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“Today, thankfully, religion is no longer a ‘taboo’ in political science and development literature,” said Rev. Dr Olav FykseTveit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC) at an international conference on religion and sustainable development.

In an age of religious pluralism and of religious justification of all manner of atrocities, how do religious communities contribute authentically to the public good?

Two major crises have marked the months since the WCC called Katalina Tahaafe-Williams to work in Geneva on its migration, indigenous, and multicultural ministry programmes. When she took up the job in October, the European refugee crisis was in full flow. Then in November, terrorists attacked Paris.

Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), has issued a statement on behalf of the Council hailing the historic meeting of Pope Francis, pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church, and Patriarch Kirill, primate of the Russian Orthodox Church.The two leaders met on 12 February in Havana, Cuba.

A volume entitled Prospects and Challenges for the Ecumenical Movement in the 21st Century has recently been published by Globethics Publications. The publication consists of a collection of final papers which have been delivered by GETI students after their return from the World Council of Churches' Assembly, and has been edited by David Field and Jutta Koslowski.

On 8 February, the WCC convened a strategy meeting between principals and senior staff of the ACT Alliance, Anglican Alliance, Caritas Internationalis, Globethics, Lutheran World Federation and WCC, to discuss communication and collaboration in policy engagement, advocacy and action.

A water crisis for Palestinian people was highlighted by the general secretary of the WCC, Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, at the launch of the Seven Weeks for Water campaign in Jerusalem.

“The way we handle the refugee crisis, not least the settling in and integration process, will be of utmost significance, both for the attitude towards refugees and asylum seekers in the future, and for the long-term stability and sustainability of our own societies”, said Knut Vollebaek, ambassador and former Norwegian foreign minister, in his speech at the recent WCC/UN conference on Europe’s refugee crisis.

Twenty-seven international students from the Bossey Ecumenical Institute, Switzerland, are embarking on a future of ecumenism, dialogue and unity that began with months of intense study and fellowship.

The Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church will hold a joint ecumenical commemoration of the Reformation on 31 October in Lund, Sweden.

Members of a small congregation in Toronto, Canada are celebrating. On Sunday the member of parliament for their riding came to the church to announce that the federal government has granted residency status to a Roma family that had lived under “sanctuary” protection in the church for 18 months.

Attending the World Council of Churches/United Nations high-level conference on the refugee crisis in Europe on 18-19 January, executive secretary for theology of the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) Dr Douwe Visser was interviewed by the WCC to share his views on the refugee situation from the perspective of the WCRC.

The first of what will be 1,000 refugees from camps in Lebanon, Morocco and Ethiopia are arriving this month in Italy through a “Humanitarian Corridors” project organized by the Federation of Protestant Churches in Italy, the Sant’ Egidio religious community and the Italian government.

The recent and ongoing flood of migrants and refugees in transit to Europe is testing not only Europe’s physical borders but its legal, security and diplomatic boundaries as well.

Anglican parishes in the United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough in the Republic of Ireland are seeking new paths and projects for 2016 after considering the results of a survey that identified successes and concerns among laity.

During World Interfaith Harmony Week, officials of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and WCC Interreligious Dialogue and Cooperation staff met in Geneva for their annual meeting.

A delegation from the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan, led by general secretary Rev. Lyim Hong-Tiong, was welcomed in Geneva by the WCC general secretary. Discussions focused on the situation of Christians and especially the situation for indigenous people in Taiwan.

The WCC Ecumenical Water Network is inviting member churches and supporters to reflect on water during Lent. For many in the world, water is either taken for granted or in desperately short supply.