Observing the UN International Day for Biodiversity on 22 May, the World Council of Churches (WCC) co-organized a hybrid conference on the role of religion and civil societies in biodiversity protection.
Becoming better stewards of Creation by killing off your church lawn? It sounds odd, but it is exactly what the Community United Church of Christ (UCC) in Fresno, USA, did. Facing increasing drought and water scarcity in their home state California, the congregation embarked on a project to drastically reduce their water use. Thanks to the massive support of volunteers, an entirely new, water-wise landscape was created that offers a lot to discover.
As Pope Francis presented a message in preparation for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay offered reflections that amplified the message centered around the theme “Let Justice and Peace Flow.”
Alexandra Masako Goossens-Ishii works for an international Buddhist grassroots network, saying her advocacy work increasingly centres on agroforestry and agro-ecology, which meshes with her World Council of Churches (WCC) links.
Right Livelihood is known for its awards, sometimes viewed as alternative Nobel prizes, but it came to different prominence when it teamed up with the World Council of Churches (WCC) on a quest to create a global movement to re-green the earth. Ole von Uexkull, executive director of Right Livelihood, based in Geneva, spoke at the 12 May meeting titled “Caring for the Earth, Transforming Lives: Linking Faith & Natural Regeneration.”
During the 75th commemoration of what Palestinians refer to as the nakba, or “catastrophe”—when hundreds of thousands of people were uprooted during Israel's creation in 1948—World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed solidarity with member churches in the Holy Land.
At a young age, Tony Rinaudo got angry at some of the environmental destruction while growing up in an agricultural region of the Owens Valley in Australia's Victoria state and, driven by his faith, did something.
A daylong seminar, “Caring for the Earth, Transforming Lives: Linking Faith & Natural Regeneration” on 12 May convened in-person and online to harvest ideas on re-greening our planet.
Strengthening the link between Christian perspectives and practical action for human rights, a symposium on human dignity and rights took place in the Ecumenical Institute at Bossey on 25-26 April.
World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay commented on the synthesis of the 6th Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, released 20 March.
From sports to rocket science, from art to family relationships, young people at a webinar on 16 March spoke out on why they want and need safe, accessible technology to realize their dreams.
The speakers, ages 7-17, were young women and men who clearly articulated their aspirations, and also communicated what the adults in their lives need to provide not just in the future—but right now.
According to the fifth mark of the Anglican Church's mission, the church aims to protect and renew the earth's creation and sustain it. The Anglican Church of Southern Africa environmental network is dedicated to helping churches and dioceses fulfill God's calling to be earth-keepers and to care for creation.
Faith-based organizations will gather in-person and online on 9 February to explore the theme “Ethical Perspectives on COP27 & Looking Forward Towards COP28.”
On the occasion of the upcoming World Interfaith Harmony Week 2023, which is observed annually from 1-7 February at the United Nations, my thought goes to the urgent call for biodiversity protection from the COP15 held in Montreal, from 7-19 December 2022.
For the past 75 years, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has announced how close it believes the world is to a nuclear attack. On 24 January, it has announced that we are only 90 seconds to midnight.
As the UN Conference of Biodiversity opens in Canada, African church leaders and scholars are urging urgent action to reverse nature loss to mitigate climate change.
The second week of the COP27 conference in Egypt focused on the link between global warming and water. This is the first time that water has been included on the agenda of a major global environmental event.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI) completed its annual meeting from 21-26 November, and also commemorated its 20th anniversary.
COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh is over. Numerous reports have all pointed out that if we don't cut the emissions of greenhouse gases radically and immediately, we will not keep the global average temperature rise below 1.5 degrees. Therefore, the emissions must drastically decrease in the coming decades if we want to avoid severe consequences for our home, planet Earth.
