So I’ve been in Australia now for 8 days and what an amazing 8 days it has been. It started with a woosh of warm wind as I stepped off the plane from New Zealand. From here we were straight to Melbourne for the first night of Coldplay in Australia. For me it was my first time in Australia and I was very excited about it. Not only was I campaigning on food justice, something I’ve campaigned on for many years, but I was also with one of the world’s biggest bands and I was excited to be ending my year with a bang.
Melbourne really blew me away. Here I met with some super keen GROW campaigners who volunteered for Oxfam Australia. Oxfam Australia work on their own policies and programmes around the world, much like all the other Oxfams. And like all Oxfams they are part of Oxfam International. Oxfam International acts as a global umbrella for all Oxfams. So when we need global action, we all work together as a global movement to apply pressure to decision leaders to ensure we stop hunger around the world.
Currently Oxfams around the world are working on the GROW campaign. As part of this campaign we are ensuring that people around the world have land to produce food from. This is where our land grabs petition comes in, which we were discussing at Coldplay gigs in Australia.
Our land grabs petition asks the World Bank, one of the largest investors in land, to become a leader in land sales and ensure that the people who live on the purchased land have rights and are protected. They can do this through putting a freeze on all land sales and rewrite sale agreements to ensure that all land sales honour the people living on the purchased land. Makes sense really, would you want to be throw from your home so a company could buy the land from underneath you?
For more information on this check out our land grabs blog and get clued up about our latest petition so you can help us spread the word and build support.
So now I know you are all clued up on the petition and have taken action with Oxfam I want to share my top ten moments so far from being in Australia;
1, Having over 2500 Coldplay fans sign our land grabs petition in just three shows – with another show still to go!
2, Having The Pierces sign our petition, thank you girls!
3, Watching Coldplay show their support from Oxfam on daytime tv show ‘Breakfast on 7’ whilst they performed next to Sydney Opera House
4, Having lots of people enter their Coldplay fan fashion on twitter, you can see our entries here
5, Hearing 45,000 people in Sydney sing along with the band, louder than I’ve ever heard in 9 months!
6, Discovering I wasn’t too far from my home in the UK when I found English soap opera Coronation Street on TV
7, Trying vegemite (a yeast extract spread) on toast with cucumber
8, Meeting a Koala
9, Having my Dad sing along to Viva la Vida on internet video chat whilst he watched the band play from the UK – cute ey! I love technology!
10, Watching 60,000 wristbands light up Melbourne! After a six week break on the tour this seemed ever more magical
Australia is a country that listens to Oxfam and understands our desire to stop world hunger. The Coldplay fans here are loud, fashionable and active. They have also shown us some huge Aussie love and for that I’m so proud to be here and campaigning with you guys on our World Bank petition. Thank you everyone for all your support.
Now I want to see even more tomorrow in Brisbane. Lets end this leg of the tour with a bang!!
Australia is awesome!
Posted by Rachel Edwards on 20 November 2012 in activism, campaigners, coldplay australia, coldplay sydney, global movement, land grabs, land grabs australia, Oxfam Australia, world bank
So I’ve been in Australia now for 8 days and what an amazing 8 days it has been. It started with a woosh of warm wind as I stepped off the plane from New Zealand. From here we were straight to Melbourne for the first night of Coldplay in Australia. For me it was my first time in Australia and I was very excited about it. Not only was I campaigning on food justice, something I’ve campaigned on for many years, but I was also with one of the world’s biggest bands and I was excited to be ending my year with a bang.
Melbourne really blew me away. Here I met with some super keen GROW campaigners who volunteered for Oxfam Australia. Oxfam Australia work on their own policies and programmes around the world, much like all the other Oxfams. And like all Oxfams they are part of Oxfam International. Oxfam International acts as a global umbrella for all Oxfams. So when we need global action, we all work together as a global movement to apply pressure to decision leaders to ensure we stop hunger around the world.
Currently Oxfams around the world are working on the GROW campaign. As part of this campaign we are ensuring that people around the world have land to produce food from. This is where our land grabs petition comes in, which we were discussing at Coldplay gigs in Australia.
Our land grabs petition asks the World Bank, one of the largest investors in land, to become a leader in land sales and ensure that the people who live on the purchased land have rights and are protected. They can do this through putting a freeze on all land sales and rewrite sale agreements to ensure that all land sales honour the people living on the purchased land. Makes sense really, would you want to be throw from your home so a company could buy the land from underneath you?
For more information on this check out our land grabs blog and get clued up about our latest petition so you can help us spread the word and build support.
So now I know you are all clued up on the petition and have taken action with Oxfam I want to share my top ten moments so far from being in Australia;
1, Having over 2500 Coldplay fans sign our land grabs petition in just three shows – with another show still to go!
2, Having The Pierces sign our petition, thank you girls!
3, Watching Coldplay show their support from Oxfam on daytime tv show ‘Breakfast on 7’ whilst they performed next to Sydney Opera House
4, Having lots of people enter their Coldplay fan fashion on twitter, you can see our entries here
5, Hearing 45,000 people in Sydney sing along with the band, louder than I’ve ever heard in 9 months!
6, Discovering I wasn’t too far from my home in the UK when I found English soap opera Coronation Street on TV
7, Trying vegemite (a yeast extract spread) on toast with cucumber
8, Meeting a Koala
9, Having my Dad sing along to Viva la Vida on internet video chat whilst he watched the band play from the UK – cute ey! I love technology!
10, Watching 60,000 wristbands light up Melbourne! After a six week break on the tour this seemed ever more magical
Australia is a country that listens to Oxfam and understands our desire to stop world hunger. The Coldplay fans here are loud, fashionable and active. They have also shown us some huge Aussie love and for that I’m so proud to be here and campaigning with you guys on our World Bank petition. Thank you everyone for all your support.
Now I want to see even more tomorrow in Brisbane. Lets end this leg of the tour with a bang!!