Fifty years ago, the United Nations Charter proclaimed universal rights to shared prosperity, peace, and security. How far has that vision of world citizenship been realised? Despite advances in human welfare and technology, there is today a growing polarisation between rich and poor. One in four of the world's people live in absolute poverty, unable to meet their basic needs; armed conflict is affecting millions of people; and the global environment is under threat. Yet there is a failure of political will to address the silent emergency of poverty. The Oxfam Poverty Report draws on Oxfam's experience of working in over 70 countries, to examine the causes of poverty and conflict. It identifies the structural forces which deny people their basic rights, and gives a wide range of examples of the ways in which men and women are bringing about positive change at every level, from the household to the international arena. Oxfam believes that it is time to renew the UN vision of universal basic rights. The Report concludes by proposing policy and institutional reforms which would transform international institutions and trading relations, and calls for a new commitment to work together to eradicate poverty and bring sustainable peace and security for all the world's people.

This comprehensive report focuses on the fact that millions of people in poor countries remain uneducated and illiterate - which prevents them from developing the skills they need to escape poverty. The book looks at the underlying causes of the problem and sets out a clear agenda for reform.

This book explores tensions in global trade by examining the role of experts in generating, disseminating and legitimating knowledge about the possibilities of trade to work for global development. To this end, contributors assess authoritative claims on knowledge. They also consider structural features that uphold trade experts' monopoly over knowledge, such as expert language and legal and economic expertise. The chapters collectively explore the tensions between actors who seek to effect change and those who work to uphold the status quo, exacerbate asymmetries, and reinforce the dominant narrative of the global trade regime. The book addresses the following key overarching research questions: Who is considered to be a trade expert and how does one become a knowledge producer in global trade? How do experts acquire, disseminate and legitimate knowledge? What agendas are advanced by expert knowledge? How does the discourse generated within trade expertise serve to close off alternative institutional pathways and modes of thinking? What potential exists for the emergence of more emancipatory global trade policies from contemporary developments in the field of trade expertise? This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of IPE, Trade Politics, International Relations, and International Organizations.

This slipcase of three volumes offers an expression of Oxfam's fundamental principles, that everyone has the right to an equitable share in the world's resources. It analyzes policy, procedure and practice in health, human rights, emergency relief and agricultural production.

This title uses the concept of environmental space to resolve many of the issues facing us in the future and applies the lessons specifically to the UK. Believing that we occupy more environmental space than the world can afford, this book seeks to explain what we can do to live comfortably within what we actually have through efficiency and sufficiency. In addition, it aims to present the sustainable levels of consumption for Britain as targets for government, industry and households, as well as an idea of how to achieve them.

This introductory text examines the public health practice of a range of professionals and includes case studies that span a variety of public health disciplines. Key issues covered include the exploration of inter-professional collaboration, the implementation of current policies, and the ways in which public health professionals address the root causes of ill health in areas such as poverty, housing, pollution, unemployment and social exclusion.

The author argues that current development thinking uses only a narrow range of approaches to change and the result is that most development strategies are limited; excessively reformist and insensitive to underlying power and inequality and largely ignore environmental issues that confront our societies and planet..

This book offers new perspectives on poverty in small-scale fisheries, introducing innovative concepts and ideas and drawing upon recent knowledge generated by in-depth case studies. The text makes explicit connections with the Sustainable Livelihood Approach and the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries - two prominent frameworks which are recognized, applied and promoted internationally by scholars, practitioners and donor agencies in their work on fisheries development.

Many commentators claim a key role for the private sector in reducing poverty. This can be achieved through direct benefits, such as the adoption of ethical business practices and the provision of employment, goods, and services to the poor; and through indirect positive impacts on macro-economic policy and business development. This paper argues that the likelihood of business impacts being pro-poor depends also on wider policy and structural conditions. These include the importance of poor people in a company's business model, and the length of local investment and commitment that this demands. Case studies of three companies demonstrate the importance of legislation and civil society as catalysts for pro-poor change in business. Leadership from within the company and a strong business case are also essential. However, multiple entrenched problems with modern capitalist systems work against positive change within international business. Overcoming or mitigating these will be necessary if the pro-poor potential of he private sector is to be realised.

This hard-hitting research report presents a rigorous critique of the most widely used trade models based on computable general equilibrium (or CGE) models. The report appeals for honest simulation strategies showing a variety of possible outcomes, which would enable policy-makers to assess the different scenarios for themselves.