Stephen Law from EMG, South-Africa: in memory of Mandela
There have been so many tributes from so many people, that anything I write seems insignificant. After all, I can’t say I knew him or ever met him, and I don’t have a memorable “Mandela and Me” moment to share. But like me, there are millions of ordinary people in this country and all around the world, who never met him, yet could not help being touched in some profound way by his extraordinary life.
How one man could engender such a scale of outpouring of tributes and respect is hard to comprehend.
And in all of what people say about Madiba, and how he touched their lives, there is one characteristic that invariably surfaces – No, he was not a saint! Yet he had an extraordinary ability to do a very ordinary thing – to see and acknowledge those he met as fellow human beings . It did not matter whether you were one of his former jailers, or his close political comrade, a foreign prince or a pauper – you were first and foremost a human being, worthy of respect not for what you were, but for who you were.
Sadly, so many of the injustices in that we struggle against stem from our inability to relate to each other in this most simple and humane way. To corporate bosses we are faceless consumers in a heartless market. To politicians we are potential voters. To economists we are income brackets, statistics and percentages. To each other we are either “us” to be embraced, or “them” to be treated with suspicion. Remove the real people from the equation and real suffering becomes merely the “collateral damage” in achieving you aims, unfortunate but unavoidable.
Madiba would never tolerate “collateral damage”. He showed us that it is possible to be a father, a lawyer, a fighter, a politician, a state president – whatever you are or want to be – without losing the humility that makes us truly human.
R.I.P.
Read more about this subject
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article / 13 juni 2025
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News / 6 juni 2025
Both ENDS at the UN Ocean Conference: voicing our environmental justice concerns about the “Blue Economy”
Next week, the United Nations Ocean Conference will take place in Nice, France. This conference is focused on the conservation and sustainable use of coasts, seas and marine resources. Both ENDS colleague Murtah Shannon will be attending. We’ve asked him to explain a bit more about his plans.
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News / 5 juni 2025
Op-ed: New trading partners, but not on the same terms
Since President Trump's trade war and tariffs, international trade has once again been thrust into the spotlight. In Europe and the Netherlands, there are growing calls for new free trade agreements to be concluded as quickly as possible, as reflected in recent opinions in FD and de Volkskrant. But that is the wrong reflex, writes our colleague Marius Troost.
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News / 4 juni 2025
Demanding Shell’s Accountability for decades of pollution in Niger Delta
Both ENDS and our Nigerian partner Kebetkache Women Development & Research Centre attended Shell’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), on May 20th, in London, to demand transparency and accountability for Shell Plc’s opaque divesment in the Niger Delta.
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Blog / 3 juni 2025
A food forest as an inspiring oasis between monoculture fields
Recently, we visited food forest Ketelbroek with a group of colleagues. This project was initiated by food forest pioneer Wouter van Eck and our own Pieter Jansen. What a beautiful place! Located between monocrop fields of ryegrass, beetroot and potatoes, the food forest is a green oasis. Birdsong fills the air and there is a constant buzz and fluttering all around. Hares, badgers, foxes and wild boars are regular visitors. And let's not forget the beavers.
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News / 20 mei 2025
Both ENDS and partners demand Shell to clean up the Niger Delta before divesting
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News / 9 mei 2025
Women’s leadership in agroecology flourishes in Eastern and Southern Africa
On 12 and 13 February 2025, women from Kenya, Uganda, and Zimbabwe gathered in Nairobi for the Africa Women Leaders in Agroecology (AWOLA) Regional Networking Forum. The event marked a significant moment in the leadership programme of PELUM Kenya, which empowers young women in their role as leaders in the agroecological transition. This project was made possible thanks to support from Both ENDS as part of the Fair, Green and Global (FGG) Alliance.
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External link / 29 april 2025
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Blog / 23 april 2025
The power of trust
Trust builds trust. That is what I have learned from how Both ENDS works - within our team, with partners in joint strategies and advocacy, and in our relationships with partners as a funder. Trust is the foundation. It is what allows compassion to grow, what gives rise to hope, and what fuels real solidarity. This is especially powerful in contrast to the prevailing global trend of political and international leaders who prioritize hard measures and self-interest, ignoring relations of trust. It is even more reason for us to share what we have experienced when we put trust first.
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Letter / 15 april 2025
African civil society urges Oman against EACOP support as east Africa trade expo kicks off
Just one day before the Oman East Africa Trade and Investment
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Blog / 11 april 2025
FMO is very pleased with its own success – now the local population still needs to be
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News / 7 april 2025
Food forest Ketelbroek: where food production and biodiversity come together
When Both ENDS-colleagues visit partners, they often go on a "field trip" to see how our joint work affects people and communities. This year, we did the same in the Netherlands. Food forestry pioneer Wouter van Eck demonstrates a group of Both ENDS partners how regenerative agriculture can offer solutions to the climate and biodiversity crises.
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Publication / 1 april 2025
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Blog / 31 maart 2025
International cooperation and solidarity are in the interest of both the Netherlands and Africa
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External link / 28 maart 2025
Eerlijke handel en gelijkwaardige relaties: pas dán kan Kenia echt op eigen benen staan
This op-ed is available in Dutch.
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Blog / 27 maart 2025
Fair trade and equal partnerships: only then can Kenya stand on its own
Several media outlets, including de Volkskrant, focused last week on the shift from “aid” to “trade,” partly in response to the state visit of the Dutch royal couple to Kenya. The idea is that it would be beneficial for Kenya to stand on its own two feet. A beautiful ideal—one I whole heartedly believe in. But this ideal can only become a reality if equality is at the heart of trade and international cooperation.
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News / 25 maart 2025
Urgent call to Shell: Don’t leave the Niger Delta without cleaning up decades of pollution
Last week, Shell reported that it officially completed the sale of its on-shore oil assets in the Niger Delta, leaving behind a vast oil pollution caused by 70 years of oil extraction in the region.
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Letter / 25 maart 2025
Letter to Shell's CEO and plc Executive Committee: don’t leave the Niger Delta without cleaning up
Today, on Shell Capital Markets Day 2025, Both ENDS together with 195 international and Nigerian of civil society organisations is sending an open letter to Shell’s Executive Committee demanding a full cleanup of the SPDC pollution legacy and transparency on the cleanup process.
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News / 21 maart 2025
Dutch Royal couple visits Thogoto Forest: a green oasis on the outskirts of Nairobi
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News / 18 maart 2025
Abuses surrounding TotalEnergies‘ LNG project in Mozambique are piling up; Dutch support irresponsible
On Friday 14 March, the French Public Prosecutor's Office announced that it would launch an official investigation into TotalEnergies’ involvement in involuntary manslaughter during the attacks on Palma, the location of their LNG project. This umpteenth abuse makes it clear that the Netherlands cannot in any way provide public support for this project.