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The World Council of Churches (WCC) is among signatories on a joint letter to H.E. Sri Narendra Modi—prime minister of the Republic of India and chair of the Group of Twenty (G20)—which urges G20 leaders to adopt a New International Financial and Economic Architecture.

During an online morning prayer service on 16 November, Bishop Arnold Temple, chairperson of the World Council of Churches Ecumenical Water Network and the president of All Africa Conference of Churches, reflected on World Toilet Day, which will be observed this year on 19 November.

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).

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.

The Protestant Church of South India’s sustainable environmental education initiative has been nominated for the 2019 UNESCO-Japan Prize.

Adv Rajendra Sail, a noted human rights activist and ecumenist from India, passed away on 26 January, at age 72. Sail stood out from the Christian community for his deeper engagements on human rights issues and bold steps in questioning the government on its failures to adhere to the principles of democracy and secular commitment.

More than 300 environmentalists - among them professors, students, scientists and religious leaders - gathered for the 5th International Eco Conference organized by the Church of South India.

World Council of Churches Ecumenical Water Network (WCC-EWN) coordinator Dinesh Suna attended the International Sanitation Convention from 29 September - 2 October in India. Suna shared his reflections on the conference, the role of EWN, and the future of sanitation and how it affects justice in the lives of millions of people.

Even though flood survivors are displaced in some 2,000 relief camps across Kerala in south India, many of them observed the indigenous Malayali festival of Onam on 25 August in whatever way they could. The traditional festival, for thousands, carried an even more poignant meaning because the holiday celebrates the return of joy to the land: the story of the return of King Mahabali, considered to be a very kind and generous ruler, during a “golden period” in Kerala.

As Kerala, the southern state of India, nicknamed “God’s Own Country,” battles one of the worst flood disasters in a century, various religious communities have opened their doors to help homeless people.

“You are the first. You are the first among all the member churches of the World Council of Churches around the world to greet the dawn of every new day and to praise God,” said World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit in a sermon delivered 6 August at the Centenary Chapel of the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga in Nuku’alofa.

The Church of South India, Green Anglicans and other groups are sharing creative ways to observe a “carbon fast" during the Lenten season. A carbon fast challenges people to examine their daily actions and reflect on how they impact the environment. The carbon fast campaigns are designed so that, over Lent, people can take small steps to reduce carbon dioxide output with the hope of helping the environment and bringing the world one step closer to a sustainable existence.

Between 7-27 March, more than 100 images with the hash tag #7Weeks4Water were posted by Instagram users who joined the World Council of Churches (WCC) contest. Most of them told stories about water justice, illustrating the Lenten campaign “Seven Weeks for Water,” promoted by the WCC Ecumenical Water Network annually since 2008.

In Tonga there is lot of water to see, but not necessarily a lot for people to use. Mele’ana Puloka, a member of the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga, is World Council of Churches president for the Pacific, living on the islands that have a population of about 106,000.

Climate-induced loss and damage is one of the key points being raised by faith groups during COP21. A discussion panel and a demonstration held at COP21 in early December brought to light many facets of this issue.

Dynamics of “indigenous ecological spiritualties and Christian faith” were explored at a WCC seminar in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.