Charlie Ensor

Freelance Journalist

United Kingdom

I am a compelling communicator and long-form copywriter. I am an effective communicator, using my skills as a journalist to inform readers and my ability as a copywriter to get the same audience to take action. As a campaigner for aid and development, I write to inform as well as to advocate for change.

As a writer I seek to communicate with my audience on a personal level, bringing them closer to the story through effective use of words and narrative. My role is always to deepen my audience's understanding of any topic and allowing them to interact on a personal level.

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Portfolio

Guardian

the Guardian
02/22/2016
Biometrics in aid and development: game-changer or trouble-maker?

If your smartphone requires a fingerprint to unlock it, or if you have cleared airport customs using a retinal scan, you've used biometric technology in some form or other. The use of this technology has made our lives more efficient in many ways, and it is now being used to make the process of delivering aid more straightforward and cost-effective.

Humanosphere Podcasts

Humanosphere
03/03/2017
The fight to end female circumcision in rural Kenya

For this Humanosphere podcast, we explore one community's battle to end the practice of female genital mutilation. Our Nairobi-based correspondent Charlie Ensor interviews the leader of an organization based in northern, rural Kenya, where this harmful, traditional surgical technique is illegal but still widely practiced.

Humanosphere
01/13/2017
Using insurance to protect the poorest against climate change risks

http://www.humanosphere.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Vision-Fund_mixdown.mp3 For this week's Humanosphere podcast we'll be talking about how climate risk insurance can protect the world's poorest communities against climate risks, which can cost them their livelihoods and wider development. We spoke to Stewart McCulloch, global insurance director of Vision Fund , the microfinance operation of World Vision, to find out how the world's poorest farmers can thrive and not just survive after...

Humanosphere
12/09/2016
After Mosul, what's next for refugees, and Iraq's future?

http://www.humanosphere.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Rob-Cole-Iraq-Mosul.mp3 The humanitarian fallout from Mosul is expected to be the worst of 2016. That's really saying something, given the scale of the Syrian crisis, and what's happening in Yemen and South Sudan. As the battle rages on and humanitarian agencies have received, or are waiting to receive refugees, the media's focus hasn't been as much on the human side of the story.

Humanosphere
09/09/2016
Podcast: Breaking down the complex crisis in Yemen - Humanosphere

http://www.humanosphere.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Scott-Paul2_mixdown.mp3 While summer has been restful (and eventful, world tragedy-wise), our podcasts had to return to reality sometime, so here we are. For our first podcast of the fall, our U.K. correspondent Charlie Ensor talked to Oxfam America's humanitarian policy adviser Scott Paul on the current crisis in Yemen, which is now in its second year.

Humanosphere
10/21/2016
Shining a spotlight on government repression in Ethiopia

http://www.humanosphere.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Hallelujah-Lulie_mixdown.mp3 For this week's podcast, Humanosphere takes a look at the current situation in Ethiopia with our guest, Hallelujah Lulie, a postgraduate at the London School of Economics and former journalist covering the political and security situation in the country.

Humanosphere

Humanosphere
02/23/2017
Report: Human rights deteriorating as authoritarianism rises in E. Africa

NAIROBI - Conflict in the Horn of Africa and Great Lakes Region, along with increasingly authoritarian behavior by governments, has caused a rapid decline in human rights in countries across the region, a new report says. Amnesty International's annual report on human rights over the last year highlights a regression in human rights across the East African region.

Humanosphere
02/09/2017
Kenya: Plan to close world's largest refugee camp ruled 'unconstitutional'

The Kenyan high court has declared plans to close the world's largest refugee camp and send more than 300,000 refugees to war-torn Somalia as "unlawful." The court found that Joseph Nkaissery, Kenya's interior cabinet minister, acted beyond his powers in ordering the closure of Dadaab, the world's biggest refugee camp.

Humanosphere
02/06/2017
Homophobia costs countries $100 billion a year, economist argues

Gay, lesbian, transgender and other people who represent gender or sexual diversities face enormous stigma in their communities, by one estimate undermining the potential economic contribution these people could be making worldwide by $100 billion annually. This figure, calculated by lead UNAIDS researcher and health economist Erik Lamontagne, is at best a conservative estimate because data on some groups is limited.

Humanosphere
01/26/2017
What just happened in The Gambia is a big deal for democracy in Africa

Casual readers who pay attention to politics across sub-Saharan Africa may be forgiven for assuming many government leaders tend to give up power very reluctantly, often only after some kind of violent conflict. That's why what happened in The Gambia recently (and they do insist you capitalize The, by the way) is so historical and promising.

Humanosphere
01/12/2017
Kenyan president signs controversial election bill into law

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta signed a controversial election amendment into law on Monday, requiring back-up plans to count votes if electronic voting systems fail during the election in August, according to media reports. The amendment would allow the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission to come up with a back-up plan, but did not specifically say that plan would include a manual count, according to .

Humanosphere
01/04/2017
U.K.'s cash transfer programs are assailed and lauded, all in one week

LONDON - After a Conservative MP said that the U.K. Department for International Development's (DFID) cash transfer projects in Pakistan are "exporting the dole," Prime Minister Theresa May staunchly defended Britain's foreign aid commitments and reaffirmed the effectiveness of cash transfers programs. Following claims by Conservative MP Nigel Evans this week at a development committee meeting, the ran a story strongly criticizing these projects.

Humanosphere
12/07/2016
Can drug firms increase health-care access, or just their profits?

BASEL, Switzerland - The controversial Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis has started work to expand health-care access in low-income countries through its nonprofit Novartis Foundation. The role of pharmaceutical companies in developing countries usually begins and ends with drug supplies. The expansion into a role that builds health systems is stirring all kinds of questions.

Humanosphere
11/24/2016
Creating the conditions for a new era of African prosperity: A chat with Calestous Juma -...

The election of Donald Trump to become President of the U.S. and the U.K. vote to leave the European Union, aka Brexit, is obviously of global significance - especially when it comes to international trade and so-called 'globalization.' While the focus largely has been on how these political upheavals will impact the West and Asia, many in Africa are also worried.

Humanosphere
11/15/2016
U.N. says Britain's austerity measures violate the rights of disabled people

Cutbacks in the Britain's social care and welfare budgets have "systematically violated" disabled people's rights, according to the United Nations. The U.N. claims in a report that the U.K.'s austerity policy measures implemented in 2010, which slashed spending on public programs to reduce Britain's deficit, have adversely affected disabled people's right to work and to live to a standard quality of life.

Humanosphere
09/15/2016
Millions face new hunger threat in west and central Africa - Humanosphere

Conflict and climate change are creating a burgeoning hunger crisis in west and central Africa. With funds being shifted to meet other crises, such as Syria, many worry that the international community will not have the resources necessary to help feed those most in need in a part of sub-Saharan Africa not accustomed to such food insecurity.

Humanosphere
08/16/2016
Congo at risk of being overwhelmed by yellow fever - Humanosphere

A large outbreak of yellow fever in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has already put millions of people at risk and is threatening to become a major epidemic across neighboring countries, if not all of tropical and sub-tropical Africa. Yellow fever is a mosquito-borne viral disease that usually does not kill but causes jaundice, pain and disability.

Humanosphere
06/23/2016
Brexit: Tough questions remain even after the votes are tallied - Humanosphere

LONDON - As people across the United Kingdom cast their votes to either Remain or Leave, the U.K.'s position as a leader in global development hangs in the balance. Whether the U.K. stays in the EU or not, tough questions remain on how to deal with immigration and poverty in a globalized world.

Humanosphere
06/10/2016
Pakistan may have turned a historic corner in the battle against polio - Humanosphere

Pakistan may be on its way to finally ridding itself of polio, if a small environmental survey is truly representative of the country as a whole. The polio virus, which only infects humans but can spread in the environment usually through contaminated sewage or water, has been eliminated through vaccination in all but two countries, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Humanosphere
06/17/2016
Jo Cox was 'dedicated to getting us to live up to our promises' - Humanosphere

Yesterday afternoon Jo Cox was shot and killed after a meeting in her constituency. While her constituents and Britain have lost a devoted and hard-working lawmaker, the world has lost a campaigner for justice and equality. Last year Cox, a self-proclaimed "proud Yorkshire lass" was among a new cadre of Labour MPs elected into Parliament on an impressive mandate from her fellow constituents.

Humanosphere
04/11/2016
40,000 face hunger as floods hit eastern Democratic Republic of Congo - Humanosphere

Flooding in the Katanga Province, southeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, has destroyed houses, farms and livelihoods, and it is thought that 40,000 people face food shortages. Without a contingent climate risk adaption strategy in place, and with the global effects of El Niño set to continue, it is likely that Katanga could face further flooding and humanitarian emergency.

WhyDev

WhyDev Blog
11/15/2016
Political bargaining in the refugee crisis | WhyDev Blog

The international community is failing to share responsibility in the increasingly complex refugee crisis. Repatriation schemes have come under fire for favouring political expediency over the safety of refugees returning to dangerous contexts in their home countries. Charlie Ensor explains.

Medium

Medium
09/11/2015
Nutrition attrition

Can we end the 'silent crisis of malnutrition' within the next generation? The current framework of global targets for eradicating poverty, the MDGs, are set to end this month. But what have we achieved?

RESULTS UK

RESULTS UK
06/28/2016
Beyond Aid: Can economic growth and prosperity overcome poverty by 2030?

At this year's National Conference "International development in a changing world", leading thinkers, campaigners and practitioners came together to debate the most current topics in international development. RESULTS campaigner Charlie Ensor has put together his reflections on what the role of the private sector, governments and institutions are in providing economic opportunities for all and overcoming poverty.

Skiddle

Skiddle.com
GoGo Penguin interview

Charlie Ensor spoke to GoGo Penguin ahead of Liverpool Music Week about their forthcoming Live at Abbey Road EP, recording a film score, the state of jazz music, their creative process and more. . The latest entertainment news from Liverpool - Skiddle: The UKs best What\'s On Guide