Oxfam: Shaping the climate justice narrative
Creatives for Climate partnered with Oxfam International to support the launch of their new film and study, and to raise awareness of the the role of human rights defenders targeting the creative industry and business community at large.
Oxfam came to Creatives for Climate with the intention to produce a film documenting the impact and challenges of human rights defenders across the globe, titled 'Hold the Line’, premiering at the 2023 African Human Rights Film Festival in Cape Town, South Africa.
In conjunction with the film, the NGO released a research study titled “Threats to Human Rights Defenders: Six Ways Companies Should Respond,” detailing how companies should respond to the growing number of threats facing human rights defenders and offers six key recommendations.
To ask was to launch a creative activation to bring awareness to Oxfam's new film and research study, and engage the creative industry and business community at large in a conversation about the role of human rights defenders and the global agenda.
The Approach
To engage the creative industries and activate a wider business audience, Creatives for Climate launched ‘Shaping the Climate Justice Narrative’ campaign to shed light on the issues and meet the activists on the ground.
The campaign consisted of a live webinar event, and a social media activation to bring awareness to the issues, people and stories of human rights defenders.
The live event took place on November 7th, 2023, and was an unprecedented opportunity to hear the voices of people working on the front lines of climate action on the African continent, one of the most dangerous places for an activist.
Creatives for Climate designed, facilitated and led the event, and over 250+ joined to hear from global leaders:
Ilwad Elman, Chief Operating Officer for the Elman Peace and Human Rights Centre in Somalia, human rights defender Desmond D’Sah from South Africa, alongside Francis Hweshe, Co-founder of Africa Human Rights Film Festival, Andrew Bogrand, Senior Policy Advisor at Oxfam America, and Elodie Toto, Multimedia Journalist at Mongabay.
WHAT WAS SHARED….
Elodie Toto
💭It’s relatively new for the public to hear about stories of climate change, the impact of fossil fuel extraction, and human rights issues. Because of that, it’s important for the media to make stories about climate justice and human rights defenders accessible. Journalists need to put into perspective the issues while remaining objective and unbiased.
🗣 “The best way to talk about human rights activists is to talk about the human first.”
Desmond D’Sah
💭”Human rights defenders are being forced into hiding because their lives and the lives of their families are being threatened by oil and gas companies. This is not just a problem in South Africa, it’s happening all over the continent of Africa, in countries such as Nigeria, Senegal, and Mozambique.
🗣 “The only way to stop the oil and gas industries is to share the knowledge and work together to provide solidarity and equity.”
Ilwad Elman
💭What’s often overlooked in climate activism is that the Global South is on the frontlines of the climate crisis, despite contributing very little to greenhouse gas emissions. Somalia is experiencing extreme weather, from droughts to floods to cyclones and heat waves reaching 52°C resulting in the displacement of millions of citizens and the country being on the brink of famine.
🗣 “Through film, campaigns, art, we are able to see each other in a way that reports, numbers, and statistic can never articulate. It inspires immersive empathy.”
The results
The social media campaign rolled out over four weeks and reached over 15,000 individuals, and was further amplified by traditional media coverage in PRWeek and MediaCat.
The community left inspired and engaged with members sharing learnings to take forward across social spaces.
The webinar lives on the Creatives for Climate Hub as a learning resource for the 30,000 strong network to take forward.
THE NEW YORK LAUNCH OF THE CAMPAIGN…
On December 12, 2023 at The Ford Foundation offices in New York, the film was previewed in an intimate setting taking the story of human rights defenders and the pivotal role they play in defending planet earth further.
