Free Colombian Political Prisoners

Omar Alfonso Combita was arrested on 2nd October 2011 and is detained in La Modelo Prison, Bogota, accused of “rebellion”. He is an active member of FECODE, the Colombian teachers’ trade union and the director of the Santana Ramos Education Centre. Please take a moment to add your name to the petition to help free Omar.

The Robin Hood Tax

Eleven countries in Europe pledged to introduce Robin Hood Taxes - netting a combined £30 billion. Those taxes are now under threat from our government. George Osborne is resorting to a desperate legal challenge to try and block these countries from introducing their own taxes. Sign the petition to stop this uncalled for legal challenge.

ACT NOW: Tell Bahrain to free Mahdi

In early 2011, as peaceful protests spread across Bahrain, leaders of the Bahrain Teaching Association, Mahdi 'Issa Mahdi Abu Dheeb and his colleague Jalila al-Salman called for a teachers’ strike to support the growing demands for reform. By April, both were detained. Jalila has since been released but Mahdi remains behind bars – where he has been for over two years. Demand his release now.

Alternatively you can text your support via Amnesty International

World Day Against Child Labour

12th June is World Day against Child Labour. This year, the World Day will provide a spotlight on child labour in domestic work. To help you commemorate the day Education International has developed the One Hour against Child Labour Activity Kit which can be used easily in classrooms and union offices. Click here for more information and to download your free activity kit.

Take action and demand justice for victims of Bangladesh building collapse

Nearly 1200 people have been killed in the collapse of a building in Bangladesh which housed garment factories making clothes for Primark, Matalan, Mango and other major brands. Sign the War on Want petition now and demand these UK high street brands take responsibility for this tragedy by paying full compensation to the workers and commit to action to ensure disasters like this become a thing of the past.

Pakistan: Teachers and students violently attacked

Pakistan is counting the costs of a week of carnage in which teachers and pupils have been violently attacked simply because they want to go to school. The campaign of violence against girls' education has now moved from the tribal areas into Karachi - one of the country's huge cities. For more information click here and to sign a petition calling for a cessation of violence against teachers who are defending the right of girls to go to school click here.

Syria: Stop the Suffering

4 million people trapped in Syria need humanitarian aid, more than 2 million of them children. Schools and hospitals have been destroyed, children have been used as human shields and one in every three Syrian children has been injured. Sign the petition to tell the BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa - to send a message to President Bashar al-Assad that he should grant the UN permission to cross Syria’s borders to reach civilians in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.

Water and sanitation are a human right!

Many millions of people continue to be deprived of clean, safe and affordable water and sanitation, even in Europe. Help put this issue on the European Commission’s agenda! Over one million signatures from EU-citizens are needed. Signature forms and further information can be found here.

Lift the Blockade of Gaza

A ceasefire has been called - families in Israel and Gaza are safer. Relaxation of the crippling blockade, which has trapped people in poverty for so long, is under negotiation. But unless the blockade is lifted for good, families will continue to suffer. Sign the petition calling on the UK Government to use its influence and help lift the blockade.

TURKEY: Stop the judicial harassment against unionists

On 13 December Turkey will see a new episode in the judicial harassment against trade unionists as 3 women unionists, including Güldane Erdoğan from the teacher union Egitim Sen, will appear in Court. They were among 15 female union leaders who were arrested on 13 Feb in connection with the International Women’s Day preparations. Take action to condemn the on-going governmental persecution and judicial harassment against trade unionists in Turkey by sending a message to the Prime Minister of Turkey today!

Medical Aid for Palestinians

As the casualties in Gaza continue to rise, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) has been responding to the crisis caused by Israeli air, tank and naval strikes, working with local hospitals, doctors and nurses to ensure that they have the supplies they need. An emergency appeal has been launched as urgent calls for additional medical supplies have been received. MAP needs to raise £100,000 immediately to make sure all hospitals have the necessary medicines and medical supplies to treat casualties. For more information and to make a donation go to https://www.justgiving.com/Gaza-in-crisis

Help Malala

Malala Yousafzai is a 14 year old school girl known for her education and women's rights activism. On 9 Oct she was shot in the head and neck in an assassination attempt by Taliban gunmen. You can help Malala by signing the AVAAZ petition and demand that the government announces funding for all Pakistani girls who attend school.

Miami Five Humanitarian Appeal

September 2012 marks 14 years that the Miami Five have been imprisoned in US jails. For 12 of these years, 2 of their wives, Adriana Perez & Olga Salanueva, have been denied visitation rights by the US government. Write to your MP and urge them to sign EDM 497, the humanitarian appeal for visitation rights for wives of Miami Five.

Help Burma's workers build a union movement

For the first time in generations workers in Burma are free to form trade unions. The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) & Federation of Trade Unions - Burma (FTUB) will set up an office in the capital city of Rangoon to train workers on organising, book keeping & more. For more info & to help them meet this challenge click here.

Stop Adidas Exploiting Workers

Research has exposed the appalling exploitation of workers making clothes for Adidas yet Adidas is still refusing to act and take responsibility for the workers who make their clothes. Email the Adidas CEO today to demand they stop exploiting workers - Exploitation is not ok here, and it's not ok anywhere!

Free Burma's Prisoners of Conscience

Upon receiving her Nobel Peace Prize Aung San Suu Kyi reminded us “It is to be feared that because the best known detainees have been released, the remainder, the unknown ones, will be forgotten". Help free Burma's prisoners of conscience now: Text FREEDOM1 plus your FULL NAME to 85080. Click here for more information.

Play Fair 2012 Campaign

The NUT supports the Playfair 2012 coalition campaigning for a Sweat-Free Olympics. The coalition campaigns to ensure that the London 2012 Olympic games raise the bar on Workers' Rights. Read more about the campaign via www.playfair2012.org

In response to the evidence of exploitation of workers producing goods for London 2012, detailed in the new report Toying with Workers' Rights (Play Fair 2012) the organisers of the London Games have signed an agreement with the Playfair 2012 campaign to protect the rights of workers in its supply chains. To see the report & agreement click here.

Playfair 2012 has just launched a new report titled Fair Games? The Fair Games? report investigated working conditions in 10 sportswear factories in China, Sri Lanka and the Philippines where they produced sportswear that will be bought by consumers and used by athletes and volunteers at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Read Fair Games? here.

Visit here today and take action by telling the brands featured in the Fair Games? report that they must face up to the reality of rights in their supply chains and commit to raise the bar on workers' rights.

ACT NOW! Free Iranian trade unionists

Join Amnesty International's call to release jailed Iranian trade unionist Reza Shahabi, currently serving a six-year prison sentence, as well as to clarify the whereabouts of Zabihollah Bagheri and provide access to his family and his lawyer.

Tell the UN to monitor human rights in Western Sahara

In 2010 Foreign Secretary William Hague told the Western Sahara Campaign he supported human rights monitoring by MINURSO. All main political parties echoed this yet each year the UK allows MINURSO's mandate to be renewed without monitoring. Urge your MP to write to the Foreign Secretary to tell him to keep his promise when it is renewed in April.

Education in Crisis: Together we will "Stand with Wisconsin" One year after Wisconsin's governor Scott Walker tried to wrest union rights from workers, the tide has turned, and over two million signatures have been gathered to recall Walker. Visit http://www.standwisconsin.org/ for more information and to support teachers and all other workers in their plight for union rights!

European Financial Transaction Tax

On 13 March the EU Finance Ministers will decide on the future of the EU FTT. Success depends on the will of the Finance Ministers of the Member States who debate the FTT in the Council of the EU. The proposal will only be implemented if all Member States agree. Send a message to the politicians urging them to speak out in favour of a European FTT

Available resources for the Financial Transaction Tax campaign can be found at:

• all supporters resources (FAQs, lobby packs supportive quotes documents) are in the blog
• all posters and leaflets

Please write to your MP to keep the pressure on party leaders.

Send my Friend to School

The NUT was very proud to support the wonderful Send My Sister to School exhibition in the House of Commons early this year. The exhibition celebrated the efforts of the half a million children in schools up and down the country who took part in last year's campaign, reminding world leaders of their goal of getting all children in school by 2015. Many MPs visited the exhibition and pledged their further support for the Olympic themed 'Go for Gold' campaign in 2012.

The 2012 Send My Friend to School campaign hopes to harness Olympic fever. As athletes flock to London to test their abilities in hundreds of sporting events, the opportunity will be taken to reflect on another race, the Great Global Education Race 2000-2015.

In 2000 over 140 million children were out of school and the Great Global Education Race got off to a good start. Millions of children in Africa, Asia and Latin America went to school for the first time. But the number of children out of school has stayed stubbornly at 67 million for 2 years now, with only 3 years to the finishing line. Now is the time to remind world leaders of their promise and urge them to go for gold.

The NUT is a major supporter of the Global Campaign for Education (GCE), a coalition of charities and teacher unions which organises the Send My Friend to School campaign each year.

To find out more about how to get your school involved and receive a free resource pack visit www.sendmyfriend.org

The struggle to finish school in Malawi

Malawi is ranked as one of the world's 20 least developed countries and ¾ of the population live on less than $2 a day. Eilidh Naismith and Billy Davidson – winners of the Steve Sinnott award for young campaigners - travelled to Malawi with ActionAid and the Guardian photographer Graeme Robertson to investigate barriers to education for children. To read about their experiences please see the links below.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2012/mar/12/education-school-malawi-girls-millennium

http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/audioslideshow/2012/mar/12/portraits-of-malawi-audio-slideshow

http://www.sendmyfriend.org/news/malawi2012

Justice for Colombia's Peace Campaign

Recent events in Colombia have underlined the urgent need for international pressure to push the Colombian government to enter into negotiations with the guerrillas to achieve social justice, peace & genuine democracy. EDM 2276 on human rights was submitted. Please click here for more information and to write to your MP urging them to sign the EDM.

Release of Palestinian Child Detainees

A deal has been made to release Palestinian prisoners in 2 stages in exchange for freeing an Israeli soldier. No children will be released at the 1st stage & it can't be confirmed if any will be released at the 2nd stage. For more information & to send an appeal urging the Israeli authorities to release all detained Palestinian children click here.

VSO Valuing Teachers Campaign and Volunteer Opportunities

The NUT supports VSO's campaign which researches what teachers feel about their profession: what motivates them and what helps them perform well. The aim is to inform policy-making and implementation at national and international levels. VSO is currently looking for experienced educationalists to help with this work for 1-2 years in countries across Africa, Asia, the Pacific and the Caribbean.

http://www.vsointernational.org/volunteer/find-out-more.asp

http://www.vsointernational.org/what-we-do/advocacy/campaigns/valuing-teachers.asp

The Steve Sinnott Foundation

The Steve Sinnott foundation, established in the name of former NUT General Secretary, is dedicated towards the pursuit of Steve's passion and support for the UN Millennium Development Goal 2; the achievement, by 2015 of universal primary education for all children around the world.

http://www.stevesinnottfoundation.org.uk/display/ABOUT/Welcome

World Education Blog

The World Education Blog is hosted by the Global Monitoring Report (GMR) team. The Blog follows events and issues on education by raising fundamental questions about ‘Education for All' and presents an analysis of the GMR financing gap. Access the blog via http://efareport.wordpress.com/

Global Campaign for Education

The Global Campaign for Education promotes education as a basic human right, and mobilizes public pressure on governments and the international community to fulfil their promises to provide free, compulsory public basic education for all people; in particular for children, women and all disadvantaged, deprived sections of society. http://www.campaignforeducation.org/

Trade Justice Movement

The Trade Justice Movement is a fast growing group of organisations including trade unions, aid agencies, environment and human rights campaigns, fair-trade organisations, faith and consumer groups. http://www.tjm.org.uk/

No Sweat

No Sweat is an activist, campaigning organisation, fighting sweatshop bosses, in solidarity with workers, worldwide. No Sweat stands for workers' solidarity. http://www.nosweat.org.uk/