Insights into global advocacy:
Oxfam’s GROW campaign
Executive Certificate
Advocacy in International Affairs
March 2014
Glenn O’Neil
www.owlre.com
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What is GROW?
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkg9ADEIPXM#t=29
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A four year food justice global campaign 2011 - 2015
“Find better ways to grow, share and live
together, to help build a future where everyone
on the planet always has enough to eat.”
What is GROW?
Five objectives:
1. Helping grow movements
2. Stopping land and water grabs
3. Reaching a global deal on climate change
4. Investing in small-scale food producers, particularly women
5. Responding to global food price crises
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Impact chain / theory of change
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GROW activities
• Active in some 50 countries: 16 north and 34 south
• Seen as the global unifying campaign for Oxfam worldwide
• National objectives are combined with international projects
and spikes
• Some 70 Oxfam staff engaged full-time on GROW plus
many internal coalitions and external alliances
Lobbying Media
work Public
mobilization Policy
research
Coalition
building
Online
actions
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GROW
timeline
2011 - 2013
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Insights into global campaiging
• Oxfam commissioned a mid-point external evaluation in
2013 - carried out by Owl RE (Glenn O’Neil & Patricia
Goldschmid)
• Next slides summarise insights from this evaluation as to
how Oxfam carried out their campaigning and what results
were seen
• “Deep dives” into three out of five objectives:
1. Helping grow movements
2. Stopping land and water grabs
3. Reaching a global deal on climate change
4. Investing in small-scale food producers, particularly women
5. Responding to global food price crises
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Helping grow movements Engaged with up to 5 million people
Online petitions
Issues:
Sahel
Land grabs Content
creation
Pressure
on
decision
makers
Building coalitions
In the South e.g. :
Bangladesh
Burkina Faso
Guatemala
Access
to
decision
makers
Food
fairs
Consumer
advice
Consumption &
food purchases Change to
consumer
habits
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Stopping land and water grabs
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yT_DJmmdsJc
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Stopping land and water grabs
Land
Freeze campaign
Public mobilization
World Bank
Policy
change
on land
Lobbying
Stunts Policy
research
Social
media
Media
work
Local
activism
Halt
illegal
land /
water
practices
South Sudan
Burkina Faso
Bangladesh
Guatemala
Lobbying
African Union
The Philippines
Vietnam
The Netherlands Policy
research
Policy
change
on land
Behind
the
Brands Policy
research
Public mobilization
Media
work
Social
media
Lobbying Stunts Policy
change
on
supply
chain
Top ten food
companies
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Stopping land and water grabs
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Stopping land and water grabs
Video: http://youtu.be/JsTi8LrTLFg
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Investing in small-scale food producers
Female
Food
Heroes
15 countries
Access
to
decision
makers
Lobbying Media
work
Events
Awareness
on
women’s
role
Building
capacity
Lobbying Events
Building coalitions
Building
capacity Empower
food
producers
15 countries
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Investing in small-scale food producers
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWo2p5LFVUo
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Facilitated campaign success
• Created through a broad consultation within Oxfam
• Consistent GROW brand adopted widely
• Engaging Southern partners in the concept phase ensured
ownership
• Flexibility of GROW allowed for local adaptation
• The critical mass factor for initiatives such as Female Food
Heroes and Behind the Brand;
• The proximity and relevance to other programmes
• The selection of precise policy areas
• The combination of media, public mobilisation and policy in
campaigning
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Hindered campaign success
• Difficult start and focus
• Inability to create a critical mass around most initiatives
• Inability to build a global movement
• Coordination, focus and resource issues
• The lack of coalition building in the North
• The lack of mechanisms to identify and profile Southern
issues
• Divergence in focus by some affiliates linked to
inconsistencies in supporting campaign priorities
• Inconsistency between the North and South about the
sensitivity of the land issue
• “Battle of interests” to win policy support
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Further resources
glennoneil
www.owlre.com
@glenn_oneil
www.intelligentmeasurement.net
Contacts:
GROW website:
http://www.oxfam.org/en/grow/what-is-grow
Introduction to GROW: http://www.oxfam.org/sites/www.oxfam.org/files/grow-manifesto-may2011-eng.pdf
Mid-point GROW evaluation report: http://www.oxfam.org/sites/www.oxfam.org/files/oxfam-grow-midterm-report-oct2013.pdf
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