PWRDF UPDATE July 2008
Welcome to Update - The Primate's World Relief and Development Fund newsletter and information bulletin for subscribers.
PWRDF is the Anglican Church of Canada's agency for international development, relief, refugees and justice issues. This list is an outgoing communication service from PWRDF only. Please contact Yvonne Lane for more information on any of the following items.
1. Emergencies Update
2. justgeneration.ca
3. Staff appointment
4. Refugees – global numbers on the increase
5. Families for PWRDF
6. New move to peace for Burundi
7. Staff Travels
8. Human Rights Accompaniment Training
9. Looking ahead – beyond summer events
10. Local Heroes
11. Fair trade and Oikocredit
12. PWRDF contact information
1. Emergencies Update
Burma & China – Anglicans responded overwhelmingly to the recent emergencies in Burma and China with funds received up to the end of June totaling $353,000. We are still receiving funds, even though the deadlines for CIDA to match donations has passed.
Philippines – ACT International responded through the Rapid Response Fund to support immediate needs after typhoon Fengshen battered the Philippines for two days leaving at least 229 people dead and many more who lost their lives after a passenger ferry capsized.
2. justgeneration.ca
Simon Chambers has been busy attending Generation 2008 and getting up to speed with the youth network since commencing at the end of May. Read Simon’s account of the weeklong Generation 2008 event and also an update of the group’s who have participated to date in the Off the Grid youth event.
3. Staff appointment
Carolyn Vanderlip will join the staff team as 50th Anniversary Program Facilitator in July 2008 for a two year term. Carolyn will be responsible for the facilitation of the 50th Anniversary program from its launch in October 2008 to its conclusion in June 2010 which includes the facilitation of the sponsorship by dioceses of 50 refugee cases.
4. Refugees – global refugee numbers on the increase
A new global survey says there were 11.4 million refugees outside their countries and 26 million others displaced internally by conflict or persecution at the end of 2007, contributing to an unprecedented number of uprooted people under the care of the UN refugee agency.
"After a five-year decline in the number of refugees between 2001 and 2005, we have now seen two years of increases, and that's a concern," UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres said in London as he kicked off a week of activities to mark World Refugee Day on June 20. "We are now faced with a complex mix of global challenges that could threaten even more forced displacement in the future. They range from multiple new conflict-related emergencies in world hotspots to bad governance, climate-induced environmental degradation that increases competition for scarce resources, and extreme price hikes that have hit the poor the hardest and are generating instability in many places."
The report also lists other categories of concern to UNHCR, including stateless people, asylum seekers, returned refugees, returned internally displaced, and 'others.' In all, it lists 31.7 million people entitled to UNHCR support, excluding 4.6 million Palestinian refugees helped by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
See the full 2007 Global Trends Report at the UNHCR website.
5. Families for PWRDF
Are you looking for some summer activities to do with your children? If so, please check out our Families for PWRDF website that has activities for different age children. The specific focus relates to the Family Calendar that was produced for 2008.
The June focus for the PWRDF Family Calendar was HIV and AIDS. Our partners have expressed concern about the interpretation of this situation. Despair is a luxury they dare not afford – and they challenge us to do the same. When you discuss the global AIDS pandemic with your family, be sure to emphasize that the church can play an important role in keeping hope alive in the fight against AIDS, when we speak openly about the virus and sexual health, educate ourselves about prevention, resist discrimination and care for bereaved families and orphaned children.
June calendar resources and activities for families.
Ecology is the July Focus of the PWRDF Family Calendar. As Christians we have a lot to offer the question of how to take better care of the world based on what we know about God who created it all and charged us to care for it all as stewards.
July calendar resources and activities for families.
Refugees is the August Focus of the PWRDF Family Calendar
August calendar resources and activities for families.
6. New move to Peace for Burundi
In our May Email Update we asked for prayers for Bishop Pie Ntukamazina, Anglican Church of Burundi, Diocese of Bujumbura. In his latest communication, Bishop Pie said “We, as a church, are expressing our thanks and appreciation for your support in prayers and writing to us with those encouraging words to sustain our faith. Please, continue to pray that concrete peace be established and good integration to this rebel group be better taken care of.”
7. Staff Travels
Latin America/Caribbean program coordinator, Suzanne Rumsey will be traveling later this month to visit PWRDF partners in Brazil and Nicaragua. In Brazil she will meet with KOINONIA in Rio de Janeiro and Salvador to be updated on their HIV/AIDS program, as well as their work to defend the rights of traditional Afro-Brazilian communities. In the northeastern state of Ceará, Suzanne will meet with staff from GTME (Protestant Missionary Working Group) and attend a training seminar with Tremembé indigenous teachers. The time in Nicaragua will be spent with Christian Medical Action visiting CMA’s community health and development project in Matagalpa department. Stay tuned for stories about our Latin American partners on the website later this summer!
8. Human Rights Accompaniment Training – August 13-17, 2008
The Tatamagouche Centre will be holding an International Human Rights Accompaniment Training from 7pm Wednesday, August 13th until 10 pm Saturday August 16. The Breaking the Silence group is offering this training because of the urgent need for human rights accompaniers in Guatamala now and in the upcoming year, due to renewed human rights concerns (including in the mining sector) and some movement in the genocide cases. If you are interested please send an email to Kathryn Anderson. More information will be available shortly on the BTS website and on the Atlantic Regional Solidarity Network website.
9. Looking ahead – beyond summer
Regional meetings: There are a number of events planned for the fall: PWRDF Regional meetings, and Kairos Regional Meetings.
Annual Resources: PWRDF new annual resources for 2008/09 will be issued in September, the theme this year is PWRDF in the World – and the beginning of the celebrations for our 50th anniversary.
World Food Day: October 16 is World Food Day and CFGB will be providing materials “Fast for Change”. You will be receiving a letter of invitation to participate, along with a poster at the same time that you receive the PWRDF materials in your parishes. Those who sign up will receive a resource kit that will include worship resource, youth resource, a video and a small booklet for each participant which includes a week’s worth of reflections
Eradication of Poverty Materials: October 17 is the International Day for Eradication of Poverty and Kairos is producing a resource document to be used during the Week to End Poverty October 11-18. This material will also will be included with the PWRDF annual resources package in September.
10. Local Heroes
Thank you to all who made contributions in response to the needs of those in Burma and China. Your contributions as individual donors, have generously provided in excess of $200,000 that we were able to provide to our partners, ACT International, and will be matched by the Canadian government (CIDA).
11. Fair trade and Oikocredit
As part of Oikocredit’s campaign to promote fair financing for development, they invite churches around the world to organize an Oikocredit Sunday focusing on fair trade. Oikocredit not only shares the values of fair trade, it also directly supports the sector financially. Liturgy, sermon, posters and outline can be downloaded from their website, www.oikocredit.org/fairtrade. This will allow you to adapt the texts to your needs.
Oikocredit is a cooperative financial development institution that offers loans or investment capital for microfinance institutions, cooperatives and small and medium sized enterprises in developing countries. Oikocredit is privately financed through the sale of shares. Direct members of the cooperative include churches, church-affiliated organizations and project members. Oikocredit pays its shareholders a modest yearly dividend.
12. PWRDF Contact Information
A reminder please – if you are not receiving materials at the correct address, if your address has changed or if your parish is receiving an incorrect amount of annual resources, please let us know at pwrdf[at]pwrdf.org. We shall be receiving corrections for our database up until August 1, which will give us time to make corrections before the information is prepared for our mailing house.
