Hands Up For Darfur

Hands up for Darfur is an initiative that was set up in September 2006 by a group of Oxford students who were frustrated by the inaction over the devastating crisis in Darfur that has been raging since 2003. The committee is dedicated to raising awareness and funds for relief agencies in Darfur.

In their first year, they organised an Awareness Day at the Oxford Union with a panel discussion chaired by Jon Snow and attended by Andrew Mitchell, Shadow Secretary of State for International Development, Anne Penketh, the Independent's Diplomatic Editor, Dr Moorcraft, Director of the Centre for Foreign Policy Analysis, Jonathan Steele, Senior Foreign Correspondent of the Guardian, James Smith, CEO of UK-based anti-genocide charity and Patricia Parker MBE, Founder of Kids for Kids, as well as a ball at the Oxford Town Hall which raised £50,000 for their two chosen charities, Médecins Sans Frontières Darfur, and a local charity called Kids for Kids, engaged in numerous projects in villages under threat in the area.

Now in their second year, Hands Up For Darfur continues to hold awareness events including a Question Time-style Darfur debate in February as well as fundraising events such as the Hands Up Fashion Show which also raised awareness through coverage on Vogue.com, Elle.com and in Tatler as well as critical acclaim from Anna Wintour (Editor-in-Chief of American Vogue):
'The Hands Up For Darfur charity runway show created by oxford students is a great example of something I've always believed in; that fashion conscious can also mean having a conscience.'