WI has an unrivalled reputation as a voice of reason, integrity and intelligence on issues that matter to women and their communities. The WI campaigns on a wide range of social and environment justice issues concerning women both at home and abroad. Chemicals and health, children's diets and climate change are just some of the issues on the WI's campaign agenda.
NATIONAL RESOLUTIONS
Every year resolutions are put forward by WIs or federations, and every year one or two are selected for discussion and voting by WIs at their May meetings. The votes of the WIs are then taken by delegates to the Annual General Meeting of the National Federation of WIs. The AGM in 2012 will be held in London at the Royal Albert Hall.
In 2012 the resolution will be about the provision of midwives.
"There are chronic shortages of midwives. The NFWI calls on the Government to increase its investment in the training, employment and retention of midwives in England and Wales to ensure services are adequately resourced and are able to deliver a high standard of care" Moved by Horwich WI, Lancashire Federation.
In 2011the AGM was held in June in Liverpool where Eastwick was represented by Sheila Webber.
Two resolutions were chosen.
Proposed Mega Farms. This meeting abhors the practice of factory farming particularly large animals such as pigs and cows and urges HM Govt to ensure planning permission is not granted for such projects. Discussion at Eastwick was led by Jill Elliott and the majority of members voted in favour of the resolution.
At the AGM the proposer spoke from the heart with considerable knowledge and experience. It seemed like a foregone conclusion that the resolution would be carried. But the NFU president outlined an equally heartfelt case for the opposition and the damage it would do to the progress of UK farming. It was felt that there was some confusion about the difference between mega farms and factory farming. The debate was opened to the floor where concerns about the wording of the resolution were voiced. Many members were clearly unhappy and the atmosphere got quite heated! It was proposed that the meeting "move to the next agenda item" - a contingency allowed in the standing orders. This meant that there would be no vote on the resolution which would be better than a 'no' vote because it would leave the subject open for discussion in the future. After much consultation with the powers that be it was agreed that there would be a vote to move to the next item on the agends. It was passed, and the members had expressed their views and won the day!
The Closure of Local Libraries This meeting urges HM Government to maintain support for local libraries as an essential local educational and information resource. Discussion at Eastwick was led by Ann Renn and the resolution was approved by an overwhelming majority. It was passed at Liverpool with a 98% majority. As a result, NFWI launched the "Love Your Libraries" campaign. Read more
"LET'S COOK" project
"Let's Cook" is a nationwide project run jointly by NFWI and the Food Standards Agency. In this project WI members give cookery lessons to young mothers and mothers from deprived areas. Some of the mothers are as young as thirteen and many have no parental back up. They learn the basics of cooking and food hygiene and bake dishes that are nutritious and appealing to their children. After hearing at the March 2009 meeting that a "Let's Cook" course is being run in Leatherhead, several members have signed up to help at this very worthwhile project.
CLOSE THE DOOR ON ENERGY WASTE
NFWI has teamed up with the "Close the Door" campaign to encourage as many people as possible to think before keeping shop doors open and wasting valuable heat during the cold winter months.
VILLAGE PLAN
Many Eastwick members were to be seen at a village meeting on 21 July 2008 concerning a possible planning application to demolish successful local shops in order to build a supermarket. Bookham is a small, well balanced and flourishing shopping village with successful independent butchers, greengrocers and a wet fishmonger. A supermarket would be totally out of character and spoil this community. 200 people were allowed in the Barn Hall for the meeting at which residents and local councillors aired their views. More than twice that number packed the car park and the road outside to add their weight to this protest. As a result of the widespread protests, a group called Bookham Vision was set up to find out the wishes of the people of Bookham. Comprehensive questionnaires were sent to all Bookham households covering such subjects as housing, transport, and employment and after many months of collating all the facts, in February 2011 the Bookham Vision working group presented their findings to the community at a meeting in The Old Barn Hall. Look at their website for news of the progress of their recommendations.
The immediate threat of the supermarket seems to have gone away - but who knows?.