There are a number of situations in the world that I take very much to heart and try to do something about. Changing the world isn’t easy, but organisations like Tearfund, Christian Aid, and Oxfam provide plenty of good resources to help us badger big businesses, and make our views known to our MPs.
Sometimes this feels futile. If lucky you get a standard letter or email back to your campaigning message and, though we see some token gestures to some of the issues that we raise, it’s rare that the things that we ask for are actually implemented in full.
There’s been a lot of campaigning going on lately regarding a piece of legislation called the climate change bill. This is going to commit our country to major reductions in carbon emissions. I’ve written to several members of parliament and sent postcards and emails about this issue because I really believe that it’s something we need to do – and sooner rather than later.
So I was heartened today to read this Guardian article about how, not only has the government included the full emissions reductions in the bill, but it’s decided to incorporate shipping and aviation emissions as well. This is exactly what I and many other people have been campaigning for.
I particularly like Thom Yorke’s encouragement that “it came about simply because hundreds of thousands of people on the ground hassled their MP, who in turn hassled the government. Amazing.”
So, if you care about something, find an organisation that can help you campaign about it, and get writing. Sometimes it really does work!