Modern Slavery and the Isle of Man – A free talk for all

Could there really be modern slavery on the Isle of Man? What might it look like and what can we do to prevent it? Come along to our free talk to find out more.

Despite the abolition of the slave trade some 200 years ago, millions of people around the world are trapped in modern slavery and forced labour. These victims of trafficking, coercion by organised crime groups and other exploitative behaviour are often “unseen” by those around them.

What can businesses, organisations, goverment, local authorities and individuals do ensure we are not facilitating the exploitation of people here on the Island or through our networks and supply chains? What regulation should you be aware of and how does the UK Modern Slavery Act impact those operating from the Island?

Hosted by the One World Centre (Isle of Man), this talk will be led by Robin Brierley, Executive Director of the West Midlands Anti-Slavery Network and an independent consultant on Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking.

An expert on the subject, Robin has worked for the National Crime Squad, Anti-Corruption Command within the Metropolitan Police, and the Serious Organised Crime Agency (now National Crime Agency). He joined the Enforcement Directorate as a Senior Investigation Officer and later the Intelligence Directorate working on organised immigration crime. Robin was then seconded to the United Kingdom Human Trafficking Centre (UKHTC) before leaving SOCA in 2011 to set up his own company.

Attendance is free but please register for a place here.

Coffee and pastries available from 8.30am with the talk starting at 9am.

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Financial crime awareness for Manx non-profits

We are delighted to be working with teams from the Isle of Man Government to deliver some free training on financial crime awareness to non-profits on the Isle of Man.

This open and informal session will include updates on anti-money laundering and counter terrorism financing regulations, as well as recent corruption and bribery legislation.

Forewarned is forearmed when it comes to the risks of financial crime: protecting your organisation is vital not only for keeping hold of your valuable funding but also keeping hold of your reputation too.

The training takes place at the Top Hall, Promenade Methodist Church, Loch Promenade Douglas at 7pm on Tuesday 29th November. It is free to attend but please book through the link here

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DEC Pakistan Floods Appeal

As you have probably heard, there have been devastating floods in Pakistan which are reported to have seen up to a third of the country underwater with whole villages cut off and homes destroyed and damaged. Huge areas of agricultural land are believed to have been affected, with crops swept away and three quarters of a million livestock killed. There is also a high risk from water-borne diseases spreading in affected areas

The Disasters Emergency Committee has called an appeal to help and assist aid agencies to meet people’s basic needs such as food, clean water and shelter. As usual, the One World Centre will be coordinating a street collection in the Isle of Man for local people to donate to the appeal. This will take place in the main towns – Douglas, Ramsey, Peel, Port Erin and Castletown – between Friday 9th and Sunday 11th September.

We desperately need volunteers to help with these collections – if you are able to help, even if only for an hour on one of these days, please get in touch with Wendy either by emailing info@owciom.org or calling 310191.

More information on the appeal can be found here https://www.dec.org.uk/appeal/pakistan-floods-appeal

Thank you.

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AGM 2022

Please come and join us at our AGM which will take place at 7pm on Tuesday 27th September in the top hall at the Promenade Methodist Church in Douglas.

After the brief formal procedures we will be welcoming Karolina Davison who will talk to us about the ongoing situation in Ukraine, how the Isle of Man has responded to the unfolding humanitarian crisis and what more we can do. Karolina, who is herself Ukrainian but has lived on the Isle of Man for many years, has been a driving force in helping those arriving on our shores in recent months. 

Please come along and support us – we’d be pleased to hear your thoughts and ideas on our work and the future of the One World Centre. We also hope to announce the winners of our 2022 SDG Art Competition on the theme of ‘A Peaceful World’!

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Anti Racism Training for Manx Charities

We are delighted to be able to offer some free Anti Racism training for Manx charities in conjunction with PoCIoM on Monday 5th September 2022, 7pm at the Top Hall, Promenade Methodist Church in Douglas.

This is a chance to challenge how your perceptions and behaviour may be unwittingly perpetuating inequalities and racial discrimination.

You may think your organisation doesn’t need it but we all have things to learn around how tradition and unconscious bias affects our outlook and decision-making – and understanding what changes we can make to become more diverse and inclusive.

Particularly aimed at charities involved in international development and humanitarian aid, this training is also open to other smaller charities on the Isle of Man who may not otherwise have the opportunity for this kind of training. It is free to attend but please book through Eventbrite here.

Thanks to PoCIoM and the Isle of Man Government’s International Development Education Awareness and Strategy grant for facilitating this.

Donations to PoCIoM welcome at the event.

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Environmental learning with Movingsounds

We were absolutely delighted to welcome performing arts group Movingsounds back to Manx schools this week. Bringing their exciting and energetic mix of music, movement and environmental education, Keith and Ed put on assemblies for 10 primary schools and also ran workshops for Year 4, 5 & 6 students exploring positive solutions and collaborative working that also featured playing on “junk percussion”.

Movingsounds last came to the Island in 2019 and this is the first visit post-Covid. It was funded through the International Development Education Awareness and Strategy grant and the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company also helped with a reduced fare for the group’s van that was packed full of interesting instruments created by using recycled materials (including planks from one of Brighton’s old piers!)

All the schools enjoyed the visits and a very wide range of environmental and sustainability issues were explored, including global impacts. Thanks to Movingsounds for all their hard work creating the material for the Isle of Man and delivering it in such a fun and inspiring way!

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Teachers on the Isle of Man benefit from global learning training

We were delighted to welcome Debbie Watson from Cumbria Development Centre to the Isle of Man recently to provide two one-day training courses for local teachers.

Both local primary and secondary teachers had the opportunity to consider what global learning is and how it can be incorporated into the curriculum across any subject.

As well as generating lots of discussion on the benefits and values of including global perspectives in the classroom, Debbie provided lots of links to great resources that can be used to explore pre-conceptions and interconnectedness.

Feedback on the two days was excellent and everyone went away with plenty of food for thought. The courses were funded through the Isle of Man Government’s International Development Education, Awareness and Strategy grant.

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Gearing up for Global Village 2022

Well the TT is over so it must be time to start looking forward to the Global Village. This year’s event will be held, as always, on Tynwald Day at the Arboretum just below the St John’s Fairfield on 5th July.

A celebration of all the different cultures on the Isle of Man, the Global Village also showcases what’s happening in the areas of international and sustainable development – and we’ll have some new charities and groups joining us this year. If you’d like to book a spot – or if you can perform music, song or dance from another country around the world – please get in touch as soon as possible!

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Primary students enjoy return of Fairtrade Conference

Our annual Primary School’s Fairtrade Conference returned as a live event last month. Once again, we were kindly given permission to use the Tynwald debating chamber and government meeting rooms for a full day of activities, workshops and presentations.

Our guest speaker was Louise Whitelegg who spoke about her own experience of Fairtrade cooperatives in Burundi. In Tynwald the resolution was “All bananas should be fairtrade” and the students gave their formal statements before debating this issue in the actual seats where government decisions are made.

Other workshops included a chocolate tasting session, ‘Around The World’ (looking at the huge range of Fairtrade products that exist and where they come from) and a P4C (philosophy for children) activity about fairness and empathy. A Fairtrade lunch and snacks kept their energy levels up and the children ended the day with lots of ideas on how they are going to help their school move forwards to the next level of their Fairtrade school status.

Well done to all the participants and thank you to the teachers and helpers who accompanied them – and to the Manx Co-op for the generous supply of Fairtrade bananas!

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“A peaceful world” – SDG Art Competition 2022 is launched

Imagine a world where there is no war or violence, where people are free from fear no matter where they live, what they look like or what they believe.

Imagine a world where we all help each other and look after the planet we live on. What would that world look like and how would you picture it?

“A peaceful world” is the theme of this year’s One World Centre Art Competition, based on the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and is open to artists of all ages and abilities on the Isle of Man.

There are two classes of entry; one for “Under 18s” and one for “18 and Over”. Prizes will be awarded to the winners and runners up in both categories.

Designed to raise awareness of SDG Goal 16 – Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions – the competition challenges people to think about the impact of war and violence on others around the world and to promote ways of peaceful resolution.

For more information, entry form and T&Cs go to our page here. The closing date is 29th July.

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