

In Ethiopia the population was around 

44 million; it is now 87 million. The total 

fertility rate (TFR = average number of 

babies per mother) is 5.3. For Kenya the 

figures are: 1984 population, 21 million; 

2011, 41 million. The present TFR is 4.7. 

With only a limited land area 

available one can understand that rapid 

population growth is an underlying 

cause of the famines that afflict the 

region. The World Health Organisation 

informs us that there are currently 200 

million couples worldwide who have 

no access to modern contraceptive 

methods. I suspect that many of these 

people live in the east African region. 

All charities should prioritise the 

feeding of the undernourished babies. 

Second to this, it is vital that they make 

family planning a core part of their 

primary health care clinics. In the long 

term, girls and boys must have equal 

educational opportunities. 

Dr John Moor, via email 

TACKLING CORRUPTION 

The best way to reduce population 

growth is to educate the women, and to 

increase people’s wealth. It’s worked 

everywhere else, so why not in poor 

countries The loss of aid to corruption 

ought to be treated separately; we in the 

west could actively close down tax 

havens, and insist on removal of secrecy 

on bank accounts. The corrupt leaders 

bank their money somewhere, and use 

banking secrecy to keep it hidden. We’re 

not making a serious attempt at sorting 

this out at all yet. 

Making the poor better off requires 

keeping money in the poor countries. It 

would require us to stop big companies 

shifting the money around, and avoiding 

paying taxes in the poor countries, as 

recognised by Christian Aid. How many 

of the problems could be solved if 

corporations and criminals didn’t benefit 

from the current arrangements 

Mike Dommett, Alton, Hampshire 

DOING GOD’S WORK 

Although I strongly subscribe to the need 

to avoid being ‘so heavenly-minded 

that one is no earthly use’, I sometimes 

wonder why Christian Aid News seems 

to fight shy of referring to God and to our 

continuing need to pray for success in 

His work. The autumn issue is a case in 

point. Loads of interesting articles about 

Christian Aid’s successful work in the 

field, its campaigning, readers’ views, 

and imaginative ways of raising more 

funds. But, apart from one reference in 

a reader’s letter, God – let alone Christ 

himself – did not get a mention at all. 

At a recent Poverty Over event, I 

was encouraged to hear the speaker 

from HQ assert that all Christian Aid’s 

work is carefully underpinned by 

theological principles. Could Christian 

Aid News cover these from time to time, 

perhaps And a regular notice about the 

content and availability of the excellent 

Prayer Diary would be helpful, too 

John Shaw, Rickmansworth 

Editor’s reply: we’ll see what we can do 

about more coverage of the theological 

principles in future issues. For now, you 

can find plenty of theological content 

as well as the new Prayer Diary at 

christianaid.org.uk/resources/churches/ 

WHOSE INTERESTS 

While I am more than happy to agree 

with the modest political campaigning 

in the areas of tax dodging and climate 

change, I feel that elsewhere in your 

magazine you overstepped the mark in 

favour of political propaganda. 

Roger Fulton’s last sentence of his 

editorial reads: ‘Afghan women fear 

that the improvements in their rights 

may be rolled back in a rush to peace. If 

you want to know what our forces are 

fighting for, listen to their voices.’ 

The woman interviewed was, of 

course, carefully chosen. No doubt 

everything she said was true from her 

personal point of experience, but there 

are other very different histories in that 

war-torn region coming from people 

who are used to UK armed drones 

dropping hellfire missiles and bombs on 

their villages with a frightening regularity 

and a death toll in which 28 per cent 

(figure given by NATO) are civilians. 

What good is anyone’s education if he or 

she hasn’t even got life 

Politicians have become less bashful 

about admitting that the wars they fight 

are ‘in our interests’. These interests 

have to do with economic and military 

global power; and that is what our 

soldiers are sent to fight for. 

Annette Bygott, Oxford 

The humanitarian concerns for the 

people of Afghanistan (Issue 53) equal 

the economic, security and political 

concerns, which I fear are the main 

preoccupations of those discussing 

Afghanistan’s future. 

Nicholas Stainforth, Kendal, Cumbria 


EVENTS 

We work with some of the 

world’s poorest communities. 

They face huge challenges 

every day, so why don’t you 

challenge yourself Have fun 

while fighting poverty: join 

one of our events or do your 

own fundraising 

Looking forwarD 

To 2012 

CyCliNG eNtHuSiaStS – don’t forget 

to book your place on the fifth london to 

paris Bike ride, taking place on 18-22 

July 2012. for those inclined towards 

trekking, another event celebrating its 

fifth anniversary is the Hadrian’s Wall 

trek, from 29 June – 1 July, which will 

take us through the scenic and historic 

countryside on the border. 

BurnS Supper 

people from ruSSia to london, and, 

of course, in Scotland, are hosting Burns 

Supper nights this January to say no to 

poverty and yes to poetry. to register for 

a free fundraising pack, visit christianaid. 

org.uk/burnssupper or call 0141 241 6138. 

Don’t want to hold your own Why not 

join the Christian aid Scotland team at 

their poverty over Burns Supper on 

friday 27 January 2012 at firhill 

Stadium, Glasgow. tickets are £25 per 

person. to buy yours, call 0141 241 6138 

or email burns@christian-aid.org 

Super Soup LuncH 

let’S BoWl over poverty! on friday 

30 march 2012, put the sandwiches 

down and be one of thousands of people 

across Britain getting together to share 

soup and help fight poverty. register 

now to hold your own Super Soup 

lunch; you’ll receive your free 

fundraising pack. you can register online 

at christianaid.org.uk/super-soup-lunch 

or telephone 020 7523 2328. 

Our fuNdraiSiNg 

EffOrTS will 

ruN aNd ruN 

Some of our moSt popular 

running events took place in the final 

few months of 2011 to raise fantastic 

amounts of money for Christian aid’s 

work towards eradicating poverty. 

the Great North run on 18 

September saw Christian aid’s 90 

runners cross the finish line to raise 

about £50,000 – we even had a vicar 

take part in his church robes! 

the royal parks marathon in london 

on 9 october enticed 45 lovely 

Christian aid supporters to don their 

running shoes, covering 13 miles on 

this beautiful city run, which raised 

another £17,500. However, not 

everyone who took part actually did so 

in running shoes – Bill Holden, from 

south london, covered the whole 

course barefoot! 

Barefoot or in trainers, it was a 

gorgeous day for running, so 

congratulations to all who took part. 

and congratulations too to all 

Christian aid Christmas fun-runners 

who braved the cold in December to 

give poverty the run-around. Dressed 

as Santa Claus, festive Christian aid 

supporters ran, jogged and strolled in 

five locations around Britain, aiming to 

raise £11,500 to help sleigh poverty this 

winter! the 50 Christian aid liverpool 

Santas were part of the world record 

attempt by 7,500 runners for the largest 

gathering of Santa Clauses! 

• To find out about these and other 

running events in 2012 – including the 

BUPA Great Manchester run on Sunday 

20 May, at the end of Christian Aid 

Week – please go to christianaid.org. 

uk/events 

alex Hughes 

The Bradley family: dad 

Harvey, mum Barbara 

and daughter Joanna, at 

the London Santa Dash 


✁ 

DO IT 

YOUR 

WAY 

GOT YOUR OWN 

BRILLIANT ideas for 

raising funds to 

help tackle poverty 

Order a Do It Your 

Way DVD packed 

with useful 

information and 

resources to help 

your event along, 

whatever it may be! 

For instance, 

21-year-old Simon 

Dalton supported 

Christian Aid by 

organising No 

Shoes November. 

Going shoeless for 

the whole month of 

November, Simon 

(pictured below) 

said, ‘Christian Aid 

supports incredible 

work worldwide 

and I wanted to 

support them in the 

craziest way I 

could!’ 

• If you want to 

follow in Simon’s 

(bare) footsteps, 

you can order a 

DVD from 

christianaid.org.uk/ 

yourway or by 

emailing events@ 

christian-aid.org 

Trysten hughes 

IT MUST BE… THE BIG 

CHRISTMAS SING 

MADNESS FRONTMAN Suggs kicked 

off our 2011 Big Christmas Sing in 

December with a free concert at Old 

Spitalfields Market, London. There 

were covers of Christmas songs old 

and new, courtesy of Laura White of 

The X Factor, local choirs, quartets 

and more than 100 school children. 

The evening was rounded off perfectly 

with a sing along to the Madness 

classic ‘It Must be Love’. 

Throughout December the sweet 

melodies of Christmas cheer poured 

out of doors up and down the country, 

from the Isle of Skye to the tip of 

Cornwall. Friends, family, work 

colleagues and neighbours staged 

carol concerts, karaoke nights and 

rapping contests. Money is still rolling 

in, which means we are well on the 

way to topping our £100,000 target! 

WANT TO HELP 

WALK THIS WAY 

THE BEDE’S WAY WALK, which took 

place on Saturday 8 October, was a huge 

success, with 122 walkers marching 

between St Peter’s Church in 

Monkwearmouth, Sunderland, to St 

Paul’s Church, Jarrow, to raise more than 

£8,000 for Christian Aid. 

The walk was organised in solidarity 

with, and to raise awareness for, India’s 

poverty-stricken landless population. 

Local celebrity John Grundy joined in 

and signed copies of his new book, the 

profits of which will go to Christian Aid. 

If you would like to buy John’s book 

Grundy’s Guide to Bede’s Way, please 

contact the Newcastle Christian Aid 

office at newcastle@christian-aid.org 

• For information on other Christian Aid 

walks and how to register, go to 

christianaid.org.uk/walks 

SPONSORED SWIMMERS 

GO IN AT THE DEEP END 

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL 20 of our 

fantastic swimmers involved in the 

Cambridgeshire Sponsored Swim in 

October and the 50 or so who took part 

in the Birmingham Sponsored Swim in 

January. These brand-new events for 

Christian Aid are helping us to swell our 

fundraising efforts. Well done to 

everyone taking part and a great big 

Suggs launches the Big 

Christmas Sing 

thank you to all of the volunteers helping 

out at the events. 

WANT TO TRY 

SOMETHING NEW 

OUR LONDON to Brighton 100K walk 

and the two-day Cathedrals to Coast bike 

ride are taking place for the first ever 

year – come and set the trend! 

• You can sign up for these and a wide 

variety of other events at christianaid. 

org.uk/events 

GO OVER THE EDGE 

TO END POVERTY 

PUSH YOURSELF this spring with one of 

our daring sponsored abseils. In 

February and March, in six locations – 

Manchester, Newcastle, Hertfordshire, 

Surrey, Exeter and Dorset – you can join 

sponsored abseils to help eradicate 

poverty. Why not rope in a friend to join 

you! You can register for just £15 each, 

and must agree to raise at least £60. 

For details on all of our sponsored 

abseils, visit christianaid.org.uk/events 

Lucy Connell 


EVENTS 

FUNDRAISING 

CALENDAR 2012 

BIRMINGHAM 

SPONSORED SWIM 

8 January 2012 

BURNS SUPPER 

21-28 January 2012 

SPONSORED 

ABSEILS 

March 2012 

THE SUPER SOUP 

LUNCH 

30 March 2012 

BRIGHTON 

MARATHON 

15 April 2012 

VIRGIN LONDON 

MARATHON 

22 April 2012 

LONDON TO 

BRIGHTON TREK 

20 May 2012 

BUPA GREAT 

MANCHESTER RUN 

12-13 May 2012 

EDINBURGH 

MARATHON 

27 May 2012 

HOLY ISLAND 

NIGHT HIKE 

22-23 June 2012 

HADRIAN’S WALL 

WEEKEND TREK 

29 June – 1 July 

2012 

LONDON TO PARIS 

BIKE RIDE 

18-22 July 2012 

QUIZAID 

10-14 September 

2012 

BUPA GREAT 

NORTH RUN 

16 September 2012 

CATHEDRALS TO 

COAST 

22-23 September 

2012 

ROYAL PARKS HALF 

MARATHON 

7 October 2012 

SANTA DASH 

5K FUN RUNS 

December 2012 

THE BIG 

CHRISTMAS SING 

7-9 December 2012 

Visit christianaid. 

org.uk/events to 

find out more.

AROUND CENTRAL ENGLAND 

‘If anyone can 

rebuild a country 

so comprehensively 

from scratch, Sierra 

Leoneans can’ 

East Midlands intern 

Catherine Garsed in 

Sierra Leone 

in oCtoBEr 2011, our new youth and 

student volunteer interns spent two 

weeks in sierra Leone, west africa, 

visiting some of Christian aid’s projects 

there. they had the opportunity to see 

Christian aid’s projects in real life, to 

understand exactly where supporters’ 

money goes, and to bring back stories 

from the people who benefit from the 

projects. during their stay, they met 

two of our eight partner organisations 

in sierra Leone: the Methodist Church 

of sierra Leone (MCsL) and the social 

Enterprise development Foundation 

(sEnd). our partners prepared a packed 

schedule for the group, which included 

Catherine Garsed from East Midlands 

and sarah Croft from East of England, to 

visit a range of projects combating issues 

such as a lack of long-term availability 

of food, hiV and lack of access to 

healthcare, and poor governance. 

Catherine said: ‘sierra Leone was 

beyond words. it still bore the terrible 

scars of the civil war, yet there was 

an atmosphere of brave defiance of a 

people who were not going to let it ruin 

them, of a people who were determined 

to rebuild their country; a country where 

extraordinarily honest forgiveness 

between old enemies defies belief and 

where phenomenal Muslim-Christian 

tolerance puts the wealthy West truly 

to shame. You feel without doubt that 

if anyone can rebuild a country so 

comprehensively from scratch, sierra 

Leoneans can.’ 

sierra Leone provides the focus for this 

year’s Christian aid Week. if you would 

like one of our volunteer interns to speak 

to your Christian aid group, church or 

youth group about the work being done 

there, please contact your local Christian 

aid office. 

Travellers’ tales 

Christian aid staff and interns see, 

first hand, the real change that your 

donations bring to people around the 

globe. they return full of stories to 

share – could they share them with 

your church or group 

Early in 2012, Lucy Connell, regional 

manager for East Midlands, visits 

tajikistan and Martin Gage and alison 

Linwood, regional coordinators and 

legacy officers in the East and West 

Midlands, go to india. Chris Wild, 

regional coordinator in the East of 

England, has been to Brazil, while 

sally Bossingham, West Midlands 

regional coordinator, visited sierra 

Leone and israel and the occupied 

Palestinian territory. to book 

staff, contact your regional office: 

Birmingham@christian-aid.org / 0121 

200 2283; eastmidlands@christian-aid. 

org / 01509 265013; eastengland@ 

christian-aid.org / 01733 345 755. 

Paul’s marathon effort 

Christian aid supporter Paul 

anderson is one of the lucky few to be 

awarded one of our Golden Bonds for 

the 2012 London Marathon in april! 

there are just 10 available, and 

marathon debutant Paul, from 

Loughborough, is the only person 

in the whole of the East Midlands to 

have been selected. aiming to raise 

£2,000, he hopes to complete the 

run in five-and-a-half hours. You can 

support him either by visiting his 

Just Giving page at justgiving.com/ 

PaulLon-Mar2012 or by contacting the 

Loughborough office on 01509 265013 

or eastmidlands@christian-aid.org 

Skill sharing 

FroM PraYEr to postcards, we 

advocate for a world free from 

poverty. But how do we know we 

are really making an impact our 

springtime Passion into action 

events are your chance to increase 

your campaigning impact, covering 

everything from worship to how to 

effectively engage your MP effectively. 

the events take place in February 

and March. to find out more, suggest 

a location or express an interest, 

contact John Cooper, West Midlands 

regional organiser, at jcooper@ 

christian-aid.org or on 0121 200 2283. 


AROUND NORTH ENGLAND 

From Genesis to 

Revelation in four days 

The 

readathon 

goes strong 

It was a dull thursday night in March 2011 when 

a local ecumenical partnership in the north west 

met to discuss future plans. the group was 

struggling and needed an event to help revitalise it. 

as one member comments, ‘we made the PCC 

meetings on the Vicar of dibley look dynamic!’ 

someone suggested a Bible readathon to mark 

the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible. 

someone else mentioned the Christian aid 

partnership scheme, and pretty soon they had a 

plan. linda tiongco from Christian aid gave a 

presentation about the partnership scheme, which 

further fired the group’s enthusiasm. Group 

member Michael dearnley recalls: ‘One suggestion 

was to support the development of maternity care 

in rural sierra leone, which the lytham Methodist 

Church had a connection with. we took on the 

Kailahun hospital project and made it our own.’ 

Over the next few months a Bible reading 

once and for all 

thIs exCItInG multimedia event, led by your 

local regional staff, shows what the world looks 

like through the eyes of some of the poorest 

people, and what we can each do to help those in 

poverty out of poverty. 

using powerful personal stories, stunning 

images, and beautiful, original songs, Once and 

For All reveals how our prayers, actions and 

donations are bringing hope and healing to those 

crippled by poverty all over the world. the show 

has lots of audience participation and equips us all 

to put our faith into action and work to eradicate 

extreme poverty once and for all. 

Created by members of Christian aid’s regional 

staff in response to calls from local supporters, 

clergy and churches, Once and For All can be used 

marathon was organised. In the beginning was the 

Bishop of lancaster reading Genesis on a 

wednesday morning in October, while the final 

verses of Revelation were to be revealed the 

following sunday morning. 

all local churches and schools were approached, 

and the response was overwhelming. Pupils from 

two secondary schools and three primaries were 

allocated the more accessible parts of the Bible – no 

Chronicles, leviticus or numbers for them! lytham 

st annes high school hosted the Bishop of 

Blackburn; and students became engaged in reading 

circles. lytham Church of england Primary had a 

four-hour ‘open house’ for the extended school 

family to join in with the children reading the Bible. 

Veteran english footballer Jimmy armfield was 

among parents, grandparents, local clergy and 

dignitaries taking part. the lytham churches covered 

the evening-and-night sessions, and on saturday 

night young people from all the churches came 

together to read, fuelled by pizza and fizzy drinks. 

the readings took a total of 72 hours spread over 

four days and involved more than 500 adults and 

children from five churches, five schools and four 

denominations. their efforts raised more than 

£5,000, triggering matched funding from the 

european union and an eventual donation to the 

project in sierra leone of £20,000. 

the ecumenical partnership has been thrilled with 

the response. the feeling of working together as an 

inter-denominational group, supported by the local 

staff of Christian aid, has been amazing. 

to refresh and recruit Christian aid week collectors 

and to inform and inspire volunteers. 

You can see Once and For All at the following 

places: 

saturday 25 february 7-9.30pm, Millom Baptist 

Church, Millom la18 4aG. 

friday 20 april 7-9.30pm, st Cuthberts Church, 

Fulwood, Preston PR2 3aR. 

thursday 26 april Methodist Church, Poynton 

sK12 1RB. 

saturday 28 april, Chester 

to book Once and For All, contact your regional 

office with some dates, find a good venue, invite 

everyone you know, provide some refreshments 

and leave the rest to us. For details, contact 

warrington@christian-aid.org or 01925 573769. 

PaPer Quizzes 

after the success 

of the regional 

paper quizzes last 

year, we are 

producing them 

again for Christian 

aid week 2012. If 

you would like us 

to send you some 

for your churches 

please contact 

your local office. 

You can also 

download quizzes 

from our Christian 

aid week website, 

caweek.org 

Get set for 

Christian aid 

Week 

are you looking to 

get more 

collectors would 

you like a speaker 

to visit your 

congregation or 

group to 

encourage 

potential 

collectors we can 

help! Please 

contact your local 

office: newcastle@ 

christian-aid.org or 

warrington@ 

christian-aid.org or 

leeds@christianaid.org 

tesCo 

ColleCtions 

autumn 2012 

tesco have a 

national booking 

system for charity 

collection. If you 

want to book one 

for autumn 2012 

and spring 2013, 

please contact 

your local office. 

we can also help 

with contacting 

other 

supermarkets if 

you’d like us to. 


AROUND SCOTLAND 

Arthur meets 

Secretary of State 

for Scotland 

Michael Moore 

Christian Aid/Jennifer Clark 

Shepherd gets on his bike 

for tax-justice challenge 

There are many ways to draw attention to Christian aid’s 

work, but when Scots shepherd arthur Cross offered to set 

aside his crook and get on his bike, he had a specific challenge 

in mind – 160 miles around Scotland in just 24 hours! 

Through this epic journey, arthur hoped to raise awareness 

of the staggering US$160bn a year lost to the poorest countries 

in the world because of the tax-dodging of some unscrupulous 

multinational companies. 

Inspired to take action after hearing about Christian aid’s tax 

campaign at a local roadshow event, arthur volunteered to 

cycle one mile across the country for every billion dollars lost to 

developing countries each year. 

Christian aid estimates this figure is more than the entire 

global aid budget, and could pay for basic health, sanitation and 

education services in some of the world’s poorest countries – 

several times over. 

Before setting off from Greenock, arthur said: ‘I think this will 

be more challenging than previous events, but if it’s successful 

in drawing attention to the tax-dodging of some of the 

wealthiest multinationals in the world at the expense of the very 

poorest people, then it will be well worth the effort.’ 

Our cycling shepherd pedalled in wind and rain, by daylight 

and in darkness, through Inverclyde, renfrewshire, Glasgow, 

Lanarkshire and the Scottish Borders. 

and as if this challenge was not tricky enough, arthur was 

determined to ensure his voice was heard loud and clear by 

politicians en route. So he arranged to take the issue up with 

mPs at various stops, including his local mP, Secretary of State 

for Scotland michael moore. Other mPs included Douglas 

alexander and Jim Sheridan in Paisley, anas Sarwar in 

Glasgow and michael mcCann in east Kilbride. 

arthur’s cycle came as Christian aid was putting pressure on 

world leaders to end tax-haven secrecy in advance of the G20 

meeting in Cannes in December, providing an excellent 

platform for gaining media coverage and urging mPs to 

champion the cause at the heart of government. 

Diane Green, campaigns officer for Christian aid Scotland, 

congratulated arthur on successfully completing his ambitious 

feat. ‘Well done to arthur for taking on this cycle ride to raise 

awareness of this very important issue. hundreds of millions of 

the world’s poorest people struggle with little or no access to 

basic services. 

’We want to see greater tax transparency so that developing 

countries can provide healthcare, sanitation and other services 

to their poorest citizens. That is why we are calling for 

companies to declare their profits made and taxes paid in 

every country where they operate.’ 

• To find more information on the tax campaign, go to: 

christianaid.org.uk/tax 


AROUND THE SOUTH EAST 

Regional news and events in Beds, Berks, Bucks, Herts and Oxon 

Introducing... your regional team 

Christian Aid/Max Khanna 

Here in tHe OxfOrd Office we are 

passionate about the work of christian 

Aid and love the opportunity to speak to 

church congregations, christian Aid 

groups or anyone else! We thought you 

might like to know who’s who. 

Jenny Ayres has worked for christian 

Aid for more than 10 years and has just 

returned as regional manager after 

maternity leave. She oversees the work 

and direction of the team. 

Members of the regional team, from left: 

Sarah, Hannah, Abi, Jess and Steve. 

Sarah Clay is a regional coordinator 

leading our work with young people and 

specialist volunteers. She has visited 

partner organisations in the Philippines. 

Amy Merone is a regional coordinator 

leading on media and campaigns work. 

She has visited partners in tajikistan, 

Kenya and israel and the occupied 

Palestinian territory, and is currently 

studying for an MA in development and 

emergency practice. 

Jessica Hall is a regional coordinator 

working with christian Aid groups and 

churches, and has travelled to Brazil with 

christian Aid. A talented singer/ 

songwriter, Jess has just released her 

first recording. 

Abi Knowles is a regional coordinator, 

who came to Oxford last year after an 

internship with christian Aid. She leads 

on our events fundraising and supports 

churches and groups in the region. As an 

intern, Abi visited projects in Kenya. 

Steve Johnson has recently joined the 

team as a regional coordinator, leading 

on our work with churches. He joins us 

from the church Mission Society. 

Jennie Williams is our volunteer intern 

for 2011/2012, who started after 

graduating from Oxford University. She 

works with young people and students, 

and has recently returned from Sierra 

Leone, where she visited partners for 

christian Aid Week 2012. 

Hannah Roberts, our regional 

administrator, is the friendly voice on the 

phone when you call us. in her spare 

time, Hannah is an assistant leader for 

her local Girl Guide group. 

if you would like to arrange for one of 

us to come and speak at your church, 

committee or event, please get in touch 

on 01865 246818 or email oxford@ 


EVENTS 

SAtUrdAY 10 MArcH 

Hatfield sponsored abseil 

enjoy spectacular views over the 

beautiful Hatfield House and the 

Hertfordshire countryside as you 

become one of the first ever to 

abseil down the 15th century 

tower of St etheldreda’s church. 

For details, contact Cat Goldson 

on 020 7523 2077 or email 

cgoldson@christian-aid.org 

tHUrSdAY 15 MArcH – 

tHUrSdAY 22 MArcH 

Hope in the Rubble: 

Stories from Haiti 

Join us for a series of events 

featuring Aldrin calixte, the 

director of Haiti Survie, a 

christian Aid partner that is 

playing a vital role working with 

communities to help them 

rebuild their lives. come along 

and get inspired as you start to 

prepare for christian Aid Week. 

includes a light supper. Please 

let us know if you wish to attend. 

For details, contact 01865 246818 

or oxford@christian-aid.org 

thursday 15 March 

7.30-9.30pm, Marlborough road 

Methodist church, Banbury 

Ox16 5BZ. 

Saturday 17 March 

6.30-8.30pm, dedworth Green 

Baptist church, Windsor SL4 5Pe. 

Monday 19 March 

7-9pm, St francis church, 

Welwyn Garden city AL8 6HH. 

tuesday 20 March 

7-9pm, Aylesbury Methodist 

church, HP20 2nQ. 

Wednesday 21 March 

7-9pm, Priory Methodist church, 

Bedford MK41 9QJ 

thursday 22 March 

7-9pm, Stopsley Baptist church, 

Luton LU2 7xP. 

SAtUrdAY 17 MArcH 

March for Justice curry evening 

7.30-9.30pm, trinity church, 

conduit road, Abingdon 

Ox14 1dB. 

Join us for curry and hear about 

the year-long March for Justice 

in india, being organised by ekta 

Parishad, a christian Aid partner 

organisation that supports poor 

communities in their pursuit for 

land rights and justice. We will 

be joined by our international 

director, Paul Valentin, who has 

met marchers in india. 

To book, contact Amy Merone, 

as before. 

Give poveRty tHe 

boot And Join A 

SponSoRed WAlK! 

SAtUrdAY 12 MAY 

the Christian Aid Walk 

Starting from the chauncy 

School, Ware, Herts. 

SAtUrdAY 19 MAY 

Walk the Country 

Starting from Bix village hall, 

Bix, Oxon. 

To register for these events, or 

find out more about Christian 

Aid’s sponsored walks, go 

to christianaid.org.uk/walks 

or contact Jess Hall on 

01865 246818 or jhall@ 



AROUND THE SOUTH AND WEST 

Partnerships, pancakes 

and a hairy vicar 

A growing number of churches 

across the south and west have been 

making good use of our partnership 

scheme (which is match-funded by the 

european union), to raise money for 

projects, and they have used some very 

imaginative methods to raise it. 

Last year supporters, churches and 

schools from brixham, Churston, 

galmpton and Kingswear in south 

Devon signed up to a partnership with a 

project in burkina Faso. They pledged to 

raise £5,000, knowing that through eu 

funding this would be multiplied five 

times. They held a variety of fundraising 

events, and raised more than £7,000, 

meaning the project received more than 

£35,500! They organised carol singing 

and choir singing, held a cream tea for 

the royal wedding, had ‘nibbles and 

noggins’ by the Dart, staged a beetle 

drive, set up an antiques roadshow, took 

part in sponsored silences and arranged 

cake sales and coffee mornings. Star 

billing went to Kingswear’s ‘hairy biker’ 

vicar, rev ian blyde (pictured above), 

who had his beard shaved for the cause. 

The Christian Aid group in 

Cheltenham is on course to reach its 

target in a partnership with the Zim Pro 

project in Zimbabwe. The group began 

by selling pancakes at its Agm and has 

organised two fairs – each raising more 

than £1,200 – and a supermarket 

collection. 

Horfield Parish Church in bristol first 

looked into taking part in the partnership 

scheme a year ago and has already 

passed its £5,000 target. bobby brown, 

who coordinated the church’s 

involvement along with Judith Claypole, 

says: ‘it’s wonderful. it has a momentum 

of its own. The whole congregation 

really took it to their hearts.’ 

Fundraising initiatives included 

collecting iron to sell to a local 

scrap yard and a bluebell walk, which 

was so popular that the church has now 

set up a new walking club. The biggest 

event was a promises auction, which 

raised £2,700. Horfield supported two 

projects in Sierra Leone through the 

scheme, helping to bring good food 

and clean water to thousands of 

people. The matching funds from 

the eu made their £5,000 gift worth 

well over £20,000. 

if you would like to find out more 

about taking up the challenge with your 

church, school or other group, contact 

max Khanna on 020 8123 7523 or email 

partnershipscheme@christian-aid.org 

join the march for justice 

ForTy CHriSTiAn AiD supporters 

braved the hottest october day ever 

recorded to walk 13 miles between 

Tewkesbury Abbey and gloucester 

Cathedral, along the Severn way, in 

support of thousands of dalit and tribal 

people who are marching in india for 

their land rights. 

Access to land is vital in helping the 

poorest communities support their 

own livelihoods. Christian Aid partner 

ekta Parishad is organising a year-long 

march of dalit and tribal people (see 

page 10). Starting with 1,000 marchers 

leaving from orissa, this will grow to 

100,000 in 2012, by the time the 

marchers reach Delhi. Their goal is to 

claim rights to lands that their families 

have worked and lived on for 

generations. Households have already 

been putting aside two handfuls of rice 

a week in preparation for the long walk. 

Christian Aid supporters will be 

walking again this year to show their 

solidarity with the indian marchers, this 

time from Arlingham, along the Severn 

way, to gloucester Cathedral. Please 

contact the bristol office for details of 

how you can get involved. 


AROUND WALES 

¡Viva Guatemala! 

The PresbyTerian ChurCh of 

Wales has regularly punched above its 

weight in support of the work of 

Christian aid through its five-yearly 

denominational appeal, with the sierra 

leone appeal in 2007 achieving a 

magnificent total of £250,000. 

for 2012 they have gone for 

Guatemala, with a ‘¡Viva Guatemala!’ 

appeal, looking at the work of six 

Christian aid partners in the country. 

Catrin roberts, Christian aid 

coordinator for the PCW, said: ‘Most of 

the churches know very little about the 

country and why Christian aid is there.’ 

Guatemala is classed as a middleincome 

country, but with great inequality 

and some shocking statistics. almost half 

the children under five are chronically 

malnourished (meaning they don’t have 

enough of the right food over a long 

period to develop healthily); around 25 

per cent of the population don’t have 

enough to eat; three out of five people 

live on less than us$1 a day; and 

Guatemala’s murder rate is 10 times the 

world average. 

Mari fflur, head of communications for 

the PCW, went to Guatemala during the 

summer of 2011. she said: ‘We saw 

some fantastic work being done by 

organisations such as bethania on 

dealing with malnutrition. but it was 

frustrating to witness the inequality. 

although Guatemala has wealth and 

potential, money and education 

opportunities aren’t reaching the people 

who most need them.’ 

Catrin added: ‘as well as raising funds, 

there is a strong emphasis on the 

importance of praying for the people and 

for the hope of a brighter future.’ 

an added bonus in the run-up to 

launching the appeal was the visit of Caja 

lúdica, one of the partner organisations 

featured, to the Greenbelt festival last 

summer. ‘We took advantage of the visit 

and organised a number of pre-appeal 

meetings for the PCW churches in Wales,’ 

explained Mari. 

Caja lúdica is doing innovative work 

with youngsters on the harsh streets of 

Guatemala City, where life is rife with 

drugs and gangs. using activities such as 

drama, dance and circus skills, it helps to 

give youngsters a range of social and 

educational opportunities. ‘having Caja 

lúdicia here demonstrating what it does 

and talking about the way that lives have 

been changed was really helpful and 

made a great impression on those in the 

meetings,’ said Mari. 

Staff update 

The Wales TeaM is pleased to welcome 

Moses Tutesigensi, our volunteer intern 

for 2011-12. Moses is a postgraduate 

student from Cardiff university and will 

be concentrating on working with church 

youth and student groups in Cardiff and 

southeast Wales. Moses recently returned 

from a visit to sierra leone. if you know 

of a group who would like to hear more 

about the work of Christian aid, you can 

contact Moses on 029 2084 4646 or email 

Mtutesigensi@christian-aid.org 

Caja Lúdica 

strut their 

stuff 

‘¡Viva Guatemala!’ runs throughout 

2012 and the target set is £1 per member 

per month. 

The Wales pages on the Christian aid 

website will promote the appeal, and 

some of the appeal materials will also be 

available to download, from christianaid. 

org.uk/cymru 

aled Pickard, who joined the Wales 

team as a volunteer development officer, 

has recently been appointed to the new 

post of youth coordinator for Wales. aled 

will be working with youth organisations 

across Wales to raise awareness of 

Christian aid’s work and to encourage 

young people to campaign and 

fundraise. Please get in touch with 

aled if you would like more information 

about his work, or if you would like 

him to visit. he can be contacted on 

029 2084 4646 or by email at apickard@ 



Happy new quiz 

Our nEW PaPEr Quiz is winging 

its way to Christian aid supporters 

in this new year. For just £1 you can 

put your knowledge to the test on 

the different areas and counties in 

your region. all you have to do is fill 

in the quiz, send it back to your local 

Christian aid office along with your 

£1, then keep your fingers crossed! 

One lucky person from each Christian 

aid region will be named the winner 

and will receive a prize! if you would 

like to try your luck and take part in 

the all-new paper quiz, then please 

contact your local Christian aid office 

to request a copy. 

IN bRIEf 

• Thank you to all who came on the Marches 

for Justice in October to support our partner 

Ekta Parishad in india, which is campaigning 

for land rights. Sponsorship received so far 

is £300 from norwich, £2,000 from Bury St 

Edmunds and £2,000 from Malvern. 

• In the run-up to Christian Aid Week, the West 

Midlands team will be picking up the phones 

then hitting the road! We are hoping to meet 

up with all our organisers for an informal chat 

and catch up, getting to know you better, and 

offering you the best support possible. From 

plant sales to street collections, however you 

organise support for Christian aid Week, we’ll 

be in contact. 

EVENTS IN CENTRAL ENGLAND 

Friday 20 January – Sunday 

22 January 

Midlands Volunteers’ 

Conference: Going Deeper – 

Deeper Knowledge, Deeper 

Understanding, Deeper Faith 

6pm Friday – 4pm Sunday, 

Hothorpe Hall, Theddingworth, 

Leicestershire LE17 6QX. 

Join volunteers from around 

the region to share ideas and 

be re-energised and inspired 

by partner stories. The main 

speaker is david Pain, Christian 

aid’s director of supporter and 

community partnerships. Cost: 

£165 for a single room or £130 if 

sharing. discounted rates of £75 

for the weekend are available for 

people aged between 18 and 25. 

For more information, please 

contact Martin Gage on 01509 

265013 or email mgage@ 


East MiDlanDs 

SaTurday 21 January 

Coffee morning 

10am-12pm, Loughborough 

Baptist Church, Baxter Gate, 

Loughborough LE11 1TG. 

Sunday 29 January 

loughborough simple sunday 

lunch 

1pm, Emmanuel Church, Forest 

road, Loughborough LE11 3nW. 

SaTurday 4 FEBruary – 

SaTurday 18 FEBruary 

thinking Outside the Envelope 

a series of events to inspire and 

help you prepare for Christian 

aid Week 2012, including how 

to get the most out of house-tohouse 

collections, and creative 

ideas for new Christian aid Week 

fundraising events. 

Saturday 4 February 

9.30-11.30am, Bakewell 

Methodist Church, Matlock 

Street, Bakewell dE45 1EL. 

Tuesday 7 February 

5.30-7.30pm, St andrew’s Church 

Hall, Countesthorpe. 

Wednesday 8 February 

6.30-8.30pm, Chilwell road 

Methodist Church, Chilwell road, 

Beeston, nottingham nG9 1EH. 

Thursday 9 February 

5.30-7.30pm, all Saints Coffee 

Bar, Gainsborough. 


9.30-11.30am, Mansfield road 

Baptist Church, corner of 

Gregory Boulevard, nottingham 

nG7 6Jn. 


6-8pm, The Old School rooms, 

rothley Parish Church, School 

Street, rothley. 


5.30-7.30pm, derby Broadway 

Baptist Church, 166 Broadway, 

derby dE22 1BP. 


9.30-11.30am, Grantham Baptist 

Church, Wharf road, Grantham 

nG31 6Ba. 


9.30-11.30am, St Peter and St 

Paul Church, Healing. 

SaTurday 25 FEBruary 

auction of Promises 

7-9pm, Loughborough 

Baptist Church, Baxter Gate, 

Loughborough LE11 1TG. 

More than 50 lots are up for 

auction, in aid of Christian aid, 

including a run in a vintage car, 

tour of parliament with a local 

MP, a day in a narrow boat and 

an indian head massage. Tickets: 

£5, including a Ploughman’s 

Supper. Available from the 

Loughborough Baptist Church or 

call the Loughborough Christian 

Aid office on 01509 265013. 

Sunday 26 FEBruary 


lunch 

12.30pm, united reformed 

Church, 39 Frederick Street, 

Loughborough LE11 3BH. 

TuESday 20 MarCH 

tales and Experiences from 

sierra leone in its Fight against 

Poverty 

6.30-8pm, derby Multifaith 

Centre, university of derby, 

Kedleston road, dE22 1GB. 

Hear from Christian aid’s Mark 

Vyner, whose responsibilities 

include overseeing projects in 

Sierra Leone, and Catherine 

Garsed, youth and student intern 

for Christian aid, who spent two 

weeks in Sierra Leone in October 

(see story opposite). Free event. 

Sunday 25 MarCH 


lunch 

12.30pm, Friends @ Trinity 

Methodist Church, royland road, 

Loughborough LE11 2EH. 

SaTurday 5 May – Sunday 6 

May 

annual loughborough Canal and 

Boat Festival 

Every May day weekend 

since 1997, the Loughborough 

Canal and Boat Festival has 

taken place down the beautiful 

Loughborough canal. Hundreds 

of boats throng Loughborough’s 

waterway. This year Christian aid 

will have a stall at this festival to 

tell our Christian aid Week 2012 

story, as well as interactive and 

visual displays. 

Admission to the festival is free. 

For more information, please 

visit the festival website, at 

loughboroughcanalfestival.co.uk/ 

WEst MiDlanDs 

SaTurday 10 MarCH 

Photography exhibition 

Peace and reconciliation 

Gallery, Herbert art Gallery and 

Museum, Coventry. Join us for a 

midday launch of a photography 

exhibition featuring the work of 

Christian aid partner the Culture 

and Free Thought association 

(CFTa), which runs community 

activities and centres for children, 

young people and women in 

Gaza. For details, contact the 

Birmingham Christian Aid office 

on 0121 200 2283 or email 

birmingham@christian-aid.org 

East OF EnGlanD 

January/FEBruary 

Poverty Over touring Exhibition 

Two new venues for this 

compelling exhibition and 

wonderful sculpture. For full 

details, contact eastengland@ 


13-26 January 

Peterborough Cathedral 

3-16 February 

norwich Cathedral 


EVENTS IN NORTH ENGLAND 

MONDAY 16 JANUARY 

Hebden Royd AGM 

6.30pm at Crown Fisheries for 

fish and chips. Contact: 

stuartnbrenda68@talktalk.net or 

01422 883838. 

FRIDAY 27 JANUARY – 

SATURDAY 28 JANUARY 

Sponsored snooker marathon 

Westborough Methodist Church, 

Scarborough. 

There will be a coffee morning 

on the Saturday from 

10am-12 noon. For more details, 

contact David Bridge on 01723 

362091 or email 

davidgarnerbridge@googlemail. 

com 

SATURDAY 4 FEBRUARY – 

SATURDAY 10 MARCH 

What a Difference a Week Makes 

roadshows 

Feeling like you need a boost to 

get going for Christian Aid Week 

2012 Come and meet others 

who feel the same and be 

inspired, encouraged and excited 

about our work in Sierra Leone 

as we prepare for Christian Aid 

Week 2012. There will be soup 

and sandwiches to start the 

evening events and end the 

morning ones. 

Cheshire/Wirral 


10am-2pm, Bold St Methodist 

Church, Warrington WA1 1JQ. 


6-9pm, St Mary’s Church, 

Alsager ST7 2EW. 


6-9pm, St David’s URC, Eastham 

CH62 9DG. 


6-9pm, Knutsford Methodist 

Church, WA16 6BY. 

Cumbria 


6-9pm, St John the Evangelist, 

Carlisle CA1 2JZ. 

Friday 24 February 

6-9pm, St John’s Church, 

Workington CA14 3AX. 


6-9pm, Sandylands Methodist 

Church, LA9 6EU. 

Lancashire 


6.30-9.30pm, St Martin’s/St 

Hilda’s Church Hall, Poulton-le- 

Fylde FY6 7NL. 


6-9pm, Euxton Methodist 

Church, Chorley PR7 6LP. 

Thursday 1 March 

6-9pm, St Bartholomew Church, 

Colne BB8 9BN. 

Liverpool 

Tuesday 6 March 

6-9pm, Garston Park United 

Church, L19 1QL. 


6-9pm, Waterloo United Free 

Church, Crosby L22 0LQ. 

Manchester 


6-9pm, St Margaret’s Church, 

Prestwich M25 2QB. 

Saturday 10 March 

10am-2pm, Mossley Methodist 

Church, OL5 0EX. 

SATURDAY 11 FEBRUARY 

Manchester Sponsored Abseil 

Experience 

Enjoy the thrill of abseiling 160ft 

from Manchester’s Renaissance 

Hotel and enjoy awesome views 

over the city. To take part, simply 

register for £15 and agree to 

raise a minimum of £60 

sponsorship per person. 

For further information, email 

events@christian-aid.org or tel 

01925 582825. 

MONDAY 13 FEBRUARY 

Rochdale education evening 

7.30pm, St Andrews Church, 

Rochdale OL16 1HE. 

Be inspired by the Christian Aid 

Week stories, from Jessica 

Durham, who visited the 

Methodist Church of Sierra 

Leone, and other partners 

featured in Christian Aid Week 

2012. 

SUNDAY 26 FEBRUARY 

Newcastle sponsored abseil 

Don’t miss your chance to 

marvel at the views over the 

Toon and join us for a 200ft 

abseil from Newcastle’s Vermont 

Hotel – reputed to be the north 

east’s highest charity abseil 

challenge. To take part, simply 

register for £15 and agree to 

raise a minimum of £60 

sponsorship per person. For 

further information email 

events@christian-aid.org or tel 

01925 582825. 


Sing for your Supper 

7pm, Parish Hall, Church Street, 

Frodsham, Cheshire. 

Enjoy an evening of 

entertainment, food and fun with 

members of Churches Together 

in Frodsham as they show off 

their musical and acting skills. 

Contact Chris Wilding on 01928 

733680. 


Cheshire swimathon 

6-8pm, Crewe Swimming Baths, 

Flag Lane, Crewe. 

Bring yourself or bring a team – 

how many lengths can you swim 

in one hour Last year they 

raised more than £2,000. For 

details, contact Malcolm Crook 

on 01270 662077 or email 

m.h.crook@his.keele.ac.uk 

WEDNESDAY 14 MARCH 

South Cliff Churches’ coffee 

morning 

10.30am–12 noon, Ambassador 

Hotel, The Esplanade, 

Scarborough. Lots of stalls, raffle 

and tombola. Contact Jean 

Glover on 01723 863116. 

MONDAY 19 MARCH 

North West volunteer training 

day 

Ever been asked to talk about 

Christian Aid in your church or to 

a local group and want to know 

what to say We can help! Join 

us for the day when we will 

focus on Christian Aid Week 

resources for volunteers who go 

into schools, speak in their 

churches or visit local groups 

and organisations. Contact Becky 

Hurst at bhurst@christian-aid. 

org or tel 01925 573769. 


An evening of music by the 

Highside Singers 

7.30pm, Kirkby Malzeard 

Mechanics Institute, Kirkby 

Malzeard, Yorkshire. For more 

information, contact susan_ 

ant1917@hotmail.co.uk 

SUNDAY 8 APRIL – MONDAY 9 

APRIL 

47th Halifax Long March 

10pm–9am, Calderdale. 

A marathon-length sponsored 

night hike. For more information 

and to register, visit longmarch. 

org.uk or contact the Leeds office 

on leeds@christian-aid.org 

TUESDAY 17 APRIL 

Penistone open evening. 

Looking at Christian Aid Week 

and Sierra Leone. Contact Rev 

Newcastle 

office relocation 

We will be completing our 

office relocation during January, 

so please bear with us during this 

busy time. We look forward to 

inviting you to visit our new offices 

once we are settled. For now our 

postal address will remain the same: 

42-44 Mosley Street, 

Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1DF. 

For further information, please 

contact newcastle@ 


Antony Tomlinson at revantony@ 

aol.com or tel 01226 764868. 

SATURDAY 21 APRIL 

Christian Aid Evensong service 

5.15pm, York Minster. 

Guest speaker Inderjit Bhogal 

(from Corrymeela). For more 

details, contact christianaid 

york@googlemail.com 

MONDAY 7 MAY 

Sheffield May Day trek 

9.30am, Bolsterstone Village 

Hall. 

A 5-, 10- or 15-mile sponsored 

walk on the edge of the Peak 

District. For more information 

and to register, visit 

sheffieldmaydaytrek.org.uk or 

contact the Leeds office. 

SATURDAY 12 MAY 

Humber Bridge Cross sponsored 

walk 

2pm. 

For more information contact 

gilldalby@gilldalby.karoo.co.uk 

SATURDAY 7 JULY 

Sheffield night hike 

8pm, St Luke’s Lodge Moor. 

A 17-mile night hike out into the 

Peak District. For more 

information and to register, visit 

sheffieldnighthike.org.uk or 

contact the Leeds office. 

Christian Aid North East can 

provide articles for church 

newsletters or pew sheets. We 

aim to produce regular articles 

on themes relating to our work, 

such as information about a 

forthcoming regional event or an 

analysis of current issues 

affecting people living in poverty. 

There is no obligation to use any 

article in your church 

publication. To sign up for this 

free service please contact the 

Newcastle office at newcastle@ 


If you would like us to include 

your event in the next edition of 

Christian Aid News, please 

contact your local office. 

POVERTY OVER TOUR Continuing its journey around Britain, the 

touring exhibition is aimed at provoking debate about how Christians 

can best meet the demands of their faith by challenging poverty 

around the world. The exhibition features a stunning sculpture of 

enamel and steel by artist Mel Howse. Visitors to the cathedral will be 

invited to reflect upon the nature of poverty. 

Thursday 16 February – Wednesday 29 February 

Durham Cathedral, DE1 3EH. 

Friday 2 March – Thursday 15 March Carlisle Cathedral, CA3 8TZ. 

Friday 16 March – Thursday 29 March Blackburn Cathedral, BB1 5AA. 

There will be associated events throughout the exhibition. Please 

contact the Newcastle and Warrington offices for further details. 


EVENTS IN SCOTLAND 

FridAy 27 JAnuAry 

Poverty Over Burns supper 

7pm–1am, Partick Thistle FC, 

Firhill Stadium, Firhill road, 

glasgow. 

Celebrate the life and work of 

robert Burns with the Christian 

Aid Scotland Team at their 

Poverty over Burns Supper. 

includes a delicious threecourse 

meal, followed by a 

ceilidh into the small hours. 

Tickets £25 per person. And if 

you can’t join this Burns Supper 

why not hold your own Visit 

christianaid.org.uk/burnssupper 

or call Amy on 0141 221 7475. 

JAnuAry/FEBruAry 

eco-congregations and Christian 

aid climate roadshows 

Tuesday 17 January 

6.45pm for 7pm start, Falkirk old 

and St Modan’s Parish Church, 

Manse Place, Falkirk FK1 1Jn. 

Further information from 

dgreen@christian-aid.org or 

0141 221 7475. 


7pm (tbc), St george’s Church of 

Scotland Church hall, 50 george 

Street, dumfries dg1 1EJ. 

Contextual Bible studies 


7-9pm, Cathcart Baptist Church 


7-9pm, new Kilpatrick 

Call Wendy young for more 

information on 0141 221 7475. 

For full info on any of the above, 

call Val Brown on 0141 221 7475. 

With World Mission Council: 

israel and occupied Palestinian 

territory (ioPT) evenings 


7-9pm, gorbals Parish Church, 

glasgow. 


7-9pm, dornoch Cathedral. 

Christian aid roadshows 


7-9pm, Abbotsford Church, 

Clydebank, g81 1PA. 

NeW GlasGOW OFFiCe 

in dECEMBEr, the glasgow 

office relocated to 290 Bath 


7-9pm, Stobswell Church, 172 

Albert Street, dd4 6QW. 


7-9pm, Portobello old Parish, 

Bellfield Street, Eh15 2BP. 

TuESdAy 28 FEBruAry 

Guardian film screening – trade: 

the Flower industry in Kenya 

7pm, The Centre for 

Contemporary Arts, 350 

Sauchiehall Street, glasgow. 

guardian film in partnership 

with Christian Aid, followed by 

panel discussion and Q&A. 

SATurdAy 21 APriL 

tay Bridge Cross Walk 

2pm, dundee and newport-on- 

Tay. Christian Aid’s annual Tay 

Bridge sponsored walk. For 

more details, visit christianaid. 

org.uk/walks or call Amy on 0141 

221 7475. 

SATurdAy 28 APriL 

Forth Bridge Cross Walk 

1pm, north and South 

Queensferry. 

Come along to the 40th birthday 

celebration for the Forth Bridge 

Cross. Entertainment will 

commence at 1pm, with the 

walk starting at 2pm. For more 

details, visit christianaid.org.uk/ 

walks or call Amy, as above. 

SATurdAy 5 MAy 

erskine Bridge Cross Walk 

2pm, Erskine and old Kilpatrick 

Join the 25th anniversary of the 

Erskine Bridge Cross. 

For more details, visit 

christianaid.org.uk/walks or call 

Amy, as above. 

SATurdAy 16 JunE 

Cumbrae Challenge 

10am, Cumbrae. 

Walk, run or cycle 10 miles 

around the beautiful isle of 

Cumbrae to support Christian 

Aid. For more details, visit 

christianaid.org.uk/walks or call 

Amy, as above. 

Street, glasgow g2 4Jr. This 

move provides the glasgow 

team with a bit more space and 

is saving Christian Aid a 

considerable amount of money 

each year. our phone number 

(0141 221 7475) will stay the 

same and there will be a 

redirection on our post for the 

foreseeable future. We will be 

holding an ‘open office’ event on 

18 January 2012, between 5pm 

and 7pm. All are welcome to 

come along to meet staff and see 

our new premises. 

Scottish Churches funding 

HIV work in Malawi 

Longniddry ChurCh 

recently hosted ‘The 

gentlemen’s Saturday 

Baking Society’, raising 

money for Christian Aid 

partner FoCuS in 

Malawi. This is just one 

of many activities 

Longniddry and 

gladmuir churches have 

arranged in order to 

reach the £5,000 

partnership target over 

two years, which is 

match-funded 1:9 by the 

Scottish government’s 

international 

development fund. 

glasgow West End Churches Together, and Trinity and 

Stobswell churches in dundee are also working creatively 

towards the same target. in total, with match-funding, £200,000 

will be raised for the work of FoCuS. FoCuS seeks to reduce 

the transmission of hiV and supports those living with the 

virus in the Karonga area of Malawi. 

if you think your church and community might be interested 

in getting involved with a match-funded partnership, please 

get in touch with Wendy young on 0141 221 7475 or wyoung@ 


Overseas visits 

Longniddry’s 

gentlemen 

bakers 

AT ChriSTiAn Aid, we are all about partnerships and 

shared learning. So we were delighted to have dr Singha, 

from dSK, one of our partners in Bangladesh, with us over 

the harvest period to talk about the impact of climate 

change, with supporters around the country. Thank you to 

everyone who made him feel welcome during his stay in 

Scotland. Emma dalrymple, our new intern, has recently 

come back from a visit to Sierra Leone, where she was able 

to find out more about our work and partnerships there. 

Big ThAnKS to the winner 

of the Falkirk Herald’s 

‘Voice’ competition, 

teenager Colet Selwyn, 

who is in the process of 

making a solo album and 

donating all the proceeds 

to Christian Aid. Colet and 

his family, who make up 

the Sunbeam Singers, 

also recently performed a 

gospel music concert in 

Larbert, alongside quartet Con Brio, to raise funds for 

Christian Aid and The Leprosy Mission. 


Regional news and events in London, Essex, Surrey, Kent and Sussex 

Cryptic 

Christian 

Aid Week 

Quiz 

LOOKING FOR A SIMPLE, fun 

way to raise more money in 

or around Christian Aid 

Week Ask us for the Cryptic 

Places Paper Quiz – 25 cryptic 

clues to places in London and 

the southeast. We can send it 

or email it to you, then you 

photocopy it and sell it to 

people for a minimum 

donation of £1. Completed 

quizzes are sent to us and we 

choose one lucky winner, who 

will receive a goody bag of 

delicious Fairtrade food. If 

you’d like quizzes to sell, 

phone us on 020 7523 2321 or 

email LSE@christian-aid.org 

To whet your appetite, try 

working out which place in 

London this is – ‘scratch 

produced by fleece’. 

THE LOnDOn AnD 

SOuTH EAST TEAm 

If you live in London, Essex, 

Kent, Surrey or Sussex, then 

our team is here to help you 

and your church give, act and 

pray on behalf of Christian 

Aid. If you’d like a speaker, 

some resources or just a chat 

about how to get more 

involved with Christian Aid, 

then give us a ring on 020 

7523 2321 (for London and 

Surrey) or 020 7523 2105 

(for Essex, Kent and Sussex) 

or email us at LSE@christianaid.org 

EVENTS 

THURSDAY 26 JANUARY 

Annual supporters’ evening 

2-4.30pm or 6-8.30pm, Inter- 

Church House, 35-41 Lower 

Marsh, London SE1 7RL. 

A great opportunity to find out 

more about Christian Aid Week 

2012 materials, meet other 

volunteers and hear about our 

emergency work. We are 

running the session twice, in the 

afternoon and again in the 

evening. Please bring as many 

others involved in Christian Aid 

Week in your area as you can. 

FRIDAY 9 MARCH 

Justice and Joy: a Day of 

Reflection on Isaiah 58 

10am-4.15pm, Bore Place, 

Chiddingstone, Edenbridge, 

Kent TN8 7AR. 

Join Christian Aid staff and 

supporters on a ‘retreat’, taking 

time to consider what Isaiah 58 

means for us personally, locally 

and internationally. We’ll also be 

joined by Aldrin Calixte, the 

director of Christian Aid partner 

Haiti Survie. Bore Place is the 

home of Commonwork, an 

organisation that works for 

sustainable global citizenship 

through education and practical 

activities. Cost: £15, including 

lunch. Places are limited, so 

book early. 


One Vision, One Voice: a 

Christian Aid Supporters’ Day 

11am-7pm, Haywards Heath 

Methodist Church, Perrymount 

Road, Haywards Heath, West 

Sussex RH16 3DN. 

Join Christian Aid supporters, 

staff and a partner from Haiti for 

a day of inspiration, with worship 

and workshops, including: the 

theology of development, 

updates on Haiti and east Africa, 

campaigning on tax and climate 

change, how to hold fundraising 

events, getting young people 

involved in justice, and stories 

from Sierra Leone. Tickets: £10 

including buffet lunch and 

fish-and-chips supper. 

THURSDAY 15 MARCH 

Hastings fish-and-chips supper 

7pm, St Leonard’s Church, 66-68 

Marina, St Leonards-on-Sea, 

Hastings TN38 0BE. 

A chance to meet other Christian 

Aid supporters, share new ideas 

and be inspired as we prepare 

for Christian Aid Week 2012. All 

are welcome; please invite your 

church, friends and family to join 

us. Price: £5. 


Changing the World through 

Campaigning and Lobbying 

5.30-9pm, Inter-Church House, 

35-41 Lower Marsh, London 

SE1 7RL. 

Are you passionate about seeing 

an end to poverty Do you want 

to find out more about our 

climate change and tax 

campaigns, and learn to lobby 

your MP more effectively Then 

this workshop is for you! Light 

refreshments will be available. 


Pinner general knowledge quiz 

7.30pm, Cannon Lane Methodist 

Church, Cannon Lane, Pinner 

HA5 1JD. 

Test your brain power, chat with 

friends and hear stories of 

Christian Aid’s work. Tickets: £3, 

all proceeds to Christian Aid. 


Sponsored abseil 

Leatherhead, Surrey. 

The 15th century tower of St 

Mary and St Nicholas Church in 

Leatherhead has been used as a 

school, a fire station and now… 

an abseiling venue! Don’t miss 

the chance to be one of the first 

ever to abseil down this historic 

building. You’ll have stunning 

views over Leatherhead, across 

to Box Hill and Dorking. 

Simply register online now at 

christianaid.org.uk/abseil – just 

pay £15 to sign up and commit 

to raising a minimum of £60 in 

sponsorship for Christian Aid. 


Halstead Cream Tea 

2-4pm, Halstead United 

Reformed Church, Kings Road, 

Halstead, Essex CO9 1HJ. 

Join us for a traditional cream 

tea with a global twist! Hear 

stories of hope from around the 

world, see the Christian Aid 

Week 2012 resources and share 

ideas for inspiring others to give, 

act and pray. 

SUNDAY 25 MARCH 

The Wilberforce Oak Walk 

2pm, Keston Parish Church, 

Church Road, Keston, Kent 

BR2 6HT. 

Join us for a delightful ramble to 

the Wilberforce Oak where, as 

William Wilberforce wrote in his 

diary, ‘…just above the steep 

descent into the vale of Keston, I 

resolved to give notice on a fit 

occasion in the House of 

Commons of my intention to 

bring forward the abolition of 

the slave-trade’. Afterwards 

there will be refreshments and a 

short talk from staff who have 

visited Sierra Leone, as well as 

an opportunity to see Christian 

Aid Week 2012 resources. 

TUESDAY 27 MARCH 

Stories from the South 

7-9pm, Folkestone Methodist 

Church, 153-155 Sandgate Road, 

Folkestone, Kent CT20 2DA. 

Join us for tea and cake and an 

evening of conversation as we 

share inspiring stories from 

Christian Aid’s partners and 

think creatively about how we 

can engage others in Christian 

Aid Week 2012. 

FRIDAY 30 MARCH 

Denmans Garden Tour and 

Cream Tea 

2pm, Denmans Garden, 

Denmans Lane, Fontwell, West 

Sussex BN18 0SU. 

An afternoon with Christian Aid 

at the beautiful Denmans 

Garden. While enjoying scones 

and cream, you will be inspired 

by stories about Christian Aid 

partners and hear how your 

community can get involved. 

Tickets £5 (including cream tea). 

Pre-booking essential. 

SUNDAY 20 MAY 

Circle the City sponsored walk 

– 15th anniversary 

Last year almost 400 walkers 

visited 15 beautiful historic 

churches around the City of 

London, enjoying face painting 

and circus performers as well as 

interactive exhibitions about 

some of Christian Aid’s partners. 

So far, the total raised from 

Circle the City 2011 stands at a 

whopping £33,000 and we want 

2012 to be even better. We’re 

partnering with Pentecost 

Festival to make this a day to 

remember. Sign up online at 

christianaid.org.uk/walks to 

receive your free sponsorship 

guide and information pack. 

For more information about any of 

these events, or to book places, 

please contact LSE@christian-aid.org 

or phone 020 7523 2321/2105. 

Other events are being planned 

across the region so do get in touch 

to find your nearest one. 


EVENTS IN THE SOUTH AND WEST 

SATURDAY 21 JANUARY 

Global Aware Conference 

9.30am-4pm, Broadmead Baptist 

Church, Union Street, Bristol. 

To empower God’s people to 

take action against poverty and 

climate change. Speakers: Roger 

Forster (Chair of Evangelical 

Alliance) and Helen Stawski 

(Archbishop of Canterbury’s 

international development 

programme officer). For details, 

contact west@christian-aid.org 

or 01454 415923. 

SUNDAY 22 JANUARY 

Loretta Minghella talk 

6pm, St John the Baptist Parish 

Church, Market Place, 

Cirencester. The director of 

Christian Aid is the keynote 

speaker at the Churches 

Together in Cirencester service 

for the Week of Prayer for 

Christian Unity. Refreshments 

follow the service. For details, 

contact west@christian-aid.org 

or 01454 415923. 

FRIDAY 10 FEBRUARY 

Salisbury Quiz Aid 

Quiz Night for Christian Aid, run 

by St Thomas’ Church in 

Salisbury. Tables of six people. 

For details, contact saint. 

thomas@btinternet.com or 

01722 322537. 

TUESDAY 14 FEBRUARY 

Exeter Valentine’s Abseil 

St Thomas the Apostle Church, 

Cowick Street, Exeter. 

Make your heart beat faster with 

a Valentine’s Day abseil, 80 feet 

down the church tower. 

For details, contact hwilson@ 

christian-aid.org or 01395 222308. 

WEDNESDAY 29 FEBRUARY 

Dorset Coast Abseil 

St Mary’s Church, Church Hill, 

Swanage. 

An abseil 100 feet down the 

church tower. For details, contact 

hwilson@christian-aid.org or 

01395 222308. 

WEDNESDAY 14 MARCH 2012 

Hunger for Justice evening 

celebration 

7.30–9.15pm (Doors open 

6.15pm), Manvers Street Baptist 

Church, Bath. 

Speakers: Rev Joel Edwards 

(international director, Micah 

Challenge) and Aldrin Calixte 

(Christian Aid partner Haiti 

Survie). Worship: Renewal 

Gospel Choir. Book online at 

hungerforjustice.eventbrite.com 

or contact west@christian-aid. 

org or 01454 415923. 

THURSDAY 15 MARCH 2012 

Hunger for Justice day 

conference 

9.15am-4.30pm (Doors open 

8.45am), Manvers Street Baptist 

Church, Bath. 

Speakers: Rev Joel Edwards and 

Aldrin Calixte, as above. 

Worship: Liz Baddeley (The 

Sanctuary). Workshops and 

drop-in sessions. Book online at 

hungerforjustice.eventbrite.com 

or contact west@christian-aid. 

org or 01454 415923. 

TUESDAY 27 MARCH 

Cheltenham Christian Aid AGM 

7.30pm, St Mark’s Methodist 

Church, Gloucester Road, 

Cheltenham. 

Speaker: Mike Secker (Christian 

Aid West student and youth 

worker) on Sierra Leone. 

For details, contact 

west@christian-aid.org 

or 01454 415923. 

SUNDAY 13 MAY – 

SATURDAY 19 MAY 2012 

Christian Aid Week 

For resources and support, 

contact your local Christian Aid 

office. 

YOUR LOCAL OFFICE 

BriStoL offiCE 

(Bristol, Gloucestershire, 

Somerset, Wiltshire) 

57 High Street, Thornbury, 

Bristol BS35 2AP. 

01454 415923 

west@christian-aid.org 

facebook.com/ 

ChristianAidWest 

SoutHAMpton offiCE 

(Channel Isles, Cornwall, 

Devon, Dorset, Hampshire, 

Isle of Wight) 

Isaac Watts Memorial 

Church 

Winchester Road 

Southampton 

SO16 6TS 

023 8070 6969 

southwest@christian-aid.org 

• We are on the ground floor 

with easy access and plenty 

of parking so do pop in to see 

us (please phone beforehand). 

BEttEr toGEtHEr 

Our South West team is 

bringing its Better Together 

Tour to the doorsteps of 

supporters in the region again 

this year. The events will be full 

of real-life stories, music and 

images from across the world. 

Come and be informed and 

inspired, encouraged and 

equipped, to put your faith into 

action at your nearest 

presentation. To find out more 

details of times and venues, 

contact our Southampton 

office: southwest@christianaid.org 

or 02380 706969. 


Ottery St Mary 


Afternoon workshop, Brixham 


Afternoon workshop, Totnes 

Monday 6 February Penzance 


Bideford Baptist Church 


Pilgrim URC, Plymouth 


Richmond Hill St Andrews 

URC, Bournemouth 


Axminster, Devon 


St Agnes 


Lent lunch in Dawlish 

Tuesday 6 March 

Barnfield Theatre, Exeter 


PuDS DO 

GOOD 

After-pud 

entertainment 

LIKE MANY OTHERS 

throughout Wales, Manon 

Elin and Enlli Lewis, students 

at Ysgol Bro Myrddin, 

Carmarthen, saw the pictures 

of drought and famine in east 

Africa on the television, and 

were determined to do 

something to help. They 

came up with a pudding 

evening with entertainment 

(Paned a Phwdin), in 

Penygraig Chapel, near 

Carmarthen, with proceeds 

going to the Christian Aid 

East Africa Appeal. 

About 60 people crowded 

into the chapel schoolroom 

on Friday 2 September, eager 

to taste a wide range of 

puddings, from fairy cakes to 

cheesecakes. When everyone 

had enjoyed at least one, they 

were entertained by the Fflur 

Dafydd a’r Barf band, which 

gave a wonderful acoustic 

performance. Also present 

was Tom Davies, the Christian 

Aid coordinator for West 

Wales, and he talked about 

how the money raised would 

help. Proceeds on the night 

totalled £600, but with the 

help of Barclays’ ‘pound for 

pound’ scheme, the final total 

came to £1,200. 

Manon and Enlli were 

grateful for the help they 

received: ‘As well as good 

local support on the evening, 

all the raffle prizes were 

supplied by local businesses 

and Fflur Dafydd a’r Barf 

performed for free. 

‘We were inspired by a sad 

situation, but this wasn’t a sad 

evening. It was a night of 

enjoyment as people had the 

opportunity to contribute and 

do something. We’re already 

thinking about organising 

another night.’ 

EICH SWYDDFA LEOL 

– YOUR LOCAL OFFICE 

BANGOR (Gogledd Cymru/ 

North Wales) 

106 Stryd Fawr, Bangor, 

Gwynedd 

LL57 1NS. 

Tel/Ffôn: 01248 353574 

bangor@christian-aid.org 

CAERFYRDDIN/CARMARTHEN 

(De Orllewin a’r Canolbarth/ 

South West and Mid Wales) 

75 Heol Dwr, Caerfyrddin/ 

Carmarthen 

SA31 1PY. 

Tel/Ffôn: 01267 237257 

carmarthen@christian-aid.org 

CAERDYDD/CARDIFF 

(Cenedlaethol/National 

Office) 

5 Station Road, Radyr, 

Caerdydd/Cardiff 

CF15 8AA. 

Tel/Ffôn: 029 2084 4646 

cardiff@christian-aid.org 

NO SHOES 

NOVEMbER! 

NOVEMBER WOULDN’T BE anyone’s 

ideal time for not wearing shoes. But 

Simon Dalton from Cardiff set aside all 

footwear that month to raise awareness 

of the millions of people around the 

world who cannot afford enough food 

or basic sanitation, let alone the 

plethora of shoes owned by most of us 

in the western world. Simon also 

decided that he would use the event, 

entitled No Shoes November, to raise 

funds for the work of Christian Aid. 

‘It was an interesting experience,’ he 

said, ‘and I got a few stares as I walked 

around. But I tried to carry on as normal 

as possible, including going to a gig and 

a fireworks display barefoot.’ 

Some of Simon’s friends joined him 

for a day or two, and he organised a 

flash mob in Cardiff (right) with around 

30 people. Simon surpassed his target 

of £500, raising more than £2,200. 

EVENTS IN WALES DIGWYDDIADAU YNG NGHYMRU 

SUL 15 IONAWR 

¡Viva Guatemala! – Apêl Eglwys 

Bresbyteraidd Cymru 

Capel Tegid, Y Bala am 6 yr hwyr. 

Yng nghwmni Anna Jane Evans, 

Cymorth Cristnogol. 

IAU 19 IONAWR 



Capel Seilo, Pengorffwysfa, Ynys 

Môn am 7 yr hwyr. 



SUL 22 IONAWR 



Cyfarfod i’r teulu yng nghapel 

Gosen, Llangwyllog, Ynys Môn 

am 10 y bore. 



WEDNESDAY 25 JANUARY 

Cardiff Christian Aid Organisers’ 

and Supporters’ Meeting 

7pm, City URC Church, Windsor 

Place, Cardiff. 


Organisers’ Kits will be available 

to pick up and there will also be 

samples of Christian Aid Week 

2012 resources to view. 

Please contact Robin Samuel on 

029 2084 4646 for further details. 

MERCHER 25 IONAWR 

Cyfarfod Trefnyddion a 

Chefnogwyr Cymorth Cristnogol 

Caerdydd 

7yh, Capel City URC, Windsor 

Place, Caerdydd. 

Pecynnau trefnyddio ar gyfer 

Wythnos Cymorth Cristnogol 

2012 ar gael a chyfle i weld rhai 

o adnoddau lliwgar yr Wythnos. 

Mwy o fanylion gan Robin 

Samuel ar 029 2084 4646. 

SUL 29 IONAWR 



Capel y Porth, Porthmadog am 

10 y bore. 



SUL 19 CHWEFROR 



Capel y Drindod, Pwllheli am 10 

y bore. 



SUL 21 CHWEFROR 

¡Viva Guatemala! - Apêl Eglwys 


Eglwys Noddfa, Caernarfon am 

1.30 y prynhawn 

Cyfarfod Lawnsio’r Apel yn 

Henaduriaeth Arfon. 



TUESDAY 21 FEBRUARY 

Pancake evening 

7pm, St Thomas’s Church, Vale 

Street, Denbigh. 

Organised by the local Christian 

Aid committee. All proceeds to 

Christian Aid. 

MERCHER 29 CHWEFROR 



Capel Cross Inn, Dryslwyn, 

Caerfyrddin am 7 yr hwyr. 



Noson dathlu Gwyl Ddewi gyda 

lluniaeth ysgafn i ddilyn. 


LAST WORD 

A reflection on playing a part 

in the fight against poverty, 

and living life in the wider 

family of Christian Aid 

Jean Harrison spent 

17 years working 

for Christian Aid, 

and now she’s 

serving on the 

World Council of 

Churches’ Ecumenical 

Accompaniment Programme in 

Palestine and Israel (EAPPI). 

Ecumenical accompaniers provide 

a protective presence to vulnerable 

communities, monitor human 

rights abuses and support 

Palestinians and Israelis working 

together for a just peace. Here Jean 

tells us about life in Bethlehem – the 

challenges, privileges, and 

sometimes heart-rending moments 

of living alongside a community 

under occupation 

I HARDLY KNOW where to start in 

describing life as an ecumenical 

accompanier. You arrive and have a 

comprehensive handover with the 

previous team, who introduce you to key 

people, organisations and places. Then 

suddenly it’s your responsibility, and 

despite the training you think ‘where do I 

go’ and ‘what do I do’. We plan our 

time around certain givens; such as the 

checkpoint watch, which we do four days 

a week from 4-8am. We keep track of how 

many Palestinians are passing through, 

and try and help anyone that gets turned 

away. Last Sunday four people were 

turned back: their permit papers were 

taken, and without those they will lose 

their jobs. We got their names and IDs, 

and sent those to an Israeli group called 

Machsom Watch, which can often help. 

The first time I went to the checkpoint, 

I was horrified. I was on duty in the metal 

detector area and had to walk through 

the main queue and push through the 

crush of people. Sometimes there is only 

one detector open, even though all three 

should be running. It’s our job to call the 

humanitarian hotline and ask them to 

open the others; usually that works. 

Aside from our weekly duties, we’re 

also here as a team to respond to urgent 

‘PEOPLE APPRECIATE US 

BECAUSE WE’RE THERE 

AT DIFFICULT TIMES’ 

Christian Aid/Charlotte Marshall 

Jean watches 

children go to school 

Although sometimes I 

come home feeling angry 

and helpless, I know that 

our presence makes a 

difference 

situations. In the first week, we had a call 

from a Palestinian school in Tuqu. They 

said: ‘Please come, there are Israeli 

soldiers at the school stopping the 

children to line them up and search their 

bags’. The previous week, the soldiers 

had gone into the school and forced it to 

close for the day. The Israeli army claims 

that the schoolchildren are throwing 

stones at settlers’ cars as they walk along 

the road, so now they have stationed 

four soldiers along the route that the 

children take to school. As a team, we 

decided we’d also stand along this route, 

to be a protective presence as the 

children make their way to school. 

I was horrified to see the soldiers with 

guns, which are often pointed at the 

children. A lot of them are tiny children 

and I worry about what is going on in 

their minds as a consequence. A local 

taxi driver has a six-year-old son who 

attends one of these schools. He said to 

his father one day that he didn’t want to 

go to school, because he was ‘scared the 

soldiers will kill me’. 

Although at times I come home feeling 

angry and helpless, I know our presence 

makes a difference. People appreciate us 

because we’re there at difficult times. We 

have time to drink tea, talk and listen to 

them. It’s been one of the best aspects of 

my experience: you feel you like you 

belong here and it’s a privilege. 

The views contained here are personal 

and do not necessarily reflect those of 

Jean’s employer Quaker Peace and 

Social Witness (QPSW) or the World 

Council of Churches (WCC). If you would 

like to publish the information contained 

here (including posting it on a website), 

or distribute it further, please first contact 

teresap@quaker.org.uk for permission. 

For more information, or to find out how 

to join EAPPI, please visit eappi.org 


Sweet gifts for your sweetheart on 

Valentine’s day 

Chocolate box 

312 cocoa 

seedlings 

£27 

Bee my 

honey 

a beehive 

£12 

Christian Aid/Sam Faulkner 

Give your loved one something different 

An alternative to traditional flowers and chocolates, these gifts could sweeten your 

valentine’s day and help farming families in Latin America to escape from poverty. 

Buy online at presentaid.org/sweetheart or call 0845 3300 500 (quote ref: A013452) 

PRESENT AID 

GIFTS THAT KEEP GIVING 

UK registered charity no. 1105851 Company no. 5171525 Scot charity no. SC039150 

The Christian Aid name and logo are trademarks of Christian Aid; Poverty Over is a trademark of Christian Aid. 

© Christian Aid, December 2011 12-372-V 

GET REAL CHANGE FROM 

YOUR CREDIT CARD 

The Christian Aid credit card from The Co‐operative 

Bank can help to bring lasting change to those 

in need. Every time an account is opened, 

The Co‐operative Bank gives Christian Aid £15. 

A further £2.50 is donated when the new card is 

used within six months, and then 25p is given for 

every £100 spent on the card. 

18.9 % APR 

representative/variable 

• No interest on purchases and balance transfers*, fixed for six 

months from account opening. 

• A transfer fee is applicable during the promotional period. 

For an instant decision, phone 

0800 002 006 

or apply online at 

co-operativebank.co.uk/christianaid 


AID INTRODUCES 

OUR CREDIT CARD 

*Excludes balance transfers from other credit cards issued by The Co-operative Bank. Credit facilities are provided by The Co-operative Bank p.l.c. and are subject to 

status. Credit Card applicants must be aged 18 or over, a UK , Channel Island or Isle of Man resident and have a minimum annual gross income of £10,000 or more. 

The bank reserves the right to decline any application or offer a card that differs from those advertised. Interest rates are correct at time of going to press 11/11. 

The Co-operative Bank p.l.c. (Registered No. 990937), Head Office, P.O. Box 101, 1 Balloon Street, Manchester M60 4EP. The Co-operative Bank is authorised 

and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (No. 121885), subscribes to the Lending Code, the Financial Ombudsman Service and is licensed by the Office of 

Fair Trading (No. 006110). Calls may be monitored or recorded for security and training purposes. For BT customers, calls to 0800 numbers are free. Call charges 

from other companies may vary and you may want to check this with your service provider. Christian Aid UK registered charity no. 1105851, Company no. 5171525, 

Scotland charity no. SC039150, Northern Ireland charity no. XR94639, Company no. NI059154. AH1538 11/11 

Provided by 

The Co-operative Bank

Contact us for your 

free guide to Wills 

and legacies 

With a Will, you can look after all the people you care about. 

It may look like a dry legal document, but a Will is really an act of care. Or even love. 

When you make a Will, you make a commitment to look after your family and friends 

even when you’re gone. And if you wish, you can do something even more extraordinary. 

By including Christian Aid in your Will, you can extend that loving care to people 

in other parts of the world. To a girl who wants to go to school in Bangladesh. To a 

community ravaged by war in Sudan. To the people you are already doing so much 

to help in your lifetime. 

To find out more about the caring power of Wills, complete and return the form 

below. Or contact Kerry at kmcmahon@christian-aid.org or on 020 7523 2173. 

Please send me The Christian Aid Guide to Wills and legacies 

Title: First name: Surname: 

Address: 

Postcode: 

Email: 

Telephone: 

Once completed please return to: Christian Aid, FREEPOST SW771, London SE1 7YY.

CHRISTIAN AID NEWS

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