The case for sharing economic resources between the richest and poorest countries grew tragically stark in 2024. Read more about STWR’s activities over the past year and our future plans.
Contents
- Objectives
- Overview of the year
- Campaigning, activism and events
- Research, writing and publications
- Plans and projects for 2025/26
Objectives
STWR is a civil society organisation calling for extensive reforms to the world economy to ensure a fairer sharing of wealth, power and resources within and between nations. The organisation advocates for an international program of emergency relief to prevent life-threatening deprivation and end poverty-related deaths as a foremost global priority.
The objects of the Company are:
- To advance education and information about how global economic sharing can address the crises of poverty and inequality, climate change and environmental degradation, and conflict over natural resources.
- To promote human rights (as set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and subsequent United Nations conventions and declarations), in particular where to do so contributes to the prevention and relief of poverty anywhere in the world.
- To campaign for governments to share the world’s wealth and natural resources equitably and sustainably, both within and between nations.
Overview of the year
The case for sharing economic resources between the richest and poorest countries grew tragically stark in 2024. As highlighted on STWR’s website and social media platforms throughout the year, the number of people experiencing catastrophic hunger surged more than twofold, rising for the fifth consecutive year. The need for life-saving interventions remained critical due to conflicts, climate extremes and economic shocks, yet humanitarian funding to United Nations agencies faced a significant decline. Billionaire wealth again soared to record heights, while around half of the global population still lack any form of social safety net. The global goal of ending extreme poverty by 2030 is already out of reach and could take three more decades at current rates of progress.
These issues were the key focus for STWR’s web content and remained at the forefront of our campaigning activities. We continued to uphold our central cause for Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights—proclaiming everyone’s right to an adequate standard of living. As the Universal Declaration passed its 75th birthday, we persistently argued the importance of confronting economic inequality in the fight for a fairer world in which everyone has the basics of life guaranteed. Through our online activities and at public events, we used every opportunity to promote our vision of a reformed, strengthened United Nations that is equipped to prevent life-threatening deprivation as a foremost international priority.
That vision is increasingly urgent as many developing countries face their worse debt crisis in history, spending nearly half their budgets on repaying creditors. We joined the calls of civil society campaigners who demanded immediate debt cancellation for the Global South, way beyond the inadequate relief provided by the G20’s ‘common framework’. We supported the proposals of activists at the UN Summit for the Future to comprehensively reform the international financial architecture and global governance institutions, despite a disappointing summit outcome. We backed social movements who sought an increased voice for developing countries in the decision-making governance of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, as well as an end to austerity policies and the establishment of a new debt workout mechanism under the United Nations. We also closely monitored and reported on the G20 initiatives on global corporation tax, and the global agreement for levying a small tax on the world’s multimillionaires and billionaires—potentially raising billions of dollars to address inequality and climate change.
Another major campaigning issue for STWR was the planetary climate emergency—especially in the wake of President Trump’s re-election and the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris Agreement. With the Trump administration dismantling environmental regulations in favour of the oil and gas industry, it reinforced the need for vastly scaled up activism and mass protest actions as advocated in our book ‘The intersection of politics and spirituality in addressing the climate crisis’. In this vein, STWR supported the latest Civil Society Equity Review that highlighted the Global North’s refusal to pay up on climate finance or adopt a ‘fair shares’ approach to a just transition. We also supported civil society demands for implementing the ‘polluter pays’ principle, such as through taxing fossil fuel companies to grow the UN fund for loss and damage. At the UN climate talks held in Baku, we decried the lack of genuine public finance that was agreed by Global North countries, leaving developing countries to cover most of the bill for climate-induced destruction that they are least to blame for.
It’s clear that governments cannot adequately address climate change, end hunger or solve the debt crisis in the Global South unless military spending is diverted to social needs. STWR therefore continued to support campaigns for disarmament as countries increased their military expenditures to record highs, while slashing spending on humanitarian aid for people affected by wars. From the beginning of 2024, STWR also committed to supporting actions against the genocide in Gaza due to its immense significance for international law and human rights. This included our support of many calls from global civil society organisations for all governments to halt arms transfers to Israel, to secure an immediate ceasefire, and to restore aid to Gaza through the United Nations.
At the same time, we continued to raise awareness of the other ‘silent conflicts’ around the world where hunger is skyrocketing, often to the brink of famine as in Somalia and South Sudan. Many of these hunger crisis don’t make the news headlines, and yet—as advocated in our flagship book Heralding Article 25—they demand a massive international response in the face of political apathy and indifference.
Campaigning, activism and events
STWR attended numerous events throughout the year that enabled us to spread awareness of our campaign for Article 25 and sharing economic resources. This included the Scottish Green Party conferences in April and November which went well with our attendance of various side events, and with lots of interest in STWR’s stall that resulted in a number of book sales. In May, our London bus campaign went live with full-scale adverts on the rear of three buses on three separate routes running from Tottenham and Holloway garages. This was publicised locally and on our social media platforms to engage more people with our campaign, as reflected in our adverts that provocatively asked: Will you raise your voice for Article 25?
Further fundraising initiatives for our campaign included an art exhibition at the Resource for London centre in Holloway Road, North London, where STWR co-workers presented their art for sale and drew a lot of interest in our campaign materials. Ongoing fundraising efforts are geared to a more frequent and sustained publicity campaign that will allow us to find new and innovative ways to bring Article 25 into the consciousness of ordinary people.
Our regular online talks proceeded throughout the year, in which we outlined the current reality of extreme poverty across the world, and the need for human rights to be protected by the rule of law within every nation. One talk in June was geared towards an audience in Australia and New Zealand, after which several participants committed to starting up campaigning activities for Article 25 in their locality.
STWR attended many other activist events that aligned with our cause for sharing the world’s resources. In February, for example, we held a stall and participated in a festival of panel discussions and workshops under the banner ‘And Still We Rise’ that brought together social justice movements from around the world to inspire collective action. We supported many global days of action for a #CeasefireNOW, as well as regular mass demonstrations to end the catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza. These events were an opportunity to initiate discussions about our campaign with other activists, promote our literature and generate support for the cause of Article 25.
We also lent our support to numerous events for global climate justice, such as the week of Climate Justice Finance Mobilisations in April, actions for the UK to pay its ‘climate debt’ held in June, and the London march organised by the Climate Justice Coalition in November. We joined UK-based mobilisations around the time of the United Nations climate negotiations in November (COP29), helping to amplify the various campaigns that reflected our cause for global economic sharing—such as upscaled public finance for Loss and Damage, taxing profiteers and polluters, and redirecting funding for fossil fuel subsidies
Research, writing and publications
Alongside our campaigning and outreach activities, a main priority for STWR co-workers in 2024 concerned the administration of our books, reports and other print publications. Our collection of books on the theme ‘studies on the principle of sharing’ are being maintained with Troubadour publications and sold worldwide via online outlets or directly from our online shop. Contracts have been renewed for our print editions of Heralding Article 25, The intersection of politics and spirituality in addressing the climate crisis, Towards a universal basic income for all humanity, The commons of humanity, The sharing economy: Inaugurating an Age of the Heart, as well as our popular collection of articles Studies on the principle of sharing. We continued to promote these books through our online and outreach activities, while also publicising our other reports and campaign resources that provide much inspiration for people to get involved in STWR’s work and be part of a growing movement for economic sharing worldwide.
Four new books are in process of publication, beginning with a large volume on world governance (prepared over several years and due for imminent release), and a book of quotations on spiritual-political themes by STWR’s founder, Mohammed Sofiane Mesbahi. These will be followed by a book of poetry that explore the more spiritual aspects of sharing the world’s resources, potentially attracting a new, broader global audience. An important book on mass public demonstrations from the perspective of the Ageless Wisdom teachings is also ready to be drafted in due course.
Our Japanese website continues to mirror our English language site, fully translating all STWR’s published content including our books. Our other foreign language pages have also continued to be updated with translations of STWR’s books and reports into German, Italian, Slovenian, and Spanish. German translations of our forthcoming books have also been largely prepared.
We have continued to publish guest content throughout the year where it relates to our campaign for global economic sharing, alongside our own blogs and articles that highlight our cause for implementing Article 25. Our social media networks on X, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram also remain a key medium for STWR to reach a wider audience and generate support for our campaign.
Plans and projects for 2025/26
STWR members have formulated the following core goals and objectives for our work in the coming year. We aim to:
- Update the educational resources on STWR’s website to explicate our simple and transformative vision—for a historic mass movement for Article 25 beyond borders, as set out in many of STWR’s books and publications. The potential of our campaign is enormous and will depend on the hard work of co-workers to significantly raise our profile and promote the cause for economic sharing. We seek to inspire ordinary people the world over to unite behind a single, peaceful and lawful demand for governments to guarantee Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights for every individual and family. Our niche as an organisation is to campaign for an international emergency programme in line with the Brandt Commission recommendations, updated to reflect the 21st century realities of climate change and a worsening ecological crisis.
- Use our website and social media channels to raise greater public awareness of the worsening global hunger emergency which remains underreported in the mainstream media.
- Attend all the major gatherings and events that relate to our campaign for Article 25, mainly in the UK but also in Western Europe and occasionally the United States when possible. We can host stalls, give talks and presentations, and network with other professionals in the field to raise more awareness about STWR’s work and our campaign.
- Expand our volunteer network of campaigners across the UK and in other countries worldwide, especially the United States. Volunteers can host their own presentations about the Article 25 campaign, fundraise and engage in myriad grassroots activities.
- Seek funding from the public and any grant-making bodies to help advertise and promote our campaign.
- Progress our fundraisers for billboard advertising to promote the Article 25 campaign on buses, trains or other mediums across the UK and potentially overseas.
- Complete a website refresh in 2025 as our existing website platform becomes out-of-date. This will be an opportunity to reorganise and update our content to better reflect our campaign focus and priorities.
- Expand the ‘learn more’ content on our website that provides an easily digestible introduction to the ‘what?’, ‘why?’ and ‘how?’ of sharing the world’s resources, along with frequently asked questions and information about how to get involved with our campaign.
- Publish and promote our new book on world governance which blends both political and spiritual themes. This publication will be closely followed by another important book that gives greater insight into the spiritual significance of peaceful mass protests for Article 25. In 2025/6, we will also publish a compilation of insightful quotes and a book of poetry on political-spiritual themes by STWR’s founder, Mohammed Sofiane Mesbahi.
- Continue to promote our past publications under the theme ‘Studies on the principle of sharing’, particularly our flagship campaigning book ‘Heralding Article 25: A people’s strategy for world transformation’.
Support STWR’s ongoing research and advocacy work
Our work would not be possible without your support. STWR is funded entirely through private donations from individuals, and we do not receive any funding from governments or other institutions. Nor are we affiliated with any political party or corporate enterprise. Since we are not a registered charity and all of our funding is provided on an unrestricted basis, we remain free to take an explicitly political position on the global issues we address, and we are able to channel our limited income directly towards our research and advocacy. As is currently the case for many progressive organisations, our small team of staff and volunteers are facing mounting budgetary pressures. Your donations can help us to maintain our website and continue researching, writing and communicating our work while generating support within the global justice movement for the principle of sharing as a solution to global crises. Please consider making a donation by following this link: sharing.org/donate
