Stephen Doughty (PC 96-98) is Head of UK and EU Government Relations for Oxfam GB. He is also a member of the British UWC National Committee, and a former Chair.

 

“Growing up in Llantwit Major, right next door to Atlantic College, meant I had known about UWC since I was little,” explains Stephen. “In fact my family was a link family for the College, so we had hosted students since I was about five years old. I had always been very impressed with them -  but it wasn’t until I was about 15 that I started to think seriously about applying. Having previously been very science-orientated, I became more and more interested in politics and international issues, and the ethos of UWC began to really appeal to me.”

 

Having been accepted, Stephen was surprised to find himself allocated to Pearson College. “I was very excited, and when I arrived at the College it exceeded my expectations. The first three months completely bowled me over. It was an enormous challenge that took me beyond my horizons, and it was great to meet like-minded people from all over the world.”

 

Stephen also enjoyed the challenge of the IB programme. “The IB has proved to be very important for me,” he explains. “When I went on to study at Oxford, I found that the breadth of the IB programme meant that I had studied a much broader range of perspectives than I would have done through traditional A-Levels. The IB, and UWC more generally, also influenced the kind of courses I took as part of my undergraduate degree and my Masters  – Russian politics, environmental diplomacy and international relations – rather than the more UK-based subjects I think I would have done otherwise.”

 

After graduating, Stephen pursued his political interests, working as a researcher for an MP in Westminster and at the National Assembly for Wales, as well as as a constituency case worker, before deciding (partly on the recommendation of UWC friends) to undertake a Masters’ in International Security Studies at St Andrews University.

 

“I’m idealistic,” says Stephen, “but I’m also a pragmatist. The course appealed to me as it covered areas like conflict management and humanitarian operations, which appealed to me more than straightforward development or international relations courses. Also, there is an Centre for Terrorism Studies at St Andrews, which was fascinating, particularly in the aftermath of 9/11.

 

“After the Masters, I decided to look at working in the NGO sector, as well as party political work. I did an internship with the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in Denmark, and was then offered a job with World Vision. I really enjoyed the mix of politics and the issues I was passionate about, and in 2005 I was offered the job of co-ordinating World Vision’s work on the Make Poverty History campaign. That led to more political and public affairs work for World Vision, which in turn led me to my current position at Oxfam.

 

The work at Oxfam is fascinating. As one of the leading campaign organisations in Britain, the organisation tackles a broad range of issues, and can have a lot of influence both here and internationally. I advise mainly on UK politics, and do a lot of lobbying and information-gathering for Oxfam across the UK government. Climate change is one of the new areas we’re currently working on, trying to highlight the impact of climate changes on poorer countries, and trying to secure the resources to help them adapt to climate change. We frequently work with Oxfam offices in other countries, as well as other governments, both worldwide and within Europe, as we can often be more effective that way – for example, we recently helped promote an initiative by Norway to ban cluster bombs, which helped to shift the UK position on the issue. I am also involved in a lot of work we are doing around the G8 Summit in Germany this year to hold countries to the commitments they have made to increase aid. Sometimes the organisation almost feels like an alternative diplomatic service!”

 

Stephen also feels that UWC has given him a different personal outlook on the world. “I find the Kurt Hahn notion of the ‘whole person’ very inspiring, and I try and maintain that kind of balance in my life. The ‘whole person’ includes service to the outside community, service to your own community, and creative and active pursuits. I still try to challenge myself in those ways – I run a local Cub Scout group and sing, and I try and challenge myself in many different ways, despite being quite a cautious person sometimes!”