From 28 Sept – 1 Oct stars including Editors, Fatboy Slim, VV Brown, Basement Jaxx, Just Jack, Nitin Sawhney and Tony Allen will squeeze into a tiny London Oxfam shop to launch Oxjam 09.

Monday 28 Sept: VV Brown, Just Jack (acoustic)


Tuesday 29 Sept: Tony Allen plus special guests, Nitin Sawhney, Shlomo


Wednesday 30 Sept: Fatboy Slim, Basement Jaxx (DJ set), Stereo MCs (DJ set)


Thursday 1 Oct: Editors, Good Shoes plus special guests



Tickets for these exclusive shows are on sale now, but you'd best move quick as there's only room for a handful of fans each night

http://www.wegottickets.com/af/98/oxjam

Tickets £25 + booking fee.  All proceeds go to support Oxfam's work fighting poverty across the world

The news item that's dominated the front pages since the start of the year is the conflict that has broken out in Gaza.

With the situation continuing to escalate, thousands of people are now struggling to get by with limited access to medical care, running water, and food. We've been running an appeal since the fighting broke out - raising money that will help pay for emergency supplies.

To help the people affected by the crisis in Gaza, support our appeal. https://www.oxfam.org.uk/donate/gaza_crisis.html?amount=&image.x=47&image.y=12

Thanks to your generous support, those caught up in the conflict are beginning to receive the assistance they need. But little of our emergency work can really begin until the fighting stops - an unconditional ceasefire is needed, and it's needed now. With a total ceasefire in place, vital humanitarian assistance can be delivered.

Send a message to our leaders, urging them to secure a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. http://www.oxfam.org.uk/get_involved/campaign/actions/gaza_ceasefire.html

Civilians on all sides can feel safer. And negotiations for a long-term solution for both communities can begin. With pressure form you, the UK Government and the EU will feel they need to press harder to secure a comprehensive ceasefire.

Starting today, Oxfam has joined Christian Aid, Save the Children, Avaaz, and many other organisations in calling for this to happen. Whatever your opinion on who's responsible, you can sign up and demand an end to the suffering.

Hello

With 2009 well underway, we just wanted to send a quick update about some of the things Oxfam is currently working on.

Zimbabwe cholera crisis
An outbreak of cholera is the latest crisis to hit a country that is already reeling from widespread food shortages and hyperinflation. Hundreds of thousands of people are thought to be at risk from the current cholera epidemic. Oxfam have launched an appeal to help 1 million people.
https://www.oxfam.org.uk/donate/zimbabwe/index.php

Pressure for change
Remember how thousands of you got under the skin of an energy company? Or what about when we took another massive step towards an International Arms Trade Treaty (ATT)? Maybe you helped us to spin a yarn around maternal mortality? Have a look at some of the moments from 2008 when we built up the pressure for change.
http://www.oxfam.org.uk/get_involved/campaign/impact/2008.html

Together, we've started to tackle climate change
Thanks to the noise that you've made, people are starting to understand that while poor people are least responsible for causing it, climate change is hitting them hardest. Just this month we've been in Poznan, Poland delivering this message. Have a look at what's been going on.
http://www.oxfam.org.uk/get_involved/campaign/climate_change/poznan/

I hope that you have a great 2009. Keep sending us your thoughts, comments and opinions – and please feel free to tell your friends about us!

With best wishes,

Ian and the rest of the Oxfam team

Stamping out the myth behind carbon footprints

The Beautiful People Ask "EU: Where Are You?"

Governments, scientists and big business are meeting in Poland for United Nations climate talks. Oxfam is there too. We're telling the story of the impact of climate change on poor people. And we're demanding that leaders act, while there's still time, but we need your help

Together we can make a difference,
Karina, Ian, Richard and the rest of the team at Oxfam

Godefroid Marhegane, Oxfam aid worker, lives in Goma with his wife and six children. Read his interview here by the BBC on the latest from Goma.

My neighbourhood was one of the worst affected by the fighting, which went on all last night. About two kilometres from my house, the gunmen went into a compound and killed seven innocent civilians. Our neighbours were attacked by gunmen who came into their compound and robbed them, taking mobile phones and money. We were okay but I found some bullets in my compound.

I was in the Oxfam office when the panic started yesterday. People saw the national army troops leaving Goma with their tanks and vehicles, and at the same time they saw the UN troops shifting civilians to a safer compound. No one informed the population about what was happening and they thought the rebels were going to take control of Goma. People panicked.

Many people took advantage of the panic yesterday to make trouble. They looted shops and robbed families. It was a mixture of people fighting, criminals and undisciplined soldiers, using small arms like AK-47s. But in other areas there was a deployment of national army units who were disciplined and protected the people. I haven't seen UN soldiers anywhere myself.

Today it's calm and very quiet. Usually the traffic here starts at six in the morning, but I looked out at 10am and all I saw was one motorbike. The shops are all shut. Life hasn't started up yet.

A lot of people are displaced and are living in the suburbs of Goma in very harsh conditions, and the fighting is making those conditions even worse because there's no access for humanitarian workers.

In particular one group of displaced people have now been forced to move for the third time in a couple of months. They are living in schools and hospitals, or with host families in and around Goma. They desperately need water, food and shelter. There's no health care or medicines. People are living in the open air, and if they do get a little food it's not enough to feed the whole family.

This current crisis has made it harder for Oxfam to respond. We are watching the situation and I'm going out this afternoon to check out our work in the camps.