Global Changemakers

Anella Wickenden, ActionAid.

Global Changemakers Blog

Hello, some of you may remember me from your visit to the ActionAid office, my name is Anella and I head up the Youth Team at ActionAid UK. I had the pleasure of meeting some of you in January, first when some of you visited our office and later at the Global Changemakers reception. I was so inspired by everyone I met! So often people feel overwhelmed by global poverty and climate change and think the issues are far too big and complicated for them to tackle. But every one of you that I met was by no means overwhelmed, quite the opposite, you were determined to take these issues on and change the world.

Your commitment and enthusiasm reminded me of some of the young activists – or Activistas – I have met through ActionAid. Activista is what we call ActionAid’s global youth network, currently running in South Africa, Senegal, Nigeria, The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Nepal, Thailand, Brazil, Sweden, Greece, Italy and the UK. In each of these countries ActionAid is recruiting and supporting groups of young core volunteers to raise awareness and campaign against hunger and it’s causes. The ways that the Actvistas reach out to other young people varies from country to country and the cultural context. In Thailand they have organised rock concerts, in Nepal there have been art exhibitions and in South Africa the Activistas appeared on radio shows. But the important thing is that they are all striving for and achieving change in their countries. Last year Activista’s in The Gambia helped ActionAid and other organisations lobby the government for an increase in financial support for farmers and succeeded in getting the agriculture budget doubled!

So why is the Activista network focusing on hunger? Well in 2007 ActionAid International launched its first global campaign for a HungerFREE world. Hunger is really just another word for poverty. Without food people can not study, work, grow or live. It is fundamental to every other poverty related issue. For example, if people secure access to ARV treatment for HIV, the medication is strong so will only make them feel worse if they do not have food to eat. The number of hungry people in the world has soared by nearly 100 million since 2006, making a mockery of governments’ pledge that hunger would be halved by 2015. When people go hungry it’s not just because a crop has failed, it’s because governments and corporations are denying people their basic human right to food – it’s an issue of justice.

The Global Changemakers project is so important because if young people don’t get involved, then nothing will change. I can’t wait to hear about your Community Action Projects and all the amazing work you’ll take forward back home!

You can find out more about Activista and the HungerFREE campaign here: http://www.hungerfreeplanet.org/global-youth-network If you live in any of the countries listed above and are interested in getting involved with the Activista network, then please let me know and I will put you in touch with the country coordinator: anella.wickenden@actionaid.org