Jul 11th, 2015
This could win TTIP
By bex
38 Degrees members are making progress in the fight against TTIP in the UK. We’ve helped turn more than half of our MEPs against the dodgy, anti-democratic deal. And just on Saturday, nearly 8,000 of us took to the streets to raise awareness.
All of our work in the UK might not be enough though. To really win this campaign, people and politicians across Europe need to turn against the deal.
In Germany, our friends at Campact (who work a lot like 38 Degrees) are leading the anti-TTIP fight with huge impact. And now there’s a wave of similar organisations popping-up across Europe, campaigning against TTIP, inspired in part by what 38 Degrees members have achieved.
In places like Ireland and Sweden these new movements are already turning the national debate on TTIP. And more organisations are rapidly gearing up in countries like Poland and Romania that are critical to the fight against TTIP. Their potential to help us beat TTIP is huge, but time is short, and a lack of money is holding them back.
Can you chip in to help them? We’ll rush your donation directly to the organisations fighting TTIP across Europe. And for the next 72 hours, Campact will match every donation from 38 Degrees members up to £50,000. Please donate now to double our impact!
In the coming weeks, the 38 Degrees team will work alongside these new European anti TTIP groups to ensure that your donations go exactly when and where they’ll make the most difference.
£50,000 could help:
– Uplift, based in Ireland, run a huge campaign at The Ploughing Championship (Europe’s largest outdoor annual event), breaking through the media silence and putting TTIP in the spotlight before the upcoming Irish General Election.
– Skiftet, in Sweden, organise a national day of action (like ours last weekend) across the country, with stickers, posters and info sheets explaining why TTIP is full of threats to Sweden’s public health and democracy.
– De.clic, based in Romania, to mobilise volunteers to travel to areas where people don’t yet have internet access and distribute a printed TTIP newsletter.
– Poland’s Akcja Demokracja to produce Poland specific videos that dispel the most problematic myths about TTIP in the Polish context (like being anti-TTIP is being pro-Putin!)
We’ve done amazing work together in the UK (and will continue to!), but there’s still much more to do across Europe if we’re going to beat TTIP. Over 90% of MEPs report to voters outside Britain. Let’s grab this chance to help our European partners take the fight straight to them.
Can you chip in to fund other European groups like 38 Degrees take on TTIP and win?
Here’s some extra info about the partners we’re currently working with across Europe:
Launched in December 2014, Uplift already have over 20,000 members (because their population is small, this figure is really impressive!) and have been mounting a powerful opposition against TTIP since launch.
“Powerful supporters of TTIP have been able to keep Irish people in the dark about this nasty deal. With support from 38 Degrees members, we can build on our campaign to mobilise thousands of people and enable Uplift to be really effective in beating this dangerous deal.”
Siobhan O’Donoghue, Founder and Executive Director
Launched in October 2014, Skiftet already have 160,000 members and have been campaigning to stop TTIP since they launched.
“Sweden is the home country of Cecilia Malmström, Europe’s Trade Commissioner, the leading force behind this dirty deal. We stand at a tipping point and if 38 Degrees members chip in we can nudge it over the edge. Your donation will go towards ramping up the small but growing people powered resistance to TTIP in Sweden.”
Robin Zachari, Executive Director
Launched just 3 months ago in May 2015, de.clic already have over 25,000 members and are poised to become a leading opposition force against TTIP in Romania.
“The recent ISDS style case (which lets big businesses sue governments if they don’t like their policies – something that will be expanded massively under TTIP) filed against Romania for not granting illegal permits for gold mining is a clear example of how TTIP could work. This company is trying to sue our country for $4 billion in compensation. More than our budget for education and health. We want to make sure all Romanians are aware of the dangers of TTIP! But we need your help, to make it a strong and effective campaign in a joint effort to stop this nightmare!”
Claudia Apostol, Senior Campaigner
Akcja Demokracja in Poland:
Haven’t launched yet – but they’re poised to get going next month. Poland has so many MEPs who will have a vote on TTIP that it’s really important opposition to the deal grows.
“Akcja Demokracja could spend donations from 38 Degrees members on creating a series of short viral and creative videos. We believe that the campaign in Poland needs strong, personal stories that will describe in a compelling way the consequences of TTIP. These videos will help us reach a broader audience, to build and strengthen people’s opposition.”
Weronika Paszewska, Executive Director
