Newsletter 148

Content

Action of the week

  • Keep Network Rail serving Fairtrade products

National News and Events

  • Medsin National Conference 2007 - Population and Health
  • ukAM2007 in Canterbury - help needed
  • Advance warning of AGA
  • Discuss nuclear weapons with the MoD and FCO!

International News and Events

  • Call for application for internship with Council on Health Research for Development (COHRED) in Geneva
  • WorldHSS2007

Website and News

The website is for YOUR events being held by YOUR branches, projects and campaigns. It is really, really easy to submit events and news, so please do, and let everyone know what wonderful things you are up to!

Action of the week

Keep Network Rail serving Fairtrade products

It is with great disappointment that we have learnt that AMT, which serves 100% Fairtrade coffee as well as a range of Fairtrade teas, juices and snacks, has lost the contract from Network Rail for their outlets in the following stations:

London Bridge, Kings Cross, Fenchurch Street, Cannon Street, Liverpool Lime Street, Victoria, Gatwick, Waterloo, Charing Cross, Paddington.

  • Ignoring Consumer Demand:

As you may be aware, AMT switched to Fairtrade hot coffee and other products in response to consumer demand. Customers responded enthusiastically to the switch. However the company that has won the franchise does not offer any Fairtrade hot beverages or other items. This is really disappointing at a time when sales, awareness and demand of Fairtrade products are at an all time high.

  • Undermining Producer Benefits:

As these 14 bars sell nearly 20,000 cups of Fairtrade coffee each day, coffee farmers will lose up to US$10,000 in investment for their communities in social premium alone, as well as the stability which comes with Fairtrade contracts and minimum prices.

  • What Can We Do?

Please take action by writing to or emailing Barbara Barnes, the Head of Customer Service at Network Rail expressing your concern that Fairtrade should be available at outlets in these mainline stations. If Network Rail chooses to offer the contract to another company, it should be one which offers Fairtrade. With London trying to become a Fairtrade City by 2008, it is really important that our mainline railway stations, where many thousands of people pass through, are leading the way in offering Fairtrade food and drink.

National News and Events

Medsin National Conference 2007 - Population and Health

Cheap train tickets up to Dundee for the Medsin National Conference are now on sale. Check out www.thetrainline.com to book. 26th-28th October!!! A weekend not to miss.

ukAM 2007 in Canterbury - help needed!

ukAM is less than two weeks away and over 900 delegates from all around the world will be descending on Canterbury for a week to discuss Access to Essential Medicines. The OC have worked incredibly hard for over a year now to make this GA a reality and it is shaping up to be the biggest and best GA in the history of the IFMSA.

Everything is coming together in these last few crucial weeks and we need your help for one big part of it. On the 31st of July and the 4th of August, hundreds of delegates from around the world will be arriving in London and will need to be transported to Canterbury on OC buses. We need people to meet the delegates at the airports and bus stations and direct them to the OC buses, as well as some people to travel on the buses to and from Canterbury.

It would be a huge help if anyone who lives near London or will be near there on the 31st/4th would be willing to help. Alternatively, if you are free the weekend of the 4th and 5th and would like to come to Canterbury to help out both days, that would be great too. If you are interested, please email Gerard with the subject "OC Transport Help".

Advance warning of the AGA

The date for the Autumn General Assembly has been decided. It will be held at Southampton on the 22nd and 23rd September. For more information click here

Discuss nuclear weapons with the MoD and FCO!

You have the opportunity to discuss nuclear weapons with Ministry of Defence and Foriegn Commonwealth officials! This follows similar discussions betweens MEDACT UK and IPPNW Russia with MOD and FCO officials a couple of months ago. They are very keen to hear students views as this is their opportunity to hear our perspective on the issues.

This will take place on the 2nd October before the RSM and IPPNW conference Nuclear Weapons: The Final Pandemic Preventing Proliferation and Achieving Abolition.

If interested please get in touch with Kiran.

International News and Events

Call for application for internship with Council on Health Research for Development (COHRED) in Geneva

If you are interested in:

  • International research experience at a renowned centre of health research in Geneva (Council on Health Research for Development)
  • Opportunity to present findings in an address at an international health research conference (Global Forum for Health Research – Beijing, China, October 2007)
  • Publication of results through COHRED in high level research journal
  • Research will be used to develop youth health researcher award

Then click here for more information.

WorldHSS2007

On the behalf of the Organising Committee (OC) and the Joint Working Group (JWG) of the World Healthcare Students' Symposium 2007 (WorldHSS 2007), we would like to invite you to take part on this event, which intends to gather 400 Healthcare Students, between the 26th of November and 1st of December 2007 in Albufeira (Algarve, Portugal).

The constant demand of Healthcare Systems for quality, efficiency and security relies on the fact that collaboration and communication between all health professionals is essential to act patient-centred. This Symposium aims to discuss and promote multidisciplinary healthcare teamwork from various points of view.

WorldHSS 2007 is a joint initiative of the International Pharmaceutical Students' Federation (IPSF), European Pharmaceutical Students' Association (EPSA), International Nursing Students' Association (INSA), European Nursing Students' Association (ENSA), International Federation of Medical Students' Associations (IFMSA), and the European Medical Students' Association (EMSA). It will be hosted by the Portuguese Nursing, Medical, Pharmacy and Health Technology students' associations.

Please visit our website! For any questions please don't hesitate to contact your IFMSA representatives Emmaline Brouwer and Nora van Merendonk!

Last updated on Monday 30 July 2007 at 21:11.