‘We are a key part of it’:
how your donation
will make a difference
Climate justice is the theme of
this year’s Guardian and Observer
charity appeal and with a week to
go we have so far raised more than
£725,000 for four environmental
charities: Practical Action , Global
Greengrants Fund UK , Royal Botanic
Gardens Kew , and Environmental
Justice Foundation. Nearly 7,000
readers have already donated. Here,
they tell us why.
Pam MacLeod, 79, Truro
Pam MacLeod was motivated
to donate because she and her
family have been directly affected
by the climate crisis. She grew up
in southern Africa and while at
school in Zimbabwe in the 1950s
she witnessed the consequences of
drought. The memory of that time
has remained with her.
She says: “My older brother still
lives in southern Africa and he sees
effects of a lack of rain which is
increasingly a problem. My other
brother lives in California. Last year,
he and his wife were told to leave
home because the wildfi res had got
so close.”
Her son lives in British Columbia,
in Canada where he works as a
nurse. The clinic where he’s based
is in an area that has been badly
affected by fl ooding. “D oing some-
thing about climate change is abso-
lutely pre-eminent in our thinking.
It was an obvious choice [to donate
to this year’s appeal] for me ,” says
MacLeod.Jennifer Labwo, 29,
east London
“ Climate change underpins every-
thing,” says Labwo. “It is the single
most important issue that we face.
Without seeking redress to climate
justice, we can’t spur self-determina-
tion for women in the global south
because they’re concerned about
accessing resources like clean water.
“We can’t begin to talk about apost-racialised society when we [in
the west] are actively propping up
our lifestyles on the backs of people
in the global south.”Clive Quick, Huntingdon
For Cli ve Quick, the appeal was a
chance to donate to Practical Action- a charity whose work he has
been supporting and following for
decades. Quick, a retired surgeon,
has taught in Africa and Sri Lanka.
“Having seen the effects of
climate change I can see what they’re
trying to achieve is benefi cial in that
respect. They help people cope with
what they’ve got, rather than what
they might have,” he says.
Dede Liss, 67, Forest of Dean
“I feel strongly that the west and
northern countries owe a debt to
people in the global south because
we’re responsible for the climate
change that is happening,” says Liss.
She feels that although the UKA woman on a
farm in fl ood-hit
Bangladesh.
Kaamil Ahmed/
the ObserverTh is year’s Guardian and Observer
appeal will support four charities
fi ghting to protect communities
hit by extreme weather caused by
climate change. Due to Covid-19 we
can’t accept cheques, but there are
three easy ways to donate:On the website
Go to theguardian.com and click
on the link to the Guardian and
Observer charity appeal 2021.
Donations can be made by credit
card, debit card or PayPal.By phone
Call us on 0151 284 1126 and we
can take your payment.Scan the
QR code
Th is QR code will
take you to the
online donation
page.Your donations will be processed
by Charities Trust (registered
charity number 327489) who
will deduct 3% of all funds raised
(including on gift aid) to cover
handling and transaction costs.How to donate
This year’s Guardian
and Observer campaign
supports charities
fi ghting global climate
injustice. Sarah Johnson
hears why £740,000 has
already been raised
Charity appeal
2021government should take more
responsibility and action, individuals
can also play a role. “I do feel people
have an individual responsibility. We
are not able to change things dra-
matically but we are a key part of it.
That’s why I felt I could give money.”Alayne Perrott, 71,
Carmarthenshire
Alayne Perrott is a climate scientist
who has retired from Swansea
University. Her career has taken her
to places such as Ethiopia, Mexico
and Nigeria, where she discovered “ a
pernicious cycle of human and cli-
mate interaction” over hundreds of
years which was continuing in the
modern world. She wanted to give to
the appeal because she liked how the
chosen organisations were support-
ing positive work.
“Charities like Practical Action, in
particular, have discovered a deep
well of local innovation,” she says.
“ People can do a lot for themselves.”