Stand up and take action: The Great Persuasion

Stand up and take action

Local lobby on poverty and climate change

16-18 October 2009

Action

On the weekend of 16-18 October, activists will seek to persuade politicians across the country of the urgent need to tackle global poverty and climate change. The TUC is working with development NGOs and climate change campaigns to get the message home.

Wanted

At least 2 activists in every constituency of the country to:

• Contact at least two candidates for Member of Parliament in your constituency, by visiting them, writing to them, telephoning them, or inviting them to a meeting or event on 16-18 October.
• Persuade them to pledge to work for a massive cut in CO₂ emissions and to take action on global poverty
• Take a photo and send it to a special website
• Give them a copy of the International Development manifesto

To volunteer, please contact Minda Conroe, TUC, mconroe@tuc.org.uk

Please let us have your name, union, constituency if you know it, postcode if you don't, and your preferred contact details.

Support

If you volunteer, you will be provided with:

• Copies of the pledge for your candidate to sign
• Copies of the International Development manifesto to give to your candidates
• A model letter to the newspaper
• A model letter to candidates
• An easy to use website where you will be able to register your action
• A 'how to lobby your candidate' pack, including a backgrounder on the issues and a Q and As sheet

Our campaign allies

We are working with many of the people who formed the Put People First platform earlier this year. They are also seeking volunteers, and BOND, the national umbrella group for development charities, will be coordinating to make sure people who volunteer in the same constituency are put in touch with each other.

Context

Saturday 17 October is World Day for the Eradication of Poverty and on the weekend of 16-18 October 2009, millions of people worldwide will stand up and take action against poverty. More than 116 million people took action at this time last year.

This period ends just 20 days before the G20 Finance Ministers' meeting in Scotland and 50 days before the global climate talks in Copenhagen. These meetings will be critical to achieving a just world economy.

16-18 October 2009 will also fall in the run up to a UK General Election, after which many MPs will be new.

Because of the global crisis, and because of the nearing election, decision makers are increasingly receptive to demands for action on poverty and climate change.

Now it is time for a nationwide push to make trade injustice, climate change, insufficient aid and unfinished debt cancellation, things of the past.