Archive for the 'campaigns' Category

A picture is worth thousand words

Published
by
Monica Salvitti
on 04 - 08 - 2008
in campaigns
.0 Comments

Fabio A. Sinicalchi  of Oceanus onlus sent me an email a few days ago, bringing to my attention a diving team in Riad called Jeddah Divers. This supposed team of PADI divers take to the waters of the Red Sea and hunt down and kill the precious and rare sea life for fun. This cruel behaviour has been proudly captured by the divers themselves on film.

Oceanus, a team of biologists and scientists who dedicate​ their expertise, skills and knowledge to research and preserving endangered marine mammal​s, was outraged by this behaviour.

They have appealed to the PADI office in Switzerland and PADI International in the UK, to stop this madness and are getting results.

Oceanus has created a petition on ammado to collect names and gain support for their campaign. They included the images and video footage so you can judge for yourself.

Oceanus is seeking 5,000 signatures which they will forward onto the Meteorology & Environmental Protection Agency (MEPA) and the Italian Embassy in Riad.  In a few short days they already have close to 400 signatures from ammado and Oceanus members.  Coincidently two of our ammado staffers are also divers and PADI members. They have sent the information to their respective PADI teams to pass on the message and sign the petition.

To support Oceanus you can sign the petition on ammado, on Oceanus’ website or Oceanus’ facebook group

Shine a Light on Torture

Published
by
Maylon Mahon
on 10 - 06 - 2008
in campaigns
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60 years on, government responses to the terrorist threat are undermining key rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Torture, illegal detention, rendition flights to secret sites– the ‘war on terror’ is using the threat of terrorism to violate fundamental human rights.

Amnesty International is using the month of June in which the International Day of Support of Victims of Torture occurs to create awareness of these human rights violations, mobilise people and support them to take action.

We invite everyone to participate in Amnesty’s Online Action Centre Launch and the public demonstration in Dublin and take action to prevent further abuse of human rights.

Sunday 15th June
Online Action Centre Launch
E-Times Internet Café
37-39, Wellington Quay
Dublin 2
11 AM

On the day, Amnesty members and volunteers dressed in orange jumpsuits and face masks will be taking online action at an Internet café under a spotlight to symbolise the light of collective pressure that can dispel the darkness surrounding such human rights abuses. The volunteers in jumpsuits will be inviting people on the streets to participate in this launch by taking action at the Internet café.

amnesty protest

If you cannot join in the launch, please go to the Online Action Centre on www.amnesty.ie/actioncentre or to Amnesty’s profile on Ammado and sign up to the petition to close Guantánamo.

Thursday 26th June - International Day in Support of Victims of Torture
Public Demonstration
Daniel O’Connell Statue
O’Connell Street
Dublin 1
6 PM

A mass demonstration to shine a light on torture in the ‘war on terror’ will take place on O’Connell Street. We invite you to wear orange clothing (the colour of Guantánamo detainees’ jumpsuits) on the day to show your support.

If you wish to become a volunteer for any of these events, send an email to sub_editor@amnesty.ie or join Amnesty’s volunteers community on ammado. All are welcome.

Lost Without Words

Published
by
Michele McMahon
on 03 - 06 - 2008
in campaigns
.0 Comments

Around 250,000-300,000 people in the UK have a communication disability directly as a result of a stroke, the most common of which is called Aphasia. Although this equates to around one third of stroke survivors, there is little knowledge about these conditions and the availability of effective support.

Today The Stroke Association launches the Lost without Words campaign which seeks to highlight the impact that communication disability has on stroke survivors whilst lobbying for more long term support that can result in huge benefits.

The human impact of having a stroke related communication disability includes not only the loss of communication skills such as speaking, reading, writing, understanding language but also the loss of independence and confidence as well as an increased risk of isolation and depression and more pressure on carers.

Lost without words

We are encouraging everyone to get involved in the campaign, whether you are or have been directly affected by a communication disability, are related to someone who has experienced this, or just feel strongly about the issue.

Please go to www.stroke.org.uk/campaigns and use the online facility to email your local politician. You don’t have to know their name as the email will be directed straight to them and there is some suggested text to save you time. It really is as simple as clicking a few buttons to get involved the campaign.

For more information on the work of the Stroke Association please visit their profile on ammado or their website



Darfur Experience - Volunteer Stewards Needed

Published
by
Michele McMahon
on 29 - 05 - 2008
in campaigns and jobs
.0 Comments

UNCHR LogoThe UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is holding a unique event in London’s Trafalgar Square to raise awareness and funds for Darfur’s refugees.

This is an all-day event designed to illustrate a mock refugee camp on the border of Chad and Darfur.

Darfur Experience

UNHCR is looking for self-motivated and enthusiastic volunteer fundraisers and tour guides to help run the exhibition. Tasks will include collecting donations and details from the members of public and providing information on every aspect of the exhibition. Training will be provided.

If you are friendly, an excellent communicator, enjoy working in a team and most importantly have a genuine passion for the causes that UNHCR represents, we would like to hear from you.

Ideally we are looking for people who are available for the whole day.

Exhibition times are from 09:00 - 17:00.

To volunteer at this unique event, please send a copy of your CV with details of your availability at: jonesian@unhcr.org.

Visit the Experience Darfur profile to keep up to date on the event

For more information on UNHCR UK visit their profile on ammado or their website


UNHCR World Refugee Day 2008

Published
by
Catherine Weadick
on 27 - 05 - 2008
in campaigns
.0 Comments

UNHCR Day

UNHCR and ammado are reaching out to everyone in an effort to spread the word for this year’s World Refugee Day on June 20th and raise awareness of the plight of refugees all over the world.

This year, World Refugee Day is about protection, the heart and soul of UNHCR. With rising oil prices, decreasing food supplies, the adverse affects of climate change, the ongoing crisis in Darfur and a high number of unexpected natural disasters including those in Myanmar and China, the world’s refugees have never been more in need of protection.

The UNHCR has launched a worldwide photo campaign to spread this message of protection on World Refugee Day 2008. UNHCR staff around the world have gathered photos of refugees imitating the UNHCR’s “protecting hands” symbol.

They are now calling on everyone to start collecting as many photos as possible of people making the “protecting hands” symbol - forming a triangle with their hands over their head. The UNHCR has created a community on the ammado platform where people can easily uploaded their for World Refugee Day 2008.:

We are calling on you to raise awareness for those in need by collecting photographs of your friends and family making the “protecting hands” symbol and uploading these photographs to the UNHCR Community. Your photos will help to make the World Refugee Day on June 20th, 2008 a day of humanity and hope.

About the UNHCR
The UNHCR is mandated to lead and co-ordinate international action to protect refugees and resolve refugee problems worldwide. Almost entirely funded by voluntary contributions, UNHCR’s primary purpose is to safeguard the rights and well-being of refugees. It strives to ensure that everyone can exercise the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge in another State, with the option to return home voluntarily, integrate locally or to resettle in a third country. In more than five decades, the agency has helped an estimated 50 million people restart their lives. Today, a staff of around 6,300 people in more than 110 countries continues to help 32.9 million people. The refugee challenge in the 21st century is changing rapidly. People are forced to flee their homes for increasingly complicated and interlinked reasons. Some 40 million people worldwide are already uprooted by violence and persecution, and it is likely that the future will see more people on the run as a growing number of push factors compound one another to create conditions for further forced displacement. Today the task facing the international community in this new environment is to find ways to unlock the potential of refugees who have so much to offer if they are given the opportunity to regain control over their lives. The UNHCR cannot do this alone. With your support UNHCR can begin to turn the tide, giving refugees hope for the future and new opportunities for their families and their communities

Fairsay E-Campaigning Forum 2008, Oxford

Published
by
Michele McMahon
on 23 - 04 - 2008
in campaigns and conferences
.0 Comments
“Communication is about networking and the web is the purest reflection of that.”

FairsayThe 2008 eCampaigning Forum brings together e-campaigning practitioners, managers, freelancers, entrepreneurs and bloggers to share the essential and emerging trends and practices in campaigning using interactive media. With the participants deciding the agenda for the majority of the time, a multitude of topics were treated including: Creating passionate and online activists, web 2.0 tools and tactics, social networking sites for online activity (other’s work and your own), Blogging in Campaigns, the swarm, Measuring impact - Assessing Web Traffic and Trends, Effective Email Messages, Trends, Social Networking Sites for eCampaigns, twittering and Storytelling.

Some personal event highlights are noted below.

Ben Brandzel, of the John Edwards campaign and previously MoveOn and GetUp, who opened the conference referred to “actionable moments”. He noted the success of splash sign-up pages; addressed the stumbling blocks for big groups doing online advocacy (the inside power strategy vs the outside power strategy), advocated that online engagement extend beyond an organisation’s IT department; he encouraged too the dissolution of “the fear of the nutcase.”

Most of the two days was spent in groups following the Open Space methodology. In suggesting sessions of interest, people determined the issues of importance and all were free to use their two feet and move between discussions.Fascinated by technology’s potential to leverage stories of real action and engagement, I convened a digital storytelling session on day 2. An exchange of campaigning stories ensued - successes, lesson learned, unexpected results and turns; mass media pick up; colleague engagement, cultural differences and audience perception. We collated a list of digital tools - audio, video (traditional and emerging), podcasting, blogs, competitions, games, nonprofit radio, even software to set a soundtrack to images: all these, efforts to help people tell a story in a compelling and engaging form. It was obvious the power of a narrative is a timeless entity. However, as the web offers more upon more means to enter this - be it at the beginning, middle or end - a challenge is often retaining clarity of message among so many mediums.

I particularly enjoyed the screening of the multi award winning film “We Are Together” on Thursday night. The film tells the moving and inspiring story of 12 year old Slindile and her two families - her own brothers and sisters and her South African AGAPE orphanage family. Filmed over three years by the RISE foundation, director and writer Paul Taylor, a key aim now of the film is to inspire action and fundraise for the issues of focus.

Further Reading:

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