Oxfam is an international charity based in
Oxford,
UK, that organizes
famine relief and promotes development. It was founded in
England in
1942 as the
Oxford Committee for Famine Relief by Canon Theodore Richard Milford (
1896–
1987), with a mission to send food through the
Allied blockade to the citizens of Nazi-occupied
Greece. The first overseas branch of Oxfam was founded in
Canada in
1963. The committee changed its name to its
telegraph address,
OXFAM, in
1965.
Shops
Oxfam opened the first charity shop in Britain in Broad Street, Oxford in 1947. Today it operates approximately 800 shops through Britain as well as a number in other countries. Over 70 of the organization's shops in the UK are specialist Oxfam Bookshops, making them the largest retailer of second-hand books in the United Kingdom.
Famine relief
Though Oxfam's initial concern was the provision of food to relieve famine the charity has, over the years, developed strategies against the causes of famine. In addition to food and medicine Oxfam also provides tools to enable people to become self-supporting and opens markets of international trade where crafts and produce from poorer regions of the world can be sold at a fair price to benefit the producer.
Oxfam today, in addition to traditional famine relief, works on these issues:
External links
