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In 1990 at the age of 22, I was diagnosed with HIV. Shortly thereafter, I also discovered that I was pregnant. My whole adult life has been about learning to live well with this virus.

Halfway to the sustainable development goals, the latest UN indicators show a record increase in hunger. The World Food Programme and Food and Agriculture Organization report that 828 million people are hungry, an increase of 46 million from the previous year and an increase of 150 million people since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of people worldwide who cannot afford a healthy diet has increased by 112 million, reaching nearly 3.1 billion by 2020, the report said. Millions of people are at risk of falling into a vicious cycle of malnutrition, ill health, and poverty, exacerbating inequalities already visible to current and future generations.

In March 2020, we had to change how we used to work. So, adaptation, strength, and flexibility have been the three keywords of the last two years.

As we observed World Water Day on 22 March, the issue of availability of water, including the impact of climate change and how it affects quality access to water for many people across the world, came to the fore. 

The following message was delivered by Rev. Canon Gideon B. Byamugisha during an ecumenical service on 1 December, World AIDS Day. He reflected on the theme ““Let us overcome inequalities with justice and love.”

The Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch is marking its 1,500 Jubilee Year of Mor Jacob de Serugh (521+) (St Jacob of Serugh).

After nearly two years of preparations and two weeks of physical meeting, COP26 is over. People from all over the world came together to a major in-person meeting on a global level.

COP26 is in full swing, and I manage to follow it from my desk at home, thanks to digital technology. This is one positive thing we learned from COVID-19: we don’t need to fly around the world anymore. That is…provided there is good internet connection, which is not always the case in all countries.

The highly anticipated, long awaited COP26 began 31 October. It has now been six years since the adoption of the Paris Agreement at COP21 and much remains to be implemented in order to fulfil the promises agreed to at that historic moment by the member states. We knew then that the road ahead would be challenging and that changing our systems would require a radical shift in policies and behaviours—but we were hopeful. 

The food system is a complex web of activities involving production, processing, transport, and consumption. Key issues concerning the food system include how food production affects the natural environment, the impact of food on individual and population health, the governance and economics of food production, its sustainability, and the degree to which we waste food.

You are very much needed. You are very much appreciated. You are very much discussed. You are bringing the fellowship of churches together through prayers, discussions, reflections, and actions in consensus.

Human trafficking continues to remain one of the most grievous assaults on the fundamental rights and inherent dignity of people. The crime, also known as modern-day slavery, is dehumanising in the sense that it corrupts one’s identity as being made in the image of God, instead reducing one to a mere commodity or object.

The same week Brazil reached half a million deaths by COVID-19, my parents got the first dose of the vaccine. On my way to work, I pass through a vaccination post full of people, and through a cemetery full of grief. The past year and few months were a mix of fear, indignation and anger for me. But also a time where I saw generosity and hope bloom.

476 million indigenous people live around the world, of which 11.5% live in our Latin American region. In these years that we are going from the COVID 19 pandemic in our territories (indigenous or tribal at the Latin American level), the presence of many extractive companies, mainly uranium and lithium, has increased, land traffickers and among other monoculture companies with fires for the cultivation of oil palm, logging, putting vulnerable peoples at greater risk than what is already experienced.

The Uruguayan Council of Christian Churches (CICU, by its Spanish acronym), the only ecumenical organization in the country, hosted an online gathering during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. It took place last 26 May at 7:30pm (local time) via Zoom. I had the immense joy of participating as a Catholic communicator, currently serving as correspondent for SIGNIS ALC (Latin-American and Caribbean Association of Catholic Communication) and as vice president of SIGNIS Uruguay (the Uruguayan Association of Catholic Communicators).

Prayer is a powerful way to be united as Christians from all over the world. Every year my church community in Cuba joins the celebration of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity with daily devotions and a special worship service, usually on Sundays. Being connected in the same prayerful spirit around a common text that turns into so many testimonies of faith is truly a gift of the Spirit and an ecumenical commitment.

“Abide in my love… you shall bear much fruit” (John 15:1-17) is an especially relevant theme for this year’s Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. In many places of the world, COVID-19 remains a pandemic, creating emergency measures, separating people from one another. Isolation, while deemed scientifically necessary, leaves scars on the hearts of those who wish to encounter the other, particularly within the context of the church. How can we enjoy fellowship while we are apart?

The aftermath of the pandemic will present enormous long-term political, social and economic challenges. After the pandemic has subsided, there will be an enormous financial cost to be calculated – especially in terms of increased government debt for almost every country. In particular, there is a very real risk that the UN Sustainable Development Goals will not be met. As Christians, we cannot use COVID-19 as an excuse for inaction and the preferential option for the poor must be recognised.