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Speaking during a webinar hosted by the United Church of Christ, panelists from the World Council of Churches (WCC) underscored the importance of churches’ involvement in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

South Sudanese Church leaders are appealing for urgent humanitarian assistance to meet the needs of their population, who have been left vulnerable by a mix of five crises, including floods and the COVID-19 pandemic.

At an informal dialogue, faith leaders gathered with representatives from governments, civil society, academia, and the United Nations to talk about financing adaptation, and loss and damage, related to climate change.

Participants at the annual Ecumenical School on Governance, Economics and Management are exploring how an Economy of Life is a key pillar of the Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace. The school is running from 19-30 August in Bogor, Indonesia. “We hope the Governance, Economics and Management School will empower participants to act, lobby for change and even influence socio-economic policymaking,” said Prof. Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri, deputy general secretary of the World Council of Churches.

The last of three capacity-building seminars on Human Resources and Church Leadership for Diakonia and Development took place in Maputo, Mozambique, 18-20 June. This most recent seminar was for Portuguese speakers in Africa, with participants coming mainly from Angola and Mozambique. The first two seminars - for French and English speakers respectively - were held in May in Cotonou, Bénin, and Nairobi, Kenya.

The 56th meeting of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission of the Churches on International Affairs took place in Bali, Indonesia, on 24 – 28 February, discussing many of the most critical concerns of churches in the region and around the world.

An ecumenical delegation coordinated by the World Council of Churches (WCC) visited Indonesia on 15-22 February, including the provinces of Papua and Papua Barat - where increasing violence and discrimination against indigenous Papuan people was recently highlighted in a joint statement by five UN human rights mandate-holders.

The South Sudan Council of Churches, United Nations World Food Programme, and UNICEF have signed an agreement to work in partnership towards peace building to realize food security.

“Financing for sustainable development represents the expression of an ethic of solidarity and sharing, including with generations that come after us and who will inherit whatever good or evil we have wrought”, said Peter Prove, director of International Affairs at the World Council of Churches (WCC) in a symposium at the United Nations headquarters, in New York, on 29 January.

Fifty years after its assembly in Uppsala, Sweden, decisively turned to public engagement, the WCC still seeks to engage and address issues of public concern and the common good.

Archbishop Antje Jackelén, primate of the Church of Sweden, opened the ACT Assembly on 28 October in Uppsala with a sermon reflecting on the theme of the assembly, “Hope in action – putting people first.”

Faith leaders and health service providers from across the globe gathered on 27 September for an interfaith prayer breakfast, to join their voices and commit their action to combat the spread of HIV and TB in children.

World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit spoke on “The Oneness of the Ecumenical Movement” at the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC) 11th General Assembly, being held in Kigali, Rwanda from 1-7 July.

On 29 June, the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) published guidance aimed at helping humanitarian agencies attune their work to the faith and background of people affected by conflict, disaster and displacement.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) participated in the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development Civil Society (UNCTAD) Forum held at the Palais de Nations in Geneva on 24 May ahead of the UNCTAD board meeting on 4-12 June.

Between 17–18 May, representatives of several religious denominations, theologians, economists, and experts in development and ecumenism gathered in São Paulo, Brazil, for the 3rd Dialogue on Ethics and Economics. They aim to build a common message to G20 leaders who will meet in Argentina later this year.

The third meeting of the Ecumenical Panel on a New International Financial and Economic Architecture (NIFEA) is underway in New York City from 21-23 April.

Dr Ulysses Burley III is serving as a WCC delegate to the 62nd Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations in New York City (CSW62), being held 12-23 March. Dr Burley, from Chicago, is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He currently serves on the WCC-Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance HIV Access to Treatment Working Group.