Afri Calendar 2021

We have compiled a Calendar for 2021  with some suggestions as to how we can work towards a more sustainable world.

To order (at €7 per calendar including postage) please go to www.afri.ie/donate/ and click the donate button at the bottom of the page ‘donating’ the cost of your purchase and indicating the number of calendars you would like to purchase in the message box. Please make sure to include a return address and we will post your gift to you as soon as possible.

Solar Lights Campaign 2017

Photo shows Martha Cherotich Kemei who was one of the recipients of an Afri solar light. She is a single mother who lives with her eleven children and three grandchildren. Martha is a casual labourer who looks for work from locals on their farms to provide for her children and grandchildren.  The solar light enables the children to study after dark and allows Martha to do the many jobs necessary for a mother of a large family. Photo: Development Pamoja.

Let there be (Solar) Light…

Give a gift of light to a Kenyan family this Christmas…Children and families who do not have electricity will benefit from your gift …

Your Solar light gift will:
Improve health…by avoiding use of toxic kerosene;
Reduce poverty…by reducing cost of energy;
Increase income…by enabling people who do not have electricity to work after darkness;
Reduce global warming…by replacing use of fossil fuels;
Contribute towards Afri’s climate justice work;
Support Afri’s partnerships with Development Pamoja and the Kenya Pastoralist Journalist Network.
 
€15 …buys one solar light for a family
€30 …buys one solar light for a midwife and one for a family 
€60 …buys four solar lights which will benefit midwives, families, schoolchildren and the wider community.  Families can use solar lights to enable them to work after dark, to supplement their income and to enable children to study in the evenings.

When you buy your light(s) we will send you a gift card which you can retain or pass on to your chosen recipient.

Will you give a gift that brings light and hope this Christmas?

All the money raised from Afri’s 2016 campaign went to purchase over one hundred solar lights in Northern Kenya and Mogotio on the Equator, north of Nakuru.

Let’s show that after all there IS something new under the sun….

How to purchase your gift:

You can buy your gift in the following ways – you can pay online using our i-donate system – http://www.afri.ie/donate/

Alternatively, post a cheque/postal order made payable to “Afri” to 134 Phibsborough Road, Dublin 7.

If you would prefer to pay by bank transfer please phone us for details.

In order to post out your gift card please include your name and address when you are buying your gift.

Students At U2’s Former School Send Powerful Message To World Leaders

For the past several weeks Afri has been working with students in Mount Temple School in Dublin on an exciting film and music project.  Our aim was to prepare a strong message to send to World leaders who will gather in Paris for the UN Conference on Climate Change on November 30th. This meeting is critically important for our world and for the future of all of us.

We are very pleased with the outcome of our work – this short film represents the creativity, passion and hope of a new generation – young people who can see the madness of destroying our planet through war, violence and an insatiable addiction to fossil fuels… and who are ready and willing to do what they can to bring about change.

Please spread this message far and wide.

Suggested tweet:
Students At U2’s Former School Send Powerful Message To World Leaders https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJaa8Xk57CM via @AfriPeace #ClimateMarch #Cop21

Stop Climate Chaos welcomes the Minister’s commitment to amend Climate Bill

scc_logo_highresStop Climate Chaos welcomed the statement by Minister for the Environment, Alan Kelly TD, that he will bring forward amendments to the Government’s Climate Bill. The Minister was speaking during the Committee Stage debate, where the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill passed without amendment. Several opposition amendments were withdrawn following assurances from the Minister he will consider the issues raised by TDs ahead of the next stage in the Dáil.

Commenting, Ciara Kirrane, Coordinator of Stop Climate Chaos Coordinator, said

“The Minister’s commitment to amending the Climate Bill is welcome. Now we need to see his proposed changes. The final Bill needs to make clear how much we’ll reduce emissions by 2050, guarantee the independence of the Advisory Council, and ensure Ireland pursues the principle of climate justice.”

Before the Committee’s debate Stop Climate Chaos presented the Minister with a petition from more than 5,000 people calling on him to bring forward amendments that would strengthen the Climate Bill and to ensure it is passed into law before the summer recess. Continue reading “Stop Climate Chaos welcomes the Minister’s commitment to amend Climate Bill”

This could be our last chance to fix the Climate Bill

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In less than a week’s time the Climate Bill will go through another crucial stage in the Dáil. This is make or break…. It could be the last chance we have to fix the Bill before it becomes law. Tell Minister Alan Kelly you want to see the amendments he promised now.

The Minister has told the Dáil he is considering possible amendments to the Bill. We need to make sure the changes he makes are the right ones, by clearly indicating how much we plan to reduce emissions by 2050, by ensuring that the independence of the Expert Advisory Council is explicitly guaranteed and by committing to climate justice as a guiding principle.

Last week UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon urged Ireland to do more to tackle climate change. He called on Ireland to “align its climate effort with its admirable engagement on hunger”. It’s time fo r the Minister to step up to this challenge. Ask Alan Kelly to strengthen the Climate Bill and keep his promise to have the Bill passed into law before the summer break.

It’s almost three months since the draft law was first debated in the Dáil and we’re still waiting for the Government’s proposed changes. Time is ticking and the crucial UN summit in Paris is now less than six months away. Countries like Ireland, with high emissions and higher historical responsibility, have to demonstrate a credible commitment to climate action if we are to build the trust required for a global deal in Paris.

The only thing that has kept the Climate Bill on track to become law at all is the continuous pressure from campaigners like you. We need one last push to make it a climate law we can be proud of. Please sign the petition now and share it with your friends.

Afri is a member of the Stop Climate Chaos Coalition. For more about Stop Climate Chaos, visit their website here.

Government rejects calls to change Climate Bill as it passes Second Stage

scc_logo_highresStop Climate Chaos has today expressed deep disappointment at the government’s refusal to take on board concerns about the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill, which today passed Second Stage. This is the first time a Bill designed to tackle climate change has passed Second Stage.

Commenting this evening, Ciara Kirrane, Coordinator of the Stop Climate Chaos coalition, said:

“We are deeply disappointed at the government’s unwillingness to listen to concerns expressed not only by Stop Climate Chaos but by their own party colleagues. Fine Gael and Labour backbenchers have voiced their concerns with aspects of the Bill in the Dáil in recent weeks but the Minister’s statement today clearly shows that none of these issues will be addressed.

“The Government is also ignoring the advice from the Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht. Seven of the ten proposals made by the Committee which require changes to the Bill have been disregarded by Government.

“These include some of the most important proposals for actually tackling climate change, such as a long term emissions reduction target and an independent advisory council. Minister Kelly has argued that setting national targets would interfere with the EU process but this just doesn’t stand up. Other member states have managed to pass climate laws with long-term targets, the most recent of which is Finland which passed a climate law earlier this month with an 80% emissions reduction target for 2050. If the Government is going to reject such important recommendations they must find a stronger rational for doing so.”

As the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill now progresses to Committee Stage Stop Climate Chaos is hopeful that amendments that will strengthen the Bill will be accepted by government. Continue reading “Government rejects calls to change Climate Bill as it passes Second Stage”

Impressions from Féile Bríde 2014

This year’s Féile Bríde aimed to mark the issues of “Life: Source or Resource-Enslavement versus sovereignty.”  The day started with the beautiful music of harpist Fionnuala Gill as the Brigid flame was carried into the conference hall.  The event made connections across borders, nations and nationalities, attracting speakers and partners from East Africa to the West of Ireland, in order to tackle together the unequal distribution of resources and the threats to food sovereignty.

Contributors to Féile Bríde 2014: (from left to right): Abjata Khalif (Kenya Pastoralist Journalist Network); Mia De Faoite (Turn off the Red Light campaigner); Donal Dorr (author, theologian and Turn off the Red Light campaigner); Fergal Anderson (farmer and Food Sovereignty Ireland), and Pete Mullineaux (poet, dramatist and arts facilitator). Photo: Joe Murray

Speakers included Afri’s partner Abjata Khalif of the Kenyan pastoralist Journalist Network, Fergal Anderson a small farmer from the west of Ireland, veteran writer and campaigner on issues of human trafficking, Donal Dorr, and Mia De Faoite, a survivor of prostitution speaking from her experience. Continue reading “Impressions from Féile Bríde 2014”

Stakeholders accuse the Government of double standards on the Climate Bill

Press Release

Climate Bill needs Targets

Stop Climate Chaos, a coalition of environmental, development and faith-based organisations, has today said the Government is operating double standards when it comes to the draft climate legislation. The Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht, tasked with consulting and reporting on the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill before it goes through the Houses of the Oireachtas, is failing to provide stakeholders and the public with an inclusive and transparent process.

Stop Climate Chaos, as well as some members of the Committee, has been calling for the publication of the submissions received by the Committee at the end of April, a request that has been flatly rejected by the Chair of the Committee. With the hearings due to be held in two weeks time, there is no indication of who will be invited to present to the Committee or what their proposals are. Continue reading “Stakeholders accuse the Government of double standards on the Climate Bill”

Introduction to Abjata’s Blog

I am 34 years old award winning journalist and development worker born, brought up and based in dry patched remote northern region of Kenya. Am a development worker, community educator, mobiliser, community journalist, activist and advocate for social justice.

I am currently working with non- profit development organisation, KENYA PASTORALIST JOURNALIST NETWORK. But my activism and community work started way back when I was a young boy after witnessing human rights violation, armed attacks, brutality among others that gave me courage and determination in empowering my pastoralist community.

I undertake many activities and work in northern Kenya and among them are: Human rights Education and awareness campaigns, Human Rights Defenders work and program, Human rights profiling, reporting and monitoring, Conflict resolution and management through mediation and traditional mechanisms, Peace education through community radio and traditional media like folklore, traditional dance, oral narratives, storytelling, non -violence means and education, Women rights education and campaign, Women empowerment projects,
Women radio listening project, Gender equality, Climate change

education and adaptation, Climate change projects like tapping clean solar energy, community food security program, Using indigenous knowledge in addressing climate change , Climate justice project, Anti-human trafficking campaigns, Refugee rights, Eradication of small arms and light weapons ,Health rights and education, Fighting environmental crimes and organised groups like terrorist outfits and armed militias, Rehabilitation of ex-combatants ,civic education and undertaking anti-corruption campaigns and education. Apart from above mentioned activities, I am a member of various national and international networks.

I was born and brought up in a village called Wagalla in Wajir, Kenya. One incident that happened on 10th, February 1984, changed my life and built my resolve to create change, educate and empower my community and building their capacity to attain social justice.

On 10th February 1984, contingent of Kenya army invaded Wagalla village and flushed the residents out of their homes to an empty field where we were subjected to severe beatings, women and girls gang raped by the army in full watch of the besieged residents, we were surrounded in the open field without food / water and under scorching sun.

In the Wagalla field people started dying of hunger, dehydration and severe bleedings from bullets wounds and gun butt injuries. After some days under siege some victims broke the cordon and snatched guns from the security men surrounding us in the field. Other officers panicked and started spraying bullets to the people and it’s here they
killed many people. Others managed to escape including me, while others were walking and dropping dead while escaping due to bullet

wounds and bleeding. I was saved by a brave and daring Italian Nun late Analina Toneli, who was rescuing escaping victims, and offering them water and first aid. She was killed some years ago by forces that executed and ordered the Wagalla massacre.

The security forces collected the dead bodies and dumped them some 200 kilometres for hyenas to feed on them.

This violation and armed attacks from politically instigated conflicts, raids, security operations in our village moulded what I am today and what I do today.

I started asking myself what will you do to address your community sufferings and offer them dignified and normal life built on social justice. This made me to start active activism at age of 16 years and fighting for my community and seeking education under difficult conditions so that I can get knowledge to change.

Many other heinous acts perpetrated by armed militia like abduction of young girls to act as their comfort women in conflict zone, militia inserting gun butt and bottles in women victims private parts and gang raping devastated my upbringing as it was happening in my village and surrounding areas on daily basis.

All these atrocities, heinous acts, human rights violation, gang rape as tool of humiliation and embarrassment and the number of people killed in state sponsored massacres, armed conflicts, security operations and extra judicial killings made me to pursue journalism and use media in educating my people and give them platform of knowledge and information generation, sharing, dialogue and circulation and also I pursued development studies to initiate community developments, offer counselling and build my community capacity in fostering change and usher development.