Jody Lightfoot from World Vision recently attended the Campaign for Australian Aid national summit. Here, he shares his experience:
This month, 70 campaign team leaders across the country were brought together at the Campaign for Australian Aid national summit. Their goal is to influence key parliamentarians and communities leading up to the next Federal election.
The summit was held at Deer Park Centre in Sydney with some of Australia’s leading campaigners teaching participants how to create social change. Facilitators at the summit included Tony Milne (Director, Make Poverty History), Anna Rose (Manager, Earth Hour), Akram Azimi (2013 Young Australian of the Year), Adam Valvasori (Campaign for Australian Aid Manager) and many more.
Campaign for Australian Aid volunteers plan to use the relationships, knowledge and skills they learnt at the summit to engage with the most influential electorates in Australia. They're taking action for Australian aid by building relationships with MPs, organising creative events, building partnerships across civil society and inspiring everyday Aussies to join the campaign.
It's hard not to lose hope in the face of repeated cuts to Australian aid. But this group of volunteers will be at the centre of building the movement we need to achieve more and better aid, so that people in poor communities can build a fairer future.
Campaign for Australian Aid is a joint initiative of Make Poverty History and Micah Challenge coalitions. This campaign is for every Australian who believes we can and should do more as a nation to end extreme poverty around the world. World Vision joins over 50 organisations across civil society in this project.
If you're ready to join a team in your community to campaign for Australian aid, you can sign up here.