In preparation for

November’s COP27, the UNFCCC hosted the first ever climate week for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region from March 28 to 31. ACT Alliance organised a side event with Ummah for Earth, an alliance of environmental and Muslim agencies working to empower Muslim communities facing crises.  

Julius Mbatia, ACT Alliance Climate Justice Manager, facilitated the March 30 side event, called Multi-sectoral, multi-stakeholder engagement for effective climate action. Panelists included Dany El Obeid (Middle East Conference of Churches and ِACT Alliance) Tarek Al Olaimi (ally of Ummah for Earth), Ines Belliard (Global One), and Devar Sher (ally of ACT Alliance).  

The panel agreed that to achieve effective climate action at the global level, COP27 and COP28 climate negotiations must include the most vulnerable communities across faiths, notably women and youth. “Climate change represents one of the most urgent global challenges we are facing today,” said Tarek Al Olaimi, ally of Ummah for Earth. “Youth and faith actors need to be brought to the decision table every day, in order to include them in sectoral planning, prioritisation, and policy frameworks.” 

Panellists discussed the need for better coordination to achieve an overall transformation of societies at the economic and governmental levels. They pointed to the role of faith communities in filling the gaps between different sectors, organising, and responding to specific needs in planning and action. They also pointed to the challenges of working on climate justice in the region. 

“We need to take a step back and take a snapshot of the MENA countries, specifically where armed conflict remains a living hell. We can’t expect conflict-affected communities to be aware of the climate hazard,” said Devar Sher (ally of ACT Alliance).  

“I think what is needed are long term and clear projects upon which everyone can hop together and maintain,” said Dany El Obeid of the Middle East Council of Churches and ACT Alliance. “Maybe we can chop down the overwhelming task of combating climate change by taking smaller steps.” 

 Full media release here.

By Rudelmar Bueno de Faria

The war in Ukraine has been going on for more than a month and the eyes of the world have been focused on it sharply. On social media and traditional media, we are constantly reminded of the cruelty of war. The coverage of this crisis has been at times overwhelming. People and governments of the world have responded with their hearts and their donations to support Ukraine. 

ACT Alliance launched a $21.5 million USD appeal, and ACT members across the regions have generously donated to the work of Hungarian Interchurch Aid, the Lutheran World Federation, and Swiss Church Aid who are still responding to this crisis by helping IDPs and refugees in four border countries. Other ACT members have contributed with their own programming, part of a massive Total ACT Response. 

This outpouring of support is entirely appropriate as over 11 million people have been displaced by the war, and those affected will face years of hardship as lives and livelihoods, homes and communities will need to be rebuilt.  

As general secretary of the ACT Alliance, I applaud everyone who is working to support those affected by this war. I hope that the response to the war in Ukraine, both in terms of the speed and the volume of the support, becomes the model for future humanitarian responses. 

However, I want to discuss an important issue which has been raised by many of our members around the world. This is not the only huge humanitarian crisis we are facing today. 

The fact that the brutality of this war is all over the news does not mean that other conflicts are less brutal or heinous. In Tigray, Yemen, and South Sudan, to name a few, the humanitarian needs are dire. There are millions displaced in and around Afghanistan, Syria, and DRC. And while billions in aid are flowing to Ukraine and its people, the same cannot be said for those who are facing other crises. 

The problem is not that Ukraine is receiving too much aid. In fact, it needs as much support as it can get. The problem is that not enough aid is made available for all crises. Most crises around the world are significantly underfunded as responding NGOs like ACT, the UN, and local and regional authorities struggle to meet the needs of the millions impacted. 

These crises are also often connected. For example, the war in Ukraine will have a devastating impact on Africa, where many countries are reaching near famine state, including South Sudan and Somalia. Much of the wheat imported into northern Africa comes from Russia and Ukraine. In 2021, those two countries were responsible for almost 25% of the world’s exports of wheat. Those exports will likely not be available in 2022. 

We are distressed to hear that some states are deviating ODA funding from other crises to support the Ukraine war response. Some are using those funds to support refugee resettlement within their own borders. 

As Christians, our work draws on our faith, and our call is to support the most vulnerable everywhere and to work for a world where peace and justice reign, and the rights and dignity of all people are respected regardless of their race, creed, gender, or identity.  

We call for a humanitarian funding system which is based on justice and solidarity, which does not discriminate on any basis – region, race, religion, gender, etc. – but responds to need as quickly and robustly as the Ukraine response has. 

We call on states to continue and to increase support to all crises, be they natural disasters or conflicts, and to ensure that development aid is delivered to the communities impacted rather than diverted to fund, for example, refugee resettlement within Western countries themselves.  

We call on the media to report on human suffering wherever it might take place, to discuss the reality of humanitarian need. Help to shine light on facts and the work of people to rebuild their own lives and communities, as well as on those around the world who support that work. 

We call on all people of faith to continue to pray and work for a world of peace and justice, to promote and engage in dialogue, and to love our neighbours all over the world, supporting them as we are able. 

Rudelmar Bueno de Faria is General Secretary of ACT Alliance.

By Mattias Soderberg

On Monday the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) launched its report on how to mitigate climate change. This report must be followed by urgent action. All parties should deliver on their promise from the climate summit in Glasgow last year and revisit their national climate plans.  

The IPCC report is a rather heavy compilation of recent science, and mitigation possibilities are assessed from a number of perspectives. One important lesson is that it is not enough to focus on one solution. Emissions must be reduced rapidly in the coming years, and all options should therefore be considered.  

That means efforts to switch to renewable energy, to promote nature-based solutions, to make our buildings climate friendly, to make our transport sustainable and to ensure that our production and consumption in the future is green and sustainable.  

IPCC reports are special because they are formally acknowledged by governments. That means that governments have read these reports, and we should expect that they also consider the recommendations.  

Last year, at the climate summit COP26, parties acknowledged that the current global level of climate ambition is not high enough. The 1.5-degree target is the maximum increase in global temperature the world should experience. To meet this target, more mitigation efforts are needed. At COP26 parties therefore agreed to return home and revisit their national climate plans. Every possibility to scale up the ambition should be considered.  

I know mitigation can be difficult to handle. Priorities must be made, and funds must be allocated. Should there be a focus on transport? Or agriculture? The energy sector? Or nature-based solutions? Most governments have limited budgets, and thus it is important to make a wise plan, one which is possible to implement, and which will deliver the biggest cuts in emissions.  

And this is where the new report from IPCC is handy. Governments should read it and use it as a guide when they live up to their promises from Glasgow to revisit their national climate plans.  

The IPCC report also adds a geographic perspective. Emissions, as well as the potential for mitigation, differ between countries. Consumption is, for example, a big challenge in most developed countries, where an unsustainable consumption culture generates emissions that are felt around the world.  
 
The responsibility, both current and historic, for emissions is therefore easy to identify. At the same time, we know that some of the most vulnerable countries have the smallest emissions, and thus the smallest responsibility.  

To find and mobilise, the necessary funding for all these mitigation activities is not easy. Especially not for the most vulnerable countries. This is why the report should be followed by a bill, and an agreement on how to share payments. Rich countries, with a big historic responsibility, should deliver on their promise to mobilise climate finance. This will help developing countries with both adaptation and mitigation. Without money there will be no action. Climate finance makes it possible for developing countries to deal with the drastic effects a changing climate has on their most vulnerable communities, notably women and girls in rural communities. 

Mattias Soderberg is the co-chair of ACT Alliance Climate Justice Reference Group.

The ACT Alliance Ethiopia Forum (AEF) has just launched a study on the intersection of gender justice and climate

justice in Ethiopia. Ethiopia: Nuances of the UNFCCC Gender Action Plan explores how the Gender Action Plan (GAP) is being implemented by various levels of government, NGOs, ACT members, and INGOs throughout the country. The study was funded by Act Sweden and Brot fur die Welt and written by PATH Consulting of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A short document of Policy recommendations drawn from the study and intended for local government actors is also available. 

The 48-page study and the policy recommendations were presented to AEF members, CSOs and government representatives at a special meeting on March 31. “Those present were enthusiastic about building a common framework on the gender and climate change nexus,” said Julius Mbatia, ACT Alliance Climate Justice manager. “ACT Alliance hopes this report will catalyse responsive policy and programming in gender and climate change mainstreaming.” Government representatives appreciated the study and welcomed the policy recommendations. 

The study notes that Ethiopia is fertile ground for the implementation of gender justice initiatives, given the country’s signing of related UN agreements, its constitutional commitments and its programmes for women. Yet there has so far been limited uptake and understanding of the UNFCCC GAP at various government levels and within NGOs, including among ACT Forum members. “The understanding of gender mainstreaming in climate programmes is interpreted as adding a ‘women’s component’ to an activity,” the study notes. “This alone does not bring the long-lasting changes that gender and climate justice seek to achieve.”  One of the key challenges identified is a lack of technical knowledge to implement gender-responsive climate change adaptation and mitigation.

In Ethiopia, women and girls in all their diversity are disproportionately affected by the climate crisis. Fetching water, collecting fuel, and feeding the family are “100 percent the responsibility of women and girls,” said AEF coordinator Dawit Beza of Norwegian Church Aid in an ACT video interview. “The effects of climate change on women and girls are triple in the rural communities.” The decline in agricultural yields due to climate change impacts leads to further discrimination. “When household income drops, females are the first to be pulled from school,” said Bikila Abeya of AEF member EECMY-DAASSC. “Education is mainly meant for men. Climate change and gender justice are inseparable.” 

The study puts forward recommendations for all levels of government, ACT members and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs). They include such practical steps such as translating the UNFCCC Gender Action Plan into local languages; encouraging more collaboration between government, NGOs, ACT, and academic and research institutions; dedicated gender justice and climate justice staffing in Ethiopian NGOs; and increasing the participation of Ethiopian women in international climate conferences. Immediate AEF plans include increasing the awareness of national and international frameworks on gender and climate justice programmes; conducting sector-specific gender analyses; and designing a mainstreaming strategy.

The report is just a beginning. AEF members are using the policy recommendations to discuss collaboration with government actors. The ACT members that sponsored the study are optimistic. “I hope it inspires collaboration on programming to strengthen gender-inclusive climate justice and helps the UNFCCC’s Gender Action Plan move from global words to national action,” said Margareta Koltai, Act Church of Sweden’s Climate Justice Policy Adviser. “I look forward to hearing how this mapping will inspire joint actions for equality and climate.” 

ACT Alliance and the World Council of Churches undertook a solidarity visit to Ukraine, Hungary and Poland the week of March 14-18, 2022.  On this trip, they met with church leaders and humanitarian actors, visited refugee and internally displaced people support points, and saw first-hand the impact that the ongoing Ukraine war is having on the people fleeing for refuge.  

Rudelmar Bueno de Faria, ACT Alliance’s general secretary, said, “ACT Alliance decided to travel to the border countries of Ukraine with  with the World Council of Churches leadership, as a way to show solidarity to our members and the people who are affected by the war. Through this visit, we confirmed the distinctive role faith-based organizations play in the humanitarian response, where ACT members and churches are working together to alleviate the suffering of the people who have lost everything in the conflict.

“Ours was a concrete way to show the support of the Alliance but it was also important to counter the dissemination of misinformation and news that are used politically on social media.”

From the second day of the war, ACT members and churches have been helping those displaced by the conflict. “The churches have mobilized their constituencies and a great number of volunteers to welcome Ukrainians at border crossings providing psychological and spiritual support and all necessary immediate assistance and shelter,” said Bueno de Faria.  “ACT members have been helping immensely those affected, including providing immediate humanitarian assistance, legal assistance for people looking for asylum, information and support for those looking for safe pathways to reach other destinations.”

Thorsten Göbel, ACT’s director of programmes, was impressed with the response by ACT members. “What impressed me most was the combination of different approaches to respond to the specific needs in the respective situations: from larger quite professionalised response inside Ukraine combined with domestic response in Hungary by Hungarian Interchurch Aid, to a more regional parish-based response by HEKS, the Reformed Diakonia, and the Orthodox church in Northwestern Romanian combined with cross-border cooperation with the churches around 100km across the border on the Ukrainian side, and a well-connected response and a focus on legal assistance by Aidrom with local authorities and other civil society actors in Northeastern Romania.”

 “As the crisis continues and enters a new phase, both the IDPs in Ukraine, and the people who are settling in neighbouring countries and the rest of Europe will most probably need material assistance that is mainly based on cash transfers, especially where there are functioning markets – to allow freedom of choice and to safeguard dignity of people affected.” In addition, they will need information on travel, accommodation options, and spiritual and psychosocial support. 

Bueno de Faria highlighted the risks faced by women and girls displaced by the war, which include human trafficking and forced labour. “This is a concern that many governments and UN agencies are aware of, but I believe that we need to do more to ensure that women and children find safe pathways and to support protection structures.  The approach is not the same in the different countries receiving refugees.  A gendered response is critical in this specific situation, as most of the refugees are women leaving Ukraine with their children, and elderly people. Most men stayed behind, as they cannot leave the country if they are between 18 and 60 years old.”

Churches play a key role in responding to this crisis, Bueno de Faria said. “Church leaders are mobilizing great numbers of volunteers.  They are also aware of the political nuances around this war, which is an important element of the political and prophetic diakonia, where church leaders stand up to denounce injustices and announce the good news. I sincerely believe that after this war, the role of ecumenical diakonia will be more important than ever, where- regardless of their individual Christian confession- they will realize that we need to work together to ensure more inclusiveness, solidarity and justice in human relations.”

Göbel shared concrete actions that ACT members and supporters can take at this time. “Pray for and with the people from Ukraine and Russia for an immediate cessation of the violence, support the ACT members that are directly responding through the ACT appeal for a coordinated response, and maintain your long-term commitment to support this response along with other crisis situations that must not be forgotten.”

ACT Alliance has launched a $21.5 million USD appeal focused in five countries (Ukraine, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia) to support people displaced by the war in Ukraine.  Since the war began on Feb 24, 2022, over 4.4 million people have been displaced, with over 2.8 million becoming refugees in other countries and close to 2 million displaced within the borders of Ukraine itself.

Larysa is one such person displaced by the war.  Larysa, her husband, daughter and the cat Bella escaped from Kharkov on March 1, 2022. Before fleeing, they spent four nights in the basement of their home due to the bombing of Kharkov.

“Everyone wanted to travel out of Kharkov. There were a lot of people at the train station. The train ride was free of charge, but getting on the train was difficult due to the crowds,” Larysa says. The trip to Berehove took four days.

Larysa and her family stayed in the refugee shelter supported by ACT member Hungarian Interchurch Aid, set up at a school. “We are happy to have a place to sleep and where it is warm. We get food three times a day, we can wash and do our laundry, because there is also a washing machine here.”

Larysa has cancer. She received treatment in Kharkov, but the hospital was destroyed in the bombings. Larysa hopes she could get treatment in Hungary.

As the intensity of the conflict escalates, more and more people have fled, and ACT members are providing shelter, food, water, hygiene kits, psychosocial support, information on resettlement, child safe spaces, and more. 

The ACT appeal is the largest ever issued by the alliance, but ACT’s total response is significantly broader than the 2 year, 21.5 million dollar appeal.  ACT members are working to welcome refugees around the world, from Romania to Canada, from Germany to the UK.

HIA has set up operations in Lviv, with a warehouse there to support the distribution of food, hygiene kits, and other supplies.  HIA has shipped over 278 tons of supplies to Ukraine, as well as 7 million Euros worth of medical supplies.  HIA also operates a 24-hour refugee stop near the Hungarian border, as well as a child-safe space at the Budapest airport to support refugees transiting through Hungary to other destinations.

The Lutheran World Federation is mobilising churches in a number of countries, including in Poland, which has seen over 60% of the refugees crossing its borders, giving Poland one of the largest refugee populations in the world overnight.

Swiss Church Aid, the third member of the ACT appeal, is working with its long-term partners in Romania, Hungary and Ukraine to support displaced people through food, hygiene, cash vouchers, shelter, psychosocial support, and more.

Through the ACT appeal, cash transfers will be used where possible (when local markets are functioning) as one of the best ways to support people.  Cash is quickly transferred, allowing people to purchase what they need to support their families in their current needs. 

ACT members have already pledged over $7 million USD in support of the appeal.  Further support can be indicated through email to Nancy Etté, ACT’s director of operations, and Niall O’Rourke, ACT’s head of humanitarian affairs.

Larysa says she hopes for peace in the future. “We would like to live in Kharkov again, but right now we can’t live there because there are bombings and people are dying. It is safe here (in Berehove). I am glad our children are alive.”