Hug a nurse

by Patrick Klerks, Online Campaigner, Oxfam Novib
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Oxfam’s Health & Education For All campaign is active in over 15 countries around the world.

This week, we take a look at the campaign in the Netherlands, where signing a petition means hugging a nurse.

Curious what this looks like? Watch this video…

The question remains, why exactly are the Dutch are hugging nurses?

In many poor countries public health services are kept afloat by a skeleton of staff of overworked and underpaid nurses, doctors and other workers. Many put in long hours with for very little pay. Oxfam calls that heroic! We want these nurses and doctors to be seen for the heroes that they are.

Hugging a nurse shows that we appreciate the work these amazing people are doing despite these challenges – we are saying thank you! But people are also hugging to show that they want governments and international institution to invest in and support quality health care for all people.

Poor countries need 4 million more doctors and nurses. This serious shortage of health workers across the world is one of the biggest challenges to achieving health and development goals, and ultimately ending poverty. The crisis is stopping people getting the medicines and vaccinations they need. It is the reason why every minute one woman still dies in pregnancy or childbirth. This is a crisis that’s preventable with the right money provided to poor countries. That’s the money that will pay for more nurses and doctors as well as the medicines and medical equipment they need.

The campaign in the Netherlands has just started and already more than 7000 people have hugged a nurse – and there are far more who have pledged their support for our campaigning on health and education.

Check out these photos to see some hugging action!

And if you’re Dutch yourself, why not get involved in Oxfam Novib’s campaign and hug a nurse yourself!

Hugging a nurse. Credit: Oxfam Novib

The Graph of Climate Injustice

Oxfam’s “Bali blogger”, Karina Brisby reports back from the launch of the Graph of Injustice.

On the 10th anniversary of the Kyoto Protocol, Oxfam unveiled a huge “Graph of Climate Injustice”, directly outside the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali. You can see the highlights of the unveiling and presentation on YouTube.

Oxfam’s Senior Climate Change Researcher Kate Raworth, introduced the graph, outlined the significance of where the rich and high-polluting countries (known as Annex II) and the poorest countries (Least Developed Countries – LDCs) sat in relation to each other.

By plotting countries’ per capita carbon emissions against their incomes per capita, the graph showed that while rich countries are most responsible for causing climate change, it is the least responsible and poorest countries who are having to bear the worst impact. You can see the graph’s full detail in this PDF

Ministers and delegates from Uganda, Tuvalu, Bangladesh and the Maldives also joined us today, to talk about the experiences of their people struggling to adapt to climate change. And, while their countries are far apart geographically, the delegates had a similar story to tell: they are all having to adapt at a much faster and bigger scale than rich countries, but without the resources and technology needed.

Adaptation finance would help developing countries plan and cope with the impacts of climate change, for example by improving shelter, introducing drought resistant crops, changing farming techniques to ensure stable food supplies, planting trees and helping communities find new ways to earn incomes without depending on the land. These are just a few of then many things need to be done.

Developing country officials and Oxfam want to see a commitment from rich countries for adequate adaptation financing for all developing countries (Oxfam estimates this will cost at least $50 billion year) as one key of outcomes of this conference.

The Netherlands is one of the few rich countries which is actually honoring its obligations. Development Minister Bert Koenders urged the other rich countries to follow the Dutch lead by providing adaptation finance on top of their existing commitments to provide 0.7% of national income for meeting the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

You can find out more about what Oxfam is demanding to be delivered on adaptation finance by reading our report

Watch a video from today’s unveiling.

Oxfam appear at Virtual Bali in Second Life

Marita Hutjes and Jason Garman from Oxfam Novib and Oxfam New Zealand, will be taking part in a live seminar in Virtual Bali – a Second Life webcast organised by OneClimate.net

If you already have a Second Life account you can go directly to the seminar and if you don’t, you can follow the seminar on OneClimate.net

The Seminar starts at the following times

• Bali : 20.30 – 22.00,
• Europe : 13.30 – 15.00,
• UK : 12.30 – 14.00,
• US EST : 7.30 – 9.00
• US PST : 4.30 – 6.00.