Global Connect is a fun and interactive education project by WDM Scotland that helps people learn about the connection between local issues and the global problems of climate change, unfair trade, and poverty - and how to do something positive about them! We have just produced a short video about Global Connect, including interviews with some of the participants: please have a look and "Like" it!
This year we are focussing on working with a group of people who are either homeless or vulnerable to homelessness in partnership with the Bethany Christian Trust. There is a regular discussion and action group on Wednesdays. We have looked at a wide variety of issues and have a sizeable pool of participants. One achievement the group is proud of was to lobby Bethany itself to become a Fair Trade organisation - after discussions amongst the staff this was agreed. The discussion group held a very successful launch ceremony with a quiz, information, snacks and nibbles.
One group member decided to do something about sectarianism in Scottish football by writing and recording a song. You can listen to it here.
In the past years we have worked with diverse groups including the Bethany Christian Trust's Men's Group, Scottish Borders Environment Project, Drummond Community High School, Transition Support Scotland, St Paul's and St. George's Church, Edinburgh. We ran workshops in the Scottish Borders, in Edinburgh and in Leith and covered at a multitude of issues from litter to global warming, from neighbourliness to international relations. We have had radio interviews on Leith FM, articles in the Bugle magazine (written by Bethany service users) and organised a lobby of MSPs. Global Connect linked in with the local community in Wester Hailes to hold film clubs and monthly workshops. Reel lives continues to show films on interesting global topics, for further details please contact the WHALE Arts education officer. We also work from time-to-time with the Take One Action Film Festival. At last year's screening of the film Hunger! we used a simple activity to illustrate the impacts of food speculation. Further information and files to download to use it yourself are here.
Very importantly as well as investigating and discussing issues we also examine what we can do about them and how to do it - practical campaigning and organising skills.
A brief report of Global Connect in 2010-11 can be found here (or you can download a PDF version from the bottom of this page).
What participants said about it
At last year's screening of the film Hunger! we used a simple activity to illustrate the impacts of food speculation. Further information and files to download to use it yourself are here.
For more information on the Global Connect project contact our education officer
Amy Horton
An Italian connection? The Pope may be a big hitter over there, and the small-scale food producers’ movement La Via Campesina has Italian members. But Starbucks is yet to get a toehold. I’m reliably informed (by Yahoo Answers, c. 2006) that Italians call Starbucks’ coffee “dirty water”.
Is it that they’re all on Twitter? The Pope recently celebrated his 140-character debut, Starbucks offers “freshly brewed tweets”… but La Via Campesina has a fragmented presence, reflecting its grassroots make-up.
So, they’re global empires? Well, La Via Campesina represents 200 million members – perhaps not quite in the same league as the billion-strong Catholic Church or Starbucks, which last week reported a $3 billion turnover.
All of them are calling for action to curb financial speculation on food, which is driving up food prices and pushing more people into hunger and poverty.
Last month the man in the Vatican asked, "How can we ignore the fact that food has become an object of speculation … in a financial market that, lacking in clear rules and moral principles, seems anchored on the sole objective of profit?”
In May, Starbucks’ CEO complained that, "Without any real supply or demand issues we are witness to the fact that [prices of] most food commodities are at record highs at once, and coffee is at a 34-year high. Through financial speculation ... the commodities market is in a very unfortunate position.”
La Via Campesina beat them to it, saying last year that “Financial speculation has been widely recognised as the major cause of the food crisis of 2007-2008” and must be stopped to prevent another food crisis. Civil society groups as diverse as the Korean Women Peasant Movement, Indonesia Farmers’ Union and of course the World Development Movement have also helped to put the issue on the agenda.
1. “Speculation on basic food stuffs is a scandal when there are a billion people starving in the world” - Michel Barnier, the European commissioner leading efforts to crack down on speculation
2. “Food seems to be so trendy in the investment world… The markets seem to me to have a bubble-like quality” - chief economist of Goldman Sachs, Jim O’Neill
3. “If we do nothing, we risk having food riots in the poorest countries and also an unfavourable impact on global growth. We want regulation of the financial markets for commodities” - French president Nicolas Sarkozy
4. “The world’s wealthiest speculators set up a casino where the chips were the stomachs of hundreds of millions of innocent people. They gambled on increasing starvation, and won” - journalist Johann Hari.
5. “Food commodities are too important to be played about with by day traders and speculators” - National Farmers’ Union of Scotland
Discover who else has spoken out against speculation. Are there people or organisations we’ve missed? What should we expect from other G20 member countries like Argentina, or the new head of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation?
Take action to stop financial speculation causing hunger.
All the workshops are active and participatory, using a variety of methodologies and exercises to get people to think about and question their own views, to share them and listen to others. The facilitator is there to guide a process (and indeed take part in it) by providing a framework for all participants to think through and express their views. Collectively people know a great deal and have done tremendous things already, sharing this with others is energising and empowering. Global Connect always tries to start from where people are and engage with the issues which are of relevance and interest to them, whilst helping make links between them and particularly between local and global issues.
Taking action is a crucial part of the Global Connect and so helping participants to have the confidence, knowledge and skills is integral to any workshop. Many people already have experience of campaigning, others may not know where to start - though they often have the skills that are needed.
We decided to work in partnership with other compatible organisations where possible. Firstly an organisation like BCT has a ready-made pool of people in the group we want to work with, and a structure for interacting with them. Global Connect gives new opportunities and enhances their existing work, so we both benefit. Secondly of course together we are stronger and it makes sense for those fighting for global justice to work together!
Other parts of the report
For more information on the Global Connect project contact our education officer
BCT Discussion group members
"I enjoy learning new stuff and having a good discussion."
"There's good company, and I like meeting new people and hearing different ideas and giving my own."
"There's a sense of camaraderie and a warmth about the group, like a family. It's an opportunity to learn skills , it boosts confidence and communication skills. It gives a purpose and a chance to discuss with others. I really like the feeling of belonging."
“We work with people who have a history of homelessness, and a central purpose to our work is to challenge the marginalisation and social isolation many of our service users experience. WDM’s involvement has given many of those we work with an opportunity to discuss issues relevant to their lives and make the connections between local and global issues. The discussion group is structured so that everyone can feel their opinion is valued, and the positive impact on participant’s self esteem and confidence is very evident. Moreover, there have been some wonderful “ah ha” moments during the discussions, in which people, through their dialogue, have suddenly had their assumptions or opinions challenged, and see the world in a different way. It’s really great stuff, and Eddy facilitates it brilliantly, ensuring a genuine democratic format but also directing gently if required. It has become an important part of the week for those who participate.”
Tim Porteus, BCT education officer
A Beginner's Guide to a Fairer World participants
"I can do things, I'm interested, I've already done things."
"I learned lots - how to structure a campaign, press releases, about the clothing trade."
"I feel more confident about the issues."
"It was friendly and informal, with an enthusiastic, knowledgeable and committed facilitator."
"Very useful handouts, good activities."
St. Paul’s and St. George’s participants
"I feel more empowered to make a (small) difference."
"Very good and refreshing."
"I'm more informed about campaigning and more inspired to get involved."
"Fun, interesting and fast moving."
Other parts of the report
For more information on the Global Connect project contact our education officer
Global Connect took a slightly new direction in 2010-11. We continued to pursue the aim of working with communities suffering from globalisation, by developing partnership with organisations already working with them. The Bethany Christian Trust supports people who are homeless or vulnerable to homelessness and run education and support programmes. The BCT runs a weekly drop-in session for men where their service users can get a meal, socialise and use computers. We joined in with this session, encouraging discussion and debate on topical issues using GC materials for stimuli.
This programme was then developed with the addition of a standalone session open to all BCT service users, held in the Learning Centre. This has enabled more focussed discussions with fewer distractions! Between 6 and 9 people usually attend, with a huge range of experience and ideas. Topics have covered recycling, community, identity, supermarkets and trade and many more, with suggestions often coming from the group. The discussions are facilitated but often go in unexpected directions. There have been some fantastic moments when participants (including the facilitators!) have learned something, changed their minds and decided to change their behaviour. We start off each session with lunch which encourages people to attend and helps people get to know each other better. The sessions work well because the collaboration between WDM and BCT is effective - both believe strongly that homeless people have a lot to offer and will benefit from the opportunity to express themselves. The thinking from the sessions goes to a wider audience through the BCT's weekly radio slot on Leith FM and in their magazine, The Bugle. We are aiming to take the process forward by lobbying MSPs on issues of interest.
We have also run a more traditional adult education evening class, "A Beginner's Guide to a Fairer World", based on the existing WorldWise materials, in Drummond Community High School, Leith. This attracted 8 participants, and some of the group are continuing to meet and take action independently, focussing on fair trade fashion clothing. The course lasted for 10 sessions, with an average attendance of 5.
We ran a series of three evening workshops at St Paul's and St George's Church who had approached WDM. They particularly wanted to look at how some existing groups in the church could work better together and link their actions more coherently. 25 people attended the workshops and some practical campaigns and actions were the result, including a programme to help the local community insulate their homes better and a swap-shop to re-use unwanted products whilst building up a sense of neighbourliness. Another workshop to review progress and look at next steps is planned for the near future.
Two simulation games have been designed and used at WDM events including the Take One Action film nights. These have given an insight into food speculation (Hunger!) and the activities of banks (The £45.5 billion question) and are good discussion starters. These, together with other activities developed and tested over the year constitute a valuable resource of educational activities which have been placed on the website for anyone to use.
In partnership with Transition Scotland Support we hosted a film and discussion night in Duns in the Scottish Borders, aiming to stimulate debate, help people make links and assess interest in further meetings. A small but enthusiastic audience attended and we are planning some follow-up work.
Other parts of the report
For more information on the Global Connect project contact our education officer
As part of the Take One Action Film Festival experience we developed a simple activity to get people to think about the impact of food speculation on hunger, using ping-pong balls. This was first used during the screening of the film Hunger! in September 2010.
Please feel free to download and use the activity yourself - and of course you are welcome to change it to suit your circumstances!
The instructions, together with a couple of files of useful graphics, can be downloaded as PDF files at the bottom of this page.
For more information on the Global Connect project contact our education officer