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Churches, civil society organisations and almost 100 children and adolescents - many of whom experience poverty and violence daily - attended a consultation on 11 August organized by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in the town of Pilar, north of the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

“What?! You are going to the Barrio Borro? Sorry, I can’t drive you there, and no other taxi driver will do that for you. It is too dangerous to go there.” These were the reactions Frederique Seidel heard when she revealed her intention to visit the Obra Ecuménica Barrio Borro, in Uruguay.

In a 9 July letter, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit invited the WCC global fellowship and all people of good will to participate in the World Week of Peace in Palestine and Israel on 16-23 September.

The World Council of Churches invites member churches, faith-based communities, and civil society organizations around the world to join together for a week of prayer for just peace for all in Palestine and Israel on 16-23 September 2018.

At the Conference on World Mission and Evangelism, held in Tanzania in March, WCC communications interviewed Rene van Dongen, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Deputy Representative. Van Dongen spoke about Churches’ Commitments to Children, which is now supported by more than 200 churches and partners worldwide. The initiative was created when the WCC and UNICEF facilitated a broad consultative process around the question ‘How can churches use their influence to improve children’s lives?’

WHAT: A Global Church Partners Forum on “Children on the Move,” including refugees as well forcibly displaced children and adolescents. The forum will provide a platform for a diverse group of Christian faith-based organisations to reflect on how they are helping to end violence against children on the move.

Masimba Kuchera, a commissioner for the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission of the Churches on International Affairs, introduced the initiative “Churches’ Commitments to Children” before the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child in Mali on 28 April.

Representatives of UN agencies such as the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization have spoken of how religious communities and churches can play a key part in ending violence in early childhood.

Speaking in Stockholm, Sweden, on 14-15 February, WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit addressed the End Violence Solutions Summit, part of the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children. “On behalf of the WCC, I am very pleased to announce that we commit to supporting our 348 member churches in their efforts to prevent and respond to violence against children," said Tveit.

Speaking at a reception hosted by UNICEF on 22 January, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit offered an ecumenical vision on migration, inclusion and justice.

At a meeting on 19 January, the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) pledged to not only deepen their existing collaboration but also explore even more joint projects to protect and provide for children.

“Christ is born” declares a drawing by Kenyan schoolboy Richard Ochieng, whose work is featured on the WCC’s Christmas card this year.

In many ways, the World Council of Churches (WCC) pilgrimage of justice and peace hinges on protecting, advocating, and educating people about human rights. In Nigeria, a series of workshops in November promoted human rights across a number of WCC programme areas, including the Churches’ Commitments to Children, preventing gender-based violence, and engaging with the United Nations human rights system.

Celebrations with children will take place around the world on 20 November for World Children’s Day, and the World Council of Churches (WCC) is inviting all to join.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has developed a platform to facilitate networking and collaboration among churches and partners in the implementation of the Churches' Commitments to Children. The digital map portrays and links the efforts of churches and partners involved in efforts to improve children’s lives.

Churches can make a huge difference in children’s lives and therefore improve the whole community, strongly believes Frederique Seidel, World Council of Churches (WCC) special advisor on children’s rights. To help the churches in their efforts in improving the wellbeing of children, WCC has published this year the invitation and resource for churches, “Churches’ Commitments to Children”.

Participating in a new World Vision campaign called “It takes a World to End Violence against Children,” World Council of Churches (WCC) deputy general secretary Prof. Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri spoke at a Geneva-based event on 13 June, reflecting that churches and organizations working together can prevent and address “a tragic reality.”

The World Council of Churches strongly condemns the car bomb attack on evacuees in Aleppo on 15th April, in which at about 100 people are believed killed, many of them children.