Blogs & Stories

Announcing the funding recipients for the second round of Her Future, Her Choice Financial Support for Community-Based Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) Initiative, funded by Global Affairs Canada.

by Lisa Gunn | August 2, 2022

After the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on abortion, we must keep advancing, supporting and protecting reproductive rights in Canada and across the world.

by Lara Cousins | June 27, 2022

Oxfam celebrates Pride Month to express gratitude to our LGBTQI+ partner organizations and activists for contributing to social progress, human rights and equality.

by Oxfam | June 2, 2022

Oxfam Canada's analysis of this year’s federal budget reveals it falls short of delivering a strong feminist economic recovery.

by Oxfam Canada | April 14, 2022

Every 26 hours a new billionaire is created. Inequality worsens humanitarian crises to climate change. It’s time to close the inequality gap.

by Oxfam | January 23, 2022

In 2021, Oxfam Canada continued to speak truth to power, fight to close the gap between the rich and the rest, and make real progress on women’s rights and gender…

by Oxfam Canada | December 21, 2021

It was entirely predictable that mutations would arise in Africa, the part of the world with the least access to COVID-19 vaccines

by Brittany Lambert | November 30, 2021

Learn more about how our brand tracker scores these five Canadian companies on their commitment to a living wage.

by Kelly Bowden and Nirvana Mujtaba | November 23, 2021

As restrictions ease in various provinces across the country, the idea of “returning to normal” remains far out of sight for the poorest people on the planet.

by Oxfam Canada | November 9, 2021

Oxfam Canada has strengthened our commitments to advance anti-racism, diversity, equity and inclusion.

by Oxfam Canada | September 24, 2021

This open letter to Ministers Carolyn Bennett and Marc Miller expresses solidarity with Indigenous people in Canada in the face of ongoing genocide.

by A coalition of gender justice organizations | June 9, 2021

Building a safer, fairer and sustainable recovery for garment sector workers.

by Nirvana Mujtaba | April 27, 2021

Budget 2021 is an opportunity for Canada, in the spirit of global cooperation, to deliver its fair and responsible share of international climate financing ahead of COP26.

by Canadian Coalition for Climate Change and Development | April 9, 2021

Oxfam continues its work to assist families surviving a decade of war in Syria, but every day in Syria is a struggle to survive.

by Dania Kareh | March 15, 2021

International Women’s Day is a time when we stand up and stand together for women’s rights around the world.

by Oxfam Canada | March 8, 2021

“Often as humans, when we feel uncomfortable and we don’t know how to place an experience, our stress response can come out of line. That may look like fight, flight…

by Oxfam Canada | February 19, 2021

” Tackling racism requires us to tackle climate change. The root causes are one in the same.“ When Larissa founded Future Ancestors, she knew she wanted to do things differently. Published Indigenous…

by Oxfam Canada | February 12, 2021

Whitehorse, Yukon labour activist and Northern Voices co-creator Paige Galette talks about her fight against racism and oppression.

by Caroline Leal | Oxfam Canada | February 5, 2021

Here’s what Oxfam is doing to help people survive COVID-19 and its economic impact.

by Oxfam Canada | January 6, 2021

Centering the voices of women in all of their diversity will ensure Canada's COVID-19 action plan uplifts the most marginalized.

by Oxfam Canada | November 18, 2020

While many communities and countries are still firefighting the COVID-19 crisis, several governments, including here in Canada, have begun outlining their blueprints for our social and economic recovery.

by Kate Higgins | September 24, 2020

In this open letter to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Oxfam and 39 civil society organizations express their opposition to arms export permits to Saudi Arabia.

by Oxfam Canada | September 17, 2020

While many sectors have been scaled down or put on hold, we cannot similarly press ‘pause’ on the life-sustaining carework that is currently holding up our households, communities, care homes…

by Amber Parkes, Anam Parvez & Dana Stefov | May 7, 2020

While we are in the midst of the most significant global public health crisis of our lifetime, the veil is being lifted on an economic system that rewards the wealthy…

by Dana Stefov | Oxfam Canada | April 24, 2020

So you want to invest in women and girls. You want to improve lives and tackle deep-seated problems. But will you be tokenistic or transformational?

by Caroline Ashley, Dr. Miranda Morgan, Thalia Kidder & Fabian Llinares | April 8, 2020

Existing inequalities mean the most marginalized people around the world are at the greatest risk with COVID-19.

by Lauren Ravon, Oxfam Canada | March 20, 2020

In November 2019, Oxfam Canada travelled to five Canadian cities to help present our award-winning exhibit Museum Without a Home.

by Brittany Lambert | January 9, 2020

Canada desperately needs to update its approach on corporate accountability. The SNC-Lavalin affair that rocked the Canadian government earlier this year provided a stark picture of how corporate influence operates…

by Ian Thomson | October 16, 2019

Around the world, sexual and reproductive health services fall short of women’s needs.

by Alex Wilson | Oxfam Canada | September 28, 2019

An Oxfam in the Philippines SRHR project officer talks about the need to remove the veil of stigma and shame when it comes to viewing our bodies and sexuality.

by Rina Fulo | Oxfam in the Philippines | September 12, 2019

As a feminist and women’s rights advocate, I have been working with my Oxfam colleagues here in Canada and around the world to ensure that we are both reflective and…

by Julie Delahanty | June 12, 2019

More than 8,000 women’s rights advocates descended on Vancouver in June 2019 to attend Women Deliver, the world’s largest conference on gender equality and the health, rights and well-being of…

by Lauren Ravon | June 11, 2019

Glen Brown was a tireless social justice activist, a central figure in a central figure in HIV/AIDS advocacy in Canada and a key member of AIDS Action Now. He accomplished…

by Rowena Griffiths | June 9, 2019

Tackling gender inequality and gender-based violence should be top priorities in places like South Sudan, but these issues are often seen as less urgent than “life-saving priorities” like food, shelter…

by Brittany Lambert, Oxfam Canada | May 16, 2019

In the Philippines, deeply rooted social norms make it difficult for women and girls to take control of their sexual health. Daryl Leyesa, a women's rights activist leading Oxfam Canada's Sexual…

by Caroline Leal | March 4, 2019

In an era divided between hostility and progress towards realizing women’s rights – and all people’s inalienable rights – Canada can’t afford to back away from the sexual and reproductive…

by Oxfam Canada | January 31, 2019

As Oxfam works to end women’s economic inequality, transforming the mining, oil and gas industries is an enormous challenge – and also a big opportunity.

by Oxfam Canada | September 12, 2018

Written by Winnie Byanyima⁩, Executive Director, Oxfam International. These are restless, exciting, and frightening times to be a woman. Every day brings with it a rousing success or a crushing…

by Oxfam Canada | June 6, 2018

What is Oxfam, what do we do, and how do we do it? Here’s the information you need to answer those questions! 1: Oxfam is a global movement of people…

by Oxfam | January 18, 2018

“Do not get married if you are a child, because you do not yet understand about the household. “  These are the words of Putri (15) who, married at 13,…

by Sara Thaw | October 11, 2017

This summer, Coldplay invited Oxfam volunteers on their World Tour to encourage fans to get involved with the STAND AS ONE campaign. Right now, more than 65 million people have been forced…

by Sara Thaw | August 23, 2017

Getting laws on paper is one critical step in global efforts to address violence against women and girls, but we must also continue in our struggle to get governments to…

by Christine Hughes | March 4, 2017

Each year the rich and powerful descend upon Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum – and Oxfam makes headlines reminding them and the world of rising global inequality. This…

by oxfamcanada | January 24, 2017

Written by Kelly Bowden, Manager of Campaigns at Oxfam Canada I sent an email to Google earlier this week because I had an idea. I told them they should make…

by oxfamcanada | September 22, 2016

We know that clean water saves lives, but in order to access it, people need to be able to safely transport and store it. That’s why a better bucket makes…

by Oxfam Canada | June 14, 2016

Oxfam made headlines this week with our stats on wealth inequality, particularly the finding that the 62 richest people in the world own as much as the poorest half of…

by oxfamcanada | January 22, 2016

By Julie Lafrenière, Women’s Rights Specialist at Oxfam Canada.  In South Sudan, domestic violence is widespread and largely tolerated. In the all-too-common words of two young women from Warrap State:…

by oxfamcanada | December 3, 2015

Written by Kelly Bowden National Campaigns Manager, Oxfam Canada That’s why Oxfam teamed up with the Up For Debate campaign. Up For Debate has a very clear goal: to put…

by Oxfam | September 23, 2015

Written by Julie Lafrenière Women’s Rights Knowledge Specialist On September 15th, 2015 in Ottawa there was an important event featuring three female Nobel Peace Laureates: Shirin Ebadi (Iran), Mairead Maguire…

by Oxfam Canada | September 15, 2015

Eid is upon us. But it doesn’t feel like Eid. Fighting in Yemen has not ceased throughout the month of Ramadan – in fact it intensified. The upcoming holiday is…

by oxfamcanada | July 16, 2015

Amidst bombings and shortages in fuel, food and vital supplies, a group of Yemeni women came together for an unconventional demonstration against the war… and the lack of women’s rights.…

by oxfamcanada | July 6, 2015

An Oxfam staff worker has written a blog about what life has been like in Yemen for the past week. She is based in Sanaa. Oxfam has been working in…

by oxfamcanada | April 16, 2015

Why is Oxfam calling for a World Tax Summit? by Winnie Byanyima As the World Economic Forum in Davos draws to a close, the real work to identify joint solutions…

by oxfamcanada | January 23, 2015

Blog by Christine McCartney, Oxfam Ireland Inequality is rising – to the detriment of us all. You might expect an organisation like Oxfam to say that, but it’s not just…

by oxfamcanada | October 20, 2014

Food. It’s one of life’s great pleasures. We think about it all the time. Most of us eat food at least three times a day. Some of us take photos…

by oxfamcanada | October 14, 2014

by Martin Butcher Around 1,500 people a day are killed in conflicts and armed violence across the globe, and among that loss are humanitarian aid workers who were trying to…

by oxfamcanada | August 19, 2014

by Jasmine Lum Over the past school year, Oxfam Canada clubs on university and college campuses across Canada have once again been busy raising awareness and taking action on gender justice,…

by oxfamcanada | August 9, 2014

by Simon Starling It was boiling hot last Friday afternoon when I heard the news. I was just getting used to the idea of drinking a land-grab-free soft drink to…

by oxfamcanada | August 6, 2014

by Àngela Corbalán Palm oil is everywhere, in food and everyday items you don’t even realize. It’s in your morning bowl of cereal, your afternoon biscuits, your dinner pizza, in…

by oxfamcanada | July 3, 2014

by Winnie Byanyima Two major injustices – inequality and climate change – are threatening to undermine the efforts of millions of people to escape poverty and hunger. By concentrating wealth…

by oxfamcanada | June 19, 2014

by Emily Brown, Oxfam Great Britain Have you ever felt like no one is listening to you? Do you think it’s fair? No, Oxfam doesn’t either…  And that’s why Raising Her…

by oxfamcanada | June 11, 2014

by Melanie Gallant A couple of months ago I biked 350 kilometres under the Cuban sun, cutting straight across the island from the Atlantic to the Caribbean coast. The trip…

by oxfamcanada | June 3, 2014

by Winnie Byanyima After the world was plunged into a financial crisis, back in 2009, G20 leaders promised to clean up the international tax system, once and for all. The…

by oxfamcanada | May 5, 2014

by Emma Seery Today we are launching a new report, ‘Working for the Many: Public Services Fight Inequality.’ This is the next in Oxfam’s series of reports looking at the…

by oxfamcanada | April 3, 2014

The IPCC has presented their latest report on the impacts of climate change on humanity, and what we can do about it. It’s a lengthy report, so we’ve boiled it…

by oxfamcanada | March 31, 2014

by Duncan Green When I get into my car in London, I step into a system designed to get me safely from A to B. It has seat belts, airbags,…

by oxfamcanada | March 25, 2014

Photo: (l-r) Nicole Kieley, Oxfam Canada board member; Debbie Forward, President of the Newfoundland & Labrador Nurses' Union (NLNU); and Bill Hynd, Oxfam Canada. Bill is presenting a plaque recognizing…

by oxfamcanada | March 14, 2014

When customers speak, businesses listen. It’s an old adage in business that Oxfam and its supporters tested to see if this would be true on issues of sustainability and human…

by oxfamcanada | February 28, 2014

by Winnie Byanyima International agreement on the need to take action against rising and damaging economic inequality is gathering pace. The World Economic Forum’s (WEF) ‘Outlook on the Global Agenda…

by Oxfam | February 14, 2014

On 1 June 2011, Oxfam launched the GROW campaign to tackle the injustice of 900 million people going to bed hungry every night. The campaign now works in more than…

by oxfamcanada | January 31, 2014

by Lina Holguin Today, mining companies and civil society organizations came together to ask the Government of Canada to establish strong rules on mandatory reporting of payments made by Canadian…

by oxfamcanada | January 16, 2014

by Meyer Brownstone My first and most memorable encounter with Nelson Mandela coincided with a moment marking one of his basic goals – the equal right to vote in South…

by oxfamcanada | December 10, 2013

A month ago, Oxfam launched the second action of our Behind the Brands campaign asking three of the biggest companies in the sugar industry – Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Associated British…

by Oxfam | November 7, 2013

Yesterday was World Food Day. It was also an exciting day for the Behind the Brands campaign, with stunts taking place in Canada, USA, and the Netherlands. But what’s the…

by oxfamcanada | October 17, 2013

How hard do you think it is for a company to say “We don’t tolerate human rights abuses”? Imagine a really famous multi-million-dollar one that depends upon having fantastic public…

by oxfamcanada | October 14, 2013

Edilza Duarte, 24, is a Guaraní-Kaiowá mother of two, living in Ponta Porã, Mato Grosso do Sul. Her community’s land, Jatayvary, was taken from them 40 years ago. Now it’s…

by Oxfam | October 2, 2013

This week has been action-packed for Oxfam Canada! In addition to preparing the ground work for this weekend’s Gender Justice Summit, Oxfam, campus and youth leaders have been participating in…

by oxfamcanada | September 20, 2013

by Rachel George What is a land grab? Land grabs are huge purchases of land by banks, private investors, governments or corporations which result in the often violent eviction of…

by oxfamcanada | August 16, 2013

  By Erinch Sahan and Will Martindale, Oxfam Policy Advisors. Erinch Sahan is a private sector policy adviser at Oxfam. He led the team across Oxfam International who put together…

by oxfamcanada | August 9, 2013

by Johan Verburg Burning forests and land in Indonesia is an annual phenomenon, but this year fires have hit extreme levels and have created a dangerous haze over Singapore and…

by oxfamcanada | July 12, 2013

  by Victoria Marzilli Two months. That is all it took for chocolate lovers and social justice activists to stand up to three of the biggest food companies in the…

by oxfamcanada | June 25, 2013

  Shocking new statistics released by Oxfam have shown that governments are letting people hide at least $18.5 trillion in offshore tax havens. Yes, you read that right: not $18.5…

by oxfamcanada | May 22, 2013

  by Shawna Wakefield On mother’s day, instead of valorizing moms with well-intended, but often artificial appreciation for the vast amounts of unpaid labor that women do every day, I…

by oxfamcanada | May 14, 2013

  Last week the UN revealed for the first time that more than a quarter of a million people died in Somalia over 18 months from October 2010-April 2012. These…

by oxfamcanada | May 8, 2013

  by Karen A. Murray So, I just got back from a week of walking through the Sahara Desert.  Yep, I did just say, a week of walking, through the…

by oxfamcanada | April 29, 2013

  It’s been a busy few months for Oxfam campaigners, and it’s all been leading up to this moment: the World Bank Spring Meetings. Here’s why they’re so important to…

by oxfamcanada | April 19, 2013

  April 2013 – Adapting to life in Jordan’s sprawling desert refugee camp, Za’atari, is hard for all refugees, but especially so for those with disabilities and special needs.  …

by oxfamcanada | April 17, 2013

  A short distance from Zaatari, a sprawling camp for Syrian refugees, lies a road full of small nurseries growing vegetables and olive trees. Khaled runs one of them. These…

by oxfamcanada | April 11, 2013

Small-scale women farmers are the backbone of Africa’s food system, but, as corporations buy up huge swathes of rural land, they are losing out at every turn. Marc Wegerif, Oxfam’s…

by oxfamcanada | April 9, 2013

  There’s been a great response to the Behind the Brands launch. Consumers clearly care about the people behind the foods they buy. Thousands of people have taken action; the…

by oxfamcanada | February 28, 2013

  First question: How does Oxfam take the potential for gender-based violence into account when planning cash distributions to women in emergencies? Second question: What is the global South? Over…

by oxfamcanada | February 4, 2013