Displaying 61 - 80 of 172

Indigenous Peoples and the Economy of Life: Spirituality, Land, and Self-Determination

22 April 2021

As part of the New International Financial and Economic Architecture (NIFEA) initiative, the World Council of Churches together with the World Communion of Reformed Churches, Lutheran World Federation, World Methodist Council and Council for World Mission will be hosting a webinar highlighting the voices of Indigenous Peoples and their understandings of the Economy of Life.  

Water on Wall Streets: understanding the evils of water futures markets

I teach water law, especially the water laws of the western United States.  Every year we discuss the question of water marketing, which is a well-established practice now in the somewhat arid western portion of the United States.  Naturally, students and others ask about the recent development of a futures market for water in California. Here is my answer: the creation of a futures market for water is the ultimate act of commodifying water in California. It is dangerous, inequitable, and quite contrary to the rule in water law that prohibits financial speculation in water. 

In Uganda, young people represent “wealth of courage, agency and ideas”

During a ceremony recognizing how young people in Uganda are true “agents of change” in health and healing, Rev. Pauline Njiru, eastern Africa regional coordinator for the World Council of Churches Ecumenical HIV & AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy programme, said young people are bringing a fresh drive for justice in many local communities.

“Who will pay the recovery?” – international report calls for tax justice under COVID-19

The global pandemic has led to major structural increases in public expenditures to support health, incomes and employment. The question of who will ultimately foot the bill will need to be answered. A report launched on 15 June by the Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation alerts that the economic burden must not fall disproportionately on disadvantaged groups and countries.

Calling for an Economy of Life in a Time of Pandemic

In a joint message released on 15 May 2020, the World Council of Churches, World Communion of Reformed Churches, Lutheran World Federation, and Council for World Mission underlined that cooperation and solidarity within and across countries, embodied in networks of faith communities, civil society, and social movements as well as fresh systems of global governance rooted in justice, care, and sustainability are needed in response to the global health crisis of the Covid‐19 pandemic and the longer‐standing economic and ecological emergency.

WCC Programmes

Ecumenical prayer on the occasion of the Week of Action to Fight Inequality

20 January 2020

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is part of the “Fight Inequality” Alliance that aims to “build a global movement to counter the excessive concentration of power and wealth in the hands of a small elite and achieve a just, equal and sustainable world”. On 20 January, an ecumenical prayer service will be held in the WCC headquarters in Geneva as part of its involvement in the Week of Action to Fight Inequality 2020 (18 - 25 January).

Ecumenical Centre

Celebrating the life of an ecumenical champion for economic justice: Rev. Malcolm Damon

Rev. Malcolm Damon, ecumenical champion of justice for the economy and the Earth, and a son of South Africa, passed away on 8 September.

Damon was a founding member of the Economic Justice Network formed in 1997 to serve the Fellowship of Christian Councils in Southern Africa, consisting of 12 national Christian councils in southern African nations. In 2001, he joined Economic Justice Network as its executive director. Under his leadership, the network became a leading advocate in the southern African region for a fairer global trading system, tax reform and climate justice.

WCC supports Zacchaeus campaign for tax justice

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is supporting a new ecumenical campaign advocating for tax justice, called the Zacchaeus Project (#ZacTAX), that was launched 11 July at the United Nations in New York City.

Taxation and reparations – tools for promoting equity, climate justice and an economy of life

11 July 2019

The side-event will be an opportunity to explore how taxation and reparations can contribute to “Empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality,” the theme of the 2019 High-Level Political Forum on the SDGs (08-17 July 2019, New York). Rising inequality – often rooted in historical injustices – and runaway climate change are fuelling poverty, social disintegration and conflicts around the world.

Church Center for the United Nations, New York

Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit’s address to the Seminar on Food and Water for Life (Hong Kong, 4 May 2019)

Food is central to life and our faith. It is a blessing and a gift of God, in the form of the abundant creation which we depend on for our sustenance. Food is also a reflection of the quality of our relationships with each other- our caring for the other and the sharing of resources and the hospitality we show each other. Food is central to our worship life, our liturgy and the Eucharist, which helps us to be one with God and with each other.

General Secretary