Oxfam and climate change
Lost in a swamp of questions about climate change? We've put together some questions and answers to help explain why it's an issue Oxfam is working on.
Why is Oxfam campaigning on climate change when it's an anti-poverty charity?
At Oxfam, we are passionate about ending poverty – yet our work is being increasingly undermined by changes in the world’s climate.
For poor people, who are dependent on predictable weather patterns, the damage brought about to land and crops – whether by increased flooding, droughts, or rising sea level rises – can mean no food, no earnings, and no way to secure a better future.
It's not going to happen for years and years, so why bother now?
Climate change is happening now. It is real and it is already having a devastating impact on the world’s poorest people.
While we can’t yet pin any single weather event on climate change, what we’re seeing – like the recent floods in South Asia – matches climate change predictions made by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) – the UN’s scientific body which assesses the potential impacts and ways for coping with climate change
If we don’t want to see the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people suffer more, we must act now to curb the impact of climate change.
Why should the UK and other rich countries act first?
Everybody has a part to play in combating climate change. That’s why we all have to act. But it is rich countries that have emitted the most carbon, and reaped the benefits of intense use of fossil fuels.
Therefore rich countries must now provide the money to enable people in developing countries to adapt to the changes in their climate, changes that are already happening.
The UK must lead the way in reducing carbon emissions by at least 80 per cent by 2050. By doing so, other growing economies, like China and India, will follow so that world emissions can be cut by at least 50 per cent by 2050.
Isn't our Government already working to tackle climate change? Why should we ask them to do more?
The UK Government is taking positive steps to combat climate change. It is the first government to propose that that national climate change targets become law, through the UK Climate Change Bill.
But more needs to be done. We need the UK Government to fight hard to demand action in international meetings, play its part in ensuring worldwide carbon emissions are cut 50 per cent by 2050 and to make sure the world’s poor have the resources they need to adapt.
How will my individual actions change things?
We’re all in this together. And it’s only by working together, taking personal actions and making sure those in power know about it, that we can make change happen.
There’s lots we can do to fight climate change. It might not seem like much, but changing simple behaviours in our lives – like using energy saving lightbulbs, not leaving applicances on stand by and by walking or using public transport instead of driving – all add up to make a big difference.
Each one of these positive actions help send a clear message to world leaders that they too must play their part in tackling the problem.
Surely Fairtrade products contribute to emissions because they come from developing countries?
Only a tiny proportion of Fairtrade goods are transported by air- The vast majority are shipped, which has a much lower carbon footprint. Fairtrade also promotes sustainable agricultural practices and encourages farmers to invest in environmental protection programmes too.
Given that Fairtrade products make such an overwhelmingly positive contribution to poor producers' livelihoods and make a negligible contribution to climate change, Oxfam does not believe that the poorest and least responsible people should pay first for the need to lower global CO2 emissions.
The first things we can do are to make the necessary changes to what we do in our homes, how we travel, and how we make governments more responsible in tackling the problem.
