- "Water is becoming a scarce commodity. We encourage governments not to use it as a privilege but as a right for people. Metsi ke botshelo - water is life." David J. Modiega, general secretary, Christian Council of Botswana
For the first time, the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC) has given prominent space to the water and environmental crises at its general assembly in Maputo, Mozambique, 7-12 December.
The assembly, which had "Environment and Spirituality" as one of nine sub-themes, came at a time when a cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe illustrated how pollution, environmental degradation and inadequate water supply are affecting people in Africa.
Speakers and participants in the series of workshops on environment and spirituality, which was supported by the Ecumenical Water Network, highlighted the interconnectedness of environment, water, and food crisis. From all over Africa experiences were shared of how people are losing their livelihoods because of climate change and environmental degradation.
"We believe that addressing the ecological crisis is [ ] about our worldview, our identity our morality, our spirituality," affirms the final Maputo Covenant which was adopted by the delegates at the end of the assembly. "We affirm that earth keeping is a crucial dimension of the church's mission and we need to confess of the times when the church has been unfaithful in this mandate or at worst, acted and taught against [it]."
Resources:
"Celebrating God's Creation" - Report and Recommendations on "Environment and Spirituality" (58 kb)
Presentations from "Environment and Spirituality" workshop:
- "Mission priorities: What do you see as the priorities of the Church?" by Geoffrey Davies, Southern African Faith Communities Environment Institute (2.5 MB; no pictures / low resolution: 1.6 MB)
- "The Reasons Why Climate is Changing and Consequences to Africa" by Samuel B. Mukasa, University of Michigan (5.3 MB)
- "Climate Change & other Challenges Presentation" by Strike Mkandla, United Nations Environment Programme (1.5 MB; no pictures / low resolution: 151 KB)
- "Rainwater harvesting for increased agricultural production in Kenya" by Dr. David M. Mburu, Kenya Rainwater Association (3.2 MB; nopictures / low resolution: 117 KB)
- "Sustainable Agriculture: The Link Between Environment and Spirituality" by Wilson Kinyua, Bell Consulting Services (2.0 MB; no pictures / low resolution: 123 KB)
Photo Gallery: Participants share their views about the significance of water.
