Dear Jubilee Scotland Campaigner,

Summer is here and there are some exciting outdoor events to put down in your diary. The last weekend of June is an early opportunity to reflect on and look to the future of the debt campaign. On Saturday 26th June, five years on from the Make Poverty History campaign, Jubilee Scotland will be joining forces with other development organisations in Auchterarder near Gleneagles to look back at the commitments made by the G8 in Gleneagles in June 2005 - on debt, trade and aid - and plan a constructive impact on the 2010 G8 summit in Canada. Click here for more information. On the same weekend - 25-27th June - the Christian Aid stall at the Solas festival in Biggar will feature an exciting hands-on opportunity to commemorate the ten year anniversary of the Jubilee 2000 campaign and the need for continuing vigilance on debt cancellation.

It's important in the debt campaign – and the wider global justice movement - to keep ourselves motivated by remembering our past achievements, particularly when we think of the significant strides we have still to make. A report recently presented to the Cross Party Group in the Scottish Parliament makes this point by contrasting the benefits that the debt cancellation you fought for has had for qualifying countries – such as Malawi – and the huge need for further and deeper debt cancellation faced by countries that have not qualified – such as Bangladesh. Meanwhile, a recent report developed from the International Monetary Fund's own findings has indicated that even countries that qualified for the HIPC (Highly Indebted Poor Country) programme, such as Burundi and Burkina Faso, may have had their debt cancellation undermined to a certain extent by the lending undertaken by the IMF in the last two years - much work ahead for the campaign.

In August, therefore, Jubilee Scotland will be partnering the Festival of Spirituality and Peace in several of its events celebrating and refreshing the interfaith and community roots of the debt campaign. This will include the opening event of the festival (8th August 6-7pm, location tbc) as well as a focused interfaith discussion about the Jubilee, which will include Habib Malik of Islamic Relief Scotland and Bhai Sahib Mohinder Singh, a visionary Sikh leader, at St.John’s Church on Saturday 14th August. Follow this link to find out more.

Lastly Jubilee Scotland has just announced an exciting new position for a Supporter Relations Intern to join the central Edinburgh team, a post will which provide a great opportunity to develop a number of skills and experience of working in a dynamic charity and social movement. Please visit this link for more information.

Thanks for all your help and support and look forward to see you over the summer,

Alice O' Rourke
Jubilee Scotland