Meet the ‘Circularity Queens’

Rita AbiodunClimate Change, Innovation, Private sector

In Lagos, furniture maker Joy and fashion entrepreneur Yetunde have forged a partnership to take offcuts from Yetunde’s dresses and turn them into upholstery for sustainable furniture. Rita Abiodun on an inspiring collaboration that grew out of an Oxfam Novib programme to support small businesses in Nigeria.

Vetoing humanity: How a few powerful nations hijacked global peace

Marc CohenConflict, Governance, Research

Marc J. Cohen, Amy Croome and Elise Nalbandian introduce a new Oxfam report that sets out how the veto power of a few countries at the UN Security Council has been catastrophic for humanity. Ahead of next week’s landmark Summit of the Future, they demand four changes to reform a UN system that is simply no longer up to the challenge of maintaining international peace and security.

When inclusion is an illusion: sign language interpreters and the pitfalls for ‘inclusive’ development

Julia ModernDisability, Research, Rights

How did a meeting for disabled people in Uganda end up using sign language that local deaf people couldn’t understand? Julia Modern reflects on how that failure is rooted in racialised ideas about who is an expert – and shares six tips for effective deaf inclusion. (And you can also watch a Ugandan Sign Language translation of the blog.)

Book Review: Power to the People: Use Your Voice, Change the World, by Danny Sriskandarajah

Duncan GreenActive citizenship, Innovation, Power Shifts

From ‘liquid democracy’, to the ‘underground fungal network’ of citizenship that supports progressive change, the former Oxfam GB CEO offers lots of useful ideas about how the 21st century can live up to its initial promise as the ‘century of the citizen’, says Duncan Green.

Is your business reinforcing gender injustice? Here are four ways to spot the risks and challenge discrimination 

Jiselle SteeleGender, Private sector, Women's Economic Empowerment

Firms are under growing pressure to identify and respond to adverse impacts and show how they apply a “gender lens” to the way they do business. Jiselle Steele of the Oxfam Business Advisory Service explores what that means — and how to reduce negative impacts in supply chains on women and marginalised groups. And you can get expert guidance live at our webinar on 17 September. 

Data and debt: The twin obstacles to justice on care and domestic work

Chama MwandalesaEconomics, Gender

The recent historic International Association for Feminist Economics (IAFFE) conference in Rome highlighted two big challenges standing in the way of the UN’s ambitions to address unpaid care and domestic work so that it is valued and shared equitably. Chama Mwandalesa – who joined the annual gathering in Rome – explains.

Beyond GDP

Ridhi KalariaEconomics, Gender

What are the limitations of using GDP as a measure, and what alternatives could we use instead? Ridhi Kalaria shares her experience during the Women’s Budget Group’s Beyond GDP workshop in June and why we must look beyond GDP.

Why feminists are rejecting the cult of growth

Rachel NobleEconomics, Gender, Research

When oil spills and the production of weapons are good for growth and GDP, isn’t it time we changed our economic goals and how we measure them? Rachel Noble and Anam Parvez Butt report back from an impassioned session at the International Association for Feminist Economics conference, where scholars and activists called for nations to stop pushing growth at all …