TTIP: Take Back the Power is a free public event organised by the Trade Justice Movement. 7:30pm, Tuesday 11th December. Speakers include John Hilary of War on Want and Liz May of Traidcraft. The nearest tube station is Aldgate East.
Oxford Real Farming Conference 2015
For the first time the whole conference will be held under one roof (at Oxford Town Hall), with key debates on the dairy industry, flooding, soil fertility and TTIP. Speakers at this year’s conference include Robert Craig (Farmers’ Weekly Dairy Farmer of the Year and Nuffield Scholar), Dr. Elaine Ingham, (internationally acclaimed authority on the life of the soil), Neil Darwent (BBC Farmer of the Year), Prof. Mark Eisler (Chair of Global Animal Health, Bristol University), Carrie Balkcom (Exec Sec of the American Grassfed Association) and Daniela Howell (CEO of the Savory Institute) among many others.
This year’s practical stream, Farming Outside the Box, has been organized by John Turner (farmer and co-founder of the Pasture-Fed Livestock Association) and Dr. John Meadley (agricultural scientist and chair of the Pasture-Fed Livestock Association). The focus of these sessions is on farmers taking greater control over their suppliers and markets, making better use of their farm’s natural resources and addressing the resistance to chemicals that nature is developing.
See programme and book tickets
This event is not organised by WDM. We’re mentioning on our website because it promises to have something for everyone interested in farming, growing and food. Organisations such as the Land Workers Alliance and the Soil Association will have a presence at this event.
The Energy Bill of Rights
Our current energy system is stupid. People die because they can’t afford to heat their homes. Other people die because of climate change caused by fossil fuels. Energy companies make huge profits from natural resources while bullying people who can’t pay their bills. The group Fuel Poverty Action believes that another system is possible. They’ve created the Energy Bill of Rights. It’s a list of basic human rights relating to energy – such as the right to have enough energy to meet your basic needs.
Come to our November meeting
The Oxford WDM November meeting will take place at Oxford Town Hall on Tuesday 11th November. As ever, we’ll be in a wheelchair-accessible room and non-members are very welcome to come along and meet the group. Get here for 7:30pm and the meeting should be done by 9pm…then we might have a trip to a nearby pub!
Oxford WDM to become Global Justice Oxford
We recently reported that WDM will be changing its name to Global Justice Now. This means that local groups have been given the chance to change their names too. At last night’s meeting we opted to use the naming format suggested by head office, which means that our new name will be Global Justice Oxford. This will become the group’s name as of early 2015. Towards the end of the year we’ll be getting a new logo and new materials to match the new name.
Film screening: A Dangerous Game
A Dangerous Game is the follow up to the award-winning You’ve Been Trumped. It’s about how golf is being used as an excuse to build huge luxury resorts that damage the environment of local areas. There will be a screening at the Phoenix Picturehouse (Walton Street) at 6:15pm on Friday 17th October. There will be a panel discussion afterwards which may be chaired by a member of Oxford WDM (to be confirmed).
