We’ve just relaunched our It’s Not Fair! Global Goals creative competition for home schooling. This is a chance for young people (and their parents!) to reflect on one of the “People” Sustainable Development Goals and what life would be like if we achieved it. All the information, including useful resources, is on our It’s Not Fair! competition page of our website and there are lots of prizes. The closing date has now been extended to 10th July but feel free to send in entries at any time.
To celebrate Earth Day, the World’s Largest Lesson has come up with a great activity for children to link with their older relatives (remotely at the moment, of course) to reflect on climate change through generations. It’s a simple but effective way to draw out observations, connect with others and share positive action. Can be done any time, not just today!
https://worldslargestlesson.globalgoals.org/learning-for-earth-day-22nd-april/
Daily life has changed drastically for most of us here in the Isle of Man at the moment but what’s it like in other countries around the world as they face the coronavirus pandemic?
We’re looking for stories from friends and families overseas to create a picture of how coronavirus is impacting everyone – what shared problems we face, what we’re missing most and what we’ll be looking forward to when life returns to “normal”. A picture and a post is fine – a short video clip even better!
Please share this with anyone you know who would be willing to get involved. They can either post on our Facebook page or email to info@owciom.org. Some questions to think about:
What is the current situation in your country/region?
How is this affecting daily life?
What is the greatest impact to you personally?
What do you miss doing the most?
Has there been anything positive or unexpected to come out of this for you?
Will you do anything differently when life returns to normal?
Coronavirus has shown us how interconnected and interdependent the world is – and how we are all facing this together. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
Are you able to speak another language? Local charity Thare Machi Education is working with its UK counterpart to deliver online messages about coronavirus and the health measures people should take to protect themselves. They are looking for help with translating this into other languages and dialects (particularly from African, Asian and South American regions) and getting this information out to remoter parts of the world. More info in the link here: https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/translators-sought-for-african-asian-and-south-american-languages/
The Isle of Man Government has opened the application window for its International Development Partnerships (deadline now extended to 1st May 2020).
This funding stream was established to create longer term partnerships between the Isle of Man Government and respected and recognised international charities to facilitate lasting and sustainable change.
For the 2020-2022 funding cycle there are two themes – climate change and displaced persons. One partnership will be established on each theme.
For full eligibility criteria and the online application form please go to https://www.gov.im/about-the-government/departments/cabinet-office/international-development/funding-streams/international-development-partnerships/
We were so looking forward to the 2020 finals of the One World Charity Challenge, kindly to be hosted this week by AFD Software at the Mountain View Innovation Centre. Sadly (but understandably) this event had to be cancelled due to the ongoing measures against Coronavirus which meant our finalists didn’t get to present their work in front of a public audience.
In the circumstances, it was agreed to share the final prize money equally between the charities represented and we are pleased to announce that Advantage Africa, DO! Developing Orphans, Thare Machi Education, Glad’s House, Port St John Community Fund and Excellent Development will each receive £1,750 towards their international development work. A further £2,750 has already been distributed to charities represented at the in-school heats of the competition.
Thank you to AFD for supplying the prize money and offering the use of the fantastic facilities at Babbage’s. We know the students will be disappointed not to be able to showcase their work, but the knowledge they have gained and the support they have given their chosen charities throughout the competition will have given them a real insight into the role of international development in improving lives and how important it is to become good global citizens. Congratulations to all who took part and thank you to the charities for supporting the students in this project.
We’re delighted to offer a free community screening of Honeyland, an award-winning and Oscar-nominated documentary set in rural Macedonia about the challenges faced by a female wild beekeeper whose life is thrown into turmoil when a nomadic family moves nearby and seek to replicate her success but ignore her wisdom and ancient techniques. The film exposes the fundamental tension between nature and humanity, harmony and discord, exploitation and sustainability.
The screening will take place at The Embassy Room above The British pub on North Quay, Douglas, at 7pm on Wednesday 11th March. No need to book, just turn up.
NB The film is in Turkish with English subtitles.
This year’s Fairtrade Fortnight highlights cocoa farmers in West Africa, and especially women cocoa farmers, who often struggle to earn a living income.
By supporting Fairtrade you can help give farmers and workers a safety net that protects them from low prices for their crops and also pass on the Fairtrade Premium, an extra amount that allows them to make their farms and communities stronger or invest in climate resilience and adaptation.
Fairtrade is also supporting more women cocoa farmers by making sure they have a voice in their community and are represented in decision-making.
To mark this year’s Fairtrade Fortnight, we were asked, along with representatives of the Isle of Man Fairtrade Group, to contribute to Manx Radio’s Perspective programme, broadcast on Sunday 1st March. You can catch it again on demand on manxradio.com.
In the meantime don’t forget to check the Fairtrade Isle of Man Facebook page for all the latest on Fairtrade on the Island.
We’re delighted to be co-hosting with GRIN an evening with Rob Greenfield, an activist and humanitarian dedicated to leading the way to a more sustainable and just world. Rob embarks on extreme projects (which have included wearing all his rubbish for a month, feeding himself from grocery store rubbish bins, living off-grid and foraging for 100% of his food) to bring attention to important global issues and inspire positive change. Rob believes our actions really do matter and that as individuals and communities we have the power to improve the world around us.
He is currently travelling (as sustainably and responsibly as possible) on the 2020 World Solutions Tour and will be speaking in the Isle of Man at Ballakermeen Studio Theatre on Monday 27th April. Tickets are available now through this link here. Admission will be free but there will be an opportunity for donations on the night with any surplus going to indigenous and women-led grassroots environmental organisations of Rob’s choice.
We are expecting this event to be very popular so advise booking early if you wish to come along.
We’re looking forward to our 8th Fairtrade Primary Conference this Thursday when 68 young students from local primary schools will be joining us to learn about the difference Fairtrade can make to small farmers and producers in developing countries. This year we have Heather Thompson from Traidcraft as our guest speaker – and she will also be running one of the workshops where students will find out what life is like for a family of coffee farmers in Tanzania.
The Fairtrade Conference is one of the annual events we run with our funding from the Isle of Man Government’s Development Education and Awareness Raising Grant and we are also grateful to Tynwald President Steve Rodan MHK who graciously allows us to use Legislative Buildings as a venue.
