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The Pacific Conference of Churches joined other nongovernmental and civic groups on the streets of Suva, Fiji, to peacefully demonstrate against Japan’s dumping of Fukushima nuclear wastewater into the ocean.

The Pacific Conference of Churches is calling for “less talk and more action” that supports the resilience of Pacific communities affected by climate change at COP27 in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt.

The 5th Ecumenical Pilgrimage for Climate Justice from Poland to Glasgow crossed the English Channel from IJmuiden in the Netherlands to Newcastle-upon-Tyne in England on 11 October. They were given a warm welcome on site. 

The fourth edition of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Eco-School on Water, Food and Climate Justice will be held 18-24 January 2021 in the Pacific region in five countries (Fiji, Tonga, Vanuatu, Tuvalu & Solomon Islands).

Trees are being planted by people participating virtually in a ceremony that both commemorates the life of Dag Hammarskjöld, the second UN secretary-general, and sows seeds for West Papua’s return to the UN.

In a letter of solidarity to church leaders in the Solomon Islands, Fiji, Vanuatu and Tonga and the Pacific, World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Fr Ioan Sauca expressed sadness and concern over the recent devastation caused by Tropical Cyclone Harold.

Pacific islands experience lasting impacts of the 50 years of nuclear testing and the region has become a global hotspot of climate change, the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission of Churches on International Affairs (CCIA) learned in its meeting this week in Brisbane, Australia.

The pre-launch of the Lenten campaign “Seven Weeks for Water” was held in Suva, Fiji, on 21 January, under the theme “A Pilgrimage of Water Justice in the Pacific Region.” In 2020, the World Council of Churches (WCC) Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace has a regional focus in the Pacific region.

“The Pacific Conference of Churches welcomes you on board our ecumenical canoe, as we sail and voyage together beyond the fringing reefs and rocks of the many issues that affect us here in the Pacific and globally, and set sail with our eyes firmly fixed on the island of hope,” said Rev. Dr James Bhagwan, Pacific Conference of Churches general secretary as he welcomed participants of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace to Fiji, on 20 January.

“If we should be true to our faith, we cannot be quiet when we see what is happening,” reads the declaration of the Interfaith Liaison Committee to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to the United Nations climate change summit COP25 taking place in Madrid, Spain, 2-13 December. “We are voices that are driven by hope and compassion. In a most urgent situation to bend the emissions down faith traditions must contribute to the urgent transformation.”

“God is never indifferent to climate change that weakens the already weakened, impoverished and scattered populations throughout our world,” said Rev. Dr Nestor Friedrich, from Brazil, as he delivered the sermon during an ecumenical prayer service held on 8 December, in the Spanish Evangelical Church, in Madrid, during the United Nations climate change summit COP25.

As he shared the perspective of an indigenous person at a side event during the 25th Conference of Parties (COP25) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Madrid, Rev. Glen Chebon Kernell, urged people to adopt a deep respect for Mother Earth.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) was represented at a gathering of more than 40 organizations from across Europe involved in the Blue Community initiative. Blue Communities, a concept founded by the Council of Canadians and the Blue Planet Project, recognize water and sanitation as human rights, promote public control over water resources and ban or phase out the sale of bottled water in public facilities and at events.

Representatives from multiple faith and religious backgrounds came together in Madrid, Spain on 1 December to find common ground in preparation for the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP) 25 in Madrid, Spain.

In its continuing efforts to outlaw nuclear weapons, the WCC has issued public support for French Polynesia’s petition to the UN for redress for ongoing effects of nuclear testing there.

“It is our moral and ethical responsibility to take collective and immediate actions to address climate change and to safeguard life on our planet”, read the interfaith statement delivered by the World Council of Churches (WCC) to the plenary of COP23 on 16 November.