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South Sudanese church leaders continued to amplify hope for their country, as the people quietly marked the 8th Independence Day, without an official government celebration.
The world’s newest nation which became an independent state on 9 July 2011, is facing enormous challenges including insecurity, economic stagnation and famine due to a new conflict.

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.”

As churches worldwide focus on the “Action Week for Food” in October, increasing numbers of people going hungry due to violent conflicts, failed harvests and rising food costs are compelling faith-based organizations to offer urgent intervention.

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.

This week world leaders are gathered in Davos under the very theme of “Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World”. They do so at a time when we see poverty amongst plenty; hunger and thirst in the midst of abundance; shocking disparities in the quality of life between neighboring communities: real problems that the world has the potential and the possibilities to resolve.

The huge impacts of businesses on the communities in which they operate often bring benefits, but companies can disregard and even harm people’s rights in pursuit of economic gain. The WCC, ACT Alliance and the Lutheran World Federation hosted a side event at the 6th United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights in Geneva on 28 November, in this context.

As part of a Call to Action issued just before an annual meeting of the leaders of the world’s largest economies, the WCC, ACT Alliance and All Africa Conference of Churches urged G20 leaders to take action to overcome hunger and sustain justice and peace in the Horn of Africa.

The first ever WCC Eco-School on Water, Food and Climate Justice will be held 24 July to 3 August, hosted by the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian Blantyre Synod. Applications are now open with a deadline of 11 June (deadline extended).

With a prayer service on Ash Wednesday in Sealite Mihret Orthodox cathedral in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the WCC's Ecumenical Water Network began its annual Lenten campaign “Seven Weeks for Water”. This year during Lent it will raise awareness of water justice issues in Africa.

Joining efforts to explore how to move from dependency on fossil fuel to a sustainable future, faith representatives gathered at the Indonesian Pavilion at COP22 in Marrakech, Morocco on 8 November, for an event hosted by the Indonesian Ministry of Environment and Forestry.

Delegations from the ACT Alliance, Lutheran World Federation and WCC at the United Nations climate conference in Marrakech, Morocco are jointly demanding a more rapid transition to a low-carbon economy based on clean energy in order to stem rising global temperatures.

As the El Nino weather pattern challenges southern Africa, what is the role of churches in helping people realize their right to food and livelihood?

“Science and religion can provide solutions to poverty and injustice.” This was the theme of the 3rd International Conference on Sustainable Alternatives for Poverty Reduction and Ecological Justice (SAPREJ) in Kampala, Uganda, on 4-7 April. The conference was organized by the Kyambogo University and the WCC economic and ecological justice programme.

Following the WCC/UN High Level Conference on the Refugee Crisis in Europe, which took place at the Ecumenical Centre Geneva on 18-19 January, a statement has been issued entitled "Europe’s Response to the Refuge Crisis, From Origin to Transit, Reception and Refuge, A Call for Shared Responsibility and Coordinated Action”.

During the 4th United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights, the WCC, in collaboration with the ACT Alliance and Lutheran World Federation, organized a side-event on “Faith-based organizations’ contribution to the protection of communities’ land rights: lessons learnt and good practices from Africa, Asia and Latin America” at the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva.

Christians need a "spirituality of resistance" to face oppression, violence and experiences of defeat, the WCC general secretary said in an address at Germany’s biggest Protestant gathering.

Inspired by the theme “pilgrimage of justice and peace”, the Central Committee of the WCC, a chief governing body of the Council, has set directions for the work of the Council from 2014 to 2017.

Church representatives at a recent Oikotree Global Forum in Johannesburg, South Africa stressed the need to support peoples'€™ movements promoting justice in the economy and ecology, a concern, they say, that lies at the heart of the faith.

“This is the only home we have,” said Archbishop Desmond Tutu referring to the crucial significance of our planet and its survival. He was speaking in an interfaith rally in Durban, urging the United Nations conference on climate change (COP17) to deliver a fair, ambitious and binding treaty to address climate change effectively.