August 2012

Persist in prayer and campaigning! [Luke 19:1-8]. The January 2011 Pray and Post card 'The EU's Raw Material Grab' called on the EU to "let poorer countries negotiate investment agreements in line with their social, economic and environmental needs".
Last weekend members of SPEAK Nottingham, along with some of the Network Support Team, met outside RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire to peacefully protest against plans for the base to become a control station for drones later this year.  Jesca, who has come from the Netherlands to volunteer with the NST for the summer, gives her account of this leg of the Bardic Bike Tour.
This year, we have been on a mission to Connect and Reconnect with as many people as possible, giving you an opportunity to contribute financially to the work of SPEAK. Over the years, we have seen a generation of young people and students find their voice, and we are more passionate than ever about empowering young Christians to speak out on issues of global justice. In order to carry out the work we are doing, we rely on regular giving. Please help SPEAK by committing to make a regular donation. Visit CharityGiving, or drop us an email to speak@speak.org.uk for more info. Do you already give financially, but think you could help us by sharing the vision of SPEAK, and encouraging others to support us? Then maybe you’d like to be a SPEAK Advocate. We’ll send you a whole host of resources to help you Connect and Reconnect with people you know and encourage them in prayer for SPEAK. Below, Matthew writes about the need for continued financial support behind our campaigns.
SPEAK are popping up all over place at festivals this year. You may already have spotted us at Soul Survivor, and we’re looking forward to Momentum, Greenbelt and Forum. We’ve met some fantastic people with a real passion for justice, and it’s been wonderful sharing the vision of SPEAK. If you see us, come and say hello – we love to meet friends of SPEAK.
Vocal Training is fast approaching, and plans are afoot for an exciting weekend of network-building, skill-swapping and preparing ourselves to campaign for justice in the campuses, churches and communities where we live.
Last summer I was marching up the steps of the Tate Britain with my friends from Climate Rush. We were leading a funeral procession into the BP sponsored art gallery to mark the one year anniversary of the Deep Water Horizon Disaster, a disaster that saw 4.9m barrels of crude poured into the Gulf of Mexico destroying an entire eco-system. It was enough oil to provide the world with energy for just one hour and twenty minutes.