The ACT Program Manager for Migration & Displacement, Christian Wolff, read the joint NGO statement below at the final round of formal consultations for the Global Compact on Refugees in Geneva.

Dear Chairperson, 

Eighteen months ago, we embarked on a multi-stakeholder process to transform the way we address large-scale movements and protracted situations. Much effort went into defining a collective vision for a world, where those forced to flee can enjoy protection and fundamental rights, and where host States can count on international solidarity. 

We commend UNHCR’s efforts to keep our collective ambition high, while accommodating diverging views. Progress was made in several key areas, particularly on operationalising responsibility-sharing; mainstreaming age, gender, diversity and disability considerations and fostering participation of affected populations. 

While not legally binding, the compact now carries the moral compulsion to transform the lives of refugees and host communities. It should therefore set new standards for action. 

Nevertheless, much work remains to define and coordinate the various pieces into a coherent whole. We need to ensure the emergence of robust responsibility-sharing arrangements that complement each other, bring additionality, remain sustainable and avoid politicization. 

Although the compact gradually took a development orientation, we emphasize the continued centrality of protection, solutions and of humanitarian principles. As we speak, durable solutions are still a pipedream for millions of refugees, while thousands more are denied their fundamental right to seek asylum. Conflict rages in the Middle-East, monsoons loom menacingly on refugee camps in South Asia, hundreds of people perish in the Mediterranean, while others flee violence in Central America only to encounter prisons and wrenching separations. States should guarantee people’s right to seek asylum and respect non-refoulement. Moreover, all persons in need of protection should be able to access it, including those fleeing adverse impacts of climate change and disasters. Countries facing such challenges must also benefit from responsibility-sharing arrangements. 

We therefore envision the compact to result in robust protection and durable solutions; lead to timely, effective and inclusive responses; and encourage meaningful participation and sustainable partnerships. The non-exhaustive spirit of the compact also applies to protection guarantees, meaning that States must adhere to protection principles, even if some are not fully detailed in the compact. NGOs will continue to advocate strongly from this perspective, holding ourselves and others accountable. 

The compact’s strength will hinge on its capacity to generate additional resources, primarily through the Global Refugee Forum. There should be a solidified and enhanced civil society role in the Forum, bi-annual meetings and other arrangements. NGOs will consider creating platforms for this purpose. Modalities for participation of affected populations are also needed, such as a space to feed into the Forum, helping to identify gaps, making commitments and participating in follow-up. 

On implementation, NGOs recognize that responses must also go beyond traditional approaches. Legal and policy measures aimed at enhancing refugee rights must complement operational responses and improve socio-economic conditions. We also welcome progress in mainstreaming disability and youth considerations but continue to regret that the best interest of the child does not feature under durable solutions. Moreover, noting the focus on ‘women and girls’ instead of ‘gender’, we highlight the imperative of unpacking gender-based norms and power dynamics affecting all persons. Several NGOs also regret that the GCR does not refer to often lifesaving sexual and reproductive health services. 

Going forward, it will be vital to ensure complementarity between the two compacts and increase operational coordination between all stakeholders. We also urge strengthening the GCR application in mixed migration situations, which represent an essential operational reality in ensuring refugee protection and assistance.  

Finally, measuring progress through a credible monitoring and evaluation framework will be crucial. We appreciate that room was made for mid-term reviews and welcome the reference to the development of indicators. We underline that the four objectives must translate into people-centred and collectively defined outcomes and targets, fully aligned with the responsibility-sharing arrangements. Those must encapsulate concrete improvements in the lives of refugees. NGOs remain eager to provide expertise in the development of accountability tools and mechanisms. 

In closing, over the past months, new ideas emerged – some more crystallised than others – and we must maintain efforts to shape these approaches. NGOs will continue engaging in fine-tuning the compact’s building blocks. We are eager to start a conversation on modalities for participation. 

A detailed version of this intervention is available on icvanetwork.org 

Thank you. 

ACT Alliance, Arigatou International, Islamic Relief Worldwide, Soka Gakkai International (SGI)and World Vision International have come together as the Asia Pacific Faith-Based Coalition for Sustainable Development to participate in the Asian Ministerial Conference for Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR) from 3 – 6 July, 2018.
 
The Asia Pacific Faith-Based Coalition for Sustainable Development has developed a joint Statement emphasizing the role of FBOs in the localization of risk reduction, resilience building and humanitarian action in relation to disaster risk reduction.
 
The Statement reads, “They [FBOs] are always among the first responders in emergencies, providing shelter during evacuation and meeting other basic needs (i.e. food, water, clothing) of those affected. They have been sources of community-based and managed social capital for healing and recovery. Furthermore, FBOs are contributing substantial material, financial and social resources for risk prevention, reduction and humanitarian action worldwide, particularly in Asia.”
 
ACT has joined the coalition at the AMCDRR to further share and discuss the Statement. The coalition will host a side event and will exhibit its work at the ‘AMCDRR Marketplace’.“The Statement showcases the solidarity and commitment of the multi-faith community to work together on disaster risk reduction. The Coalition has collaborated closely on the Statement and we are happy to share it at the AMCDRR,” said James Munpa ACT’s Programme Officer for the Asia/Pacific region.
 
“In the Asian context, FBOs provide a source of community-based social capital for the most vulnerable in terms of risk prevention, risk reduction and humanitarian response,” continued James.
 
The Statement further emphasizes that FBOs are an asset for the effective implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) which places a strong focus on reducing the risk and protection gaps among the most vulnerable.
 
The full Statement is available here

Through its Global Climate Action Project which kicked off in 2017, ACT Alliance has embarked on an ambitious plan to implement its long-standing climate justice programme in the context of the Paris Agreement, Agenda 2030 and the Sendai Framework for DRR through a series of capacity building workshops.

The growing mobilisation of the faith community allows ACT to further amplify the urgency for climate justice, ambition, and solidarity at the national and international levels.

Climate change is one of the most significant threats to lives and livelihoods around the world. As temperatures continue to rise it is the poor and most vulnerable people that are living on the frontlines of its increasingly stronger and more frequent impacts.

To limit these impacts on the climate vulnerable, the 1.5°C temperature rise threshold that was agreed to in Paris (2015) must be maintained. In order to do so while alleviating poverty and ensuring justice, national capacities need to be strengthened so that the tremendous potential of low carbon development can be mobilized for community resilience.

The components of the Paris Agreement and the complementary global policy frameworks established in 2015, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of Agenda 2030 and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, can only be achieved if implemented hand in hand.

To increase the ownership, ambition and transparency that is necessary for the full implementation of the Paris Agreement, broad stakeholder participation including that of faith based organizations (FBOs) will be required. Churches, FBOs and social movements have the potential to share knowledge, build commitment and to promote values for the care of creation.  

The international community is at a critical intersection of opportunity and urgency to further strengthen the capacity of ACT Forums, partners and churches to engage in national advocacy for the ambitious implementation of the Paris Agreement.

ACT has conducted climate change advocacy and campaigns work on climate justice and the international climate policy framework since it was founded in 2010, focusing on processes that led to the Paris Agreement. ACT’s climate justice work focuses on three pillars: advocacy and mobilization, capacity building and research and knowledge generation.

The first round of capacity building workshops covered four of ACT’s regions: Asia-Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean. A total of 82 individuals representing ACT members, forums, staff and partners from 33 countries were trained.

The workshops aim to build the in-country capacity of ACT Forums, partners and churches to conduct advocacy for the ambitious and scaled-up implementation of the Paris Agreement and to better align their national climate, disaster risk reduction and sustainable development work with the ongoing global processes. These workshops are undertaken in collaboration with the ACT Alliance Advocacy Academy.

A second round of capacity building workshops in the four regions will take place this year.

The following workshops have been scheduled:

• Africa Region, Nairobi: 10-12 July, 2018
• Asia Region, Bangkok: 31 August – 2 September, 2018
• Middle East Region, Cairo: 18- 20 September, 2018
• Latin America and the Caribbean, (location tbc): 3-6 September, 2018

We invite you to stay tuned for updates on the Global Climate Action Project and to follow our ACT Now For Climate Justice Campaign on Facebook, and @actclimate on Twitter for highlights!

For any questions on the project, please contact:
Arnold Ambundo Arnold.Ambundo@actalliance.org; or
Joanna Patouris joanna.patouris@actalliance.org

“And whoever welcomes a little child like this in My name welcomes Me.” – Matthew 18:5

In the face of the “Zero-tolerance” Immigration Policy of the United States Government, the ACT Forums of El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Guatemala:

• Find that the US immigration policy of separating children from their parents or guardians has been arbitrary, cruel and inhumane because it violates laws and international protection agreements, as well as, the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which provides special protection for girls and boys.
• Believe that the executive order of President Donald Trump to stop the separation of immigrant children from their parents is a measure that will stop the separation of children from their parents, but that does not guarantee that their rights will be respected. They will be detained together with their parents, which constitute child abuse, violation of their rights and continue to violate the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
• As Faith-Based Organizations reject any discriminatory measure that brings
  more pain to families and abuse of children, causing traumas and damage, perhaps irreversible.
• Ask the Government of the United States to stop these practices immediately and to honor the CRC with a zero-tolerance approach towards child abuse. 
• Call on the governments of the region to ensure the well-being of these children so that their rights are respected; guarantee that the best interests of the children are always given priority and the laws for the protection of children are observed; follow up on the treatment they receive at the border and in the detention centers; and guarantee the necessary conditions so that the population does not need to migrate.
• Urge the churches in Central America, and national and international organizations, to send letters to the Government of the United States demanding that Government officials take swift and efficient action to stop this practice; and dedicate cults, masses and other actions to sensitize the religious people about the abuse suffered by our children at the United States border.

San Salvador, June 22, 2018.

La asamblea inaugural de ACT Alianza en Arusha, Tanzania, en 2010, resolvió que el cambio climático era una amenaza para la vida, los medios de vida y toda la creación. Como resultado, se identificó como una prioridad para el trabajo de incidencia de ACT Alianza a todo nivel. Desde entonces, ACT Alianza ha participado en muchas iniciativas de justicia climática, incluido el trabajo de incidencia y campañas en el contexto de la Convención Marco de las Naciones Unidas sobre el Cambio Climático (CMNUCC), así como en los niveles nacional y comunitario.

Los miembros de ACT Alianza y foros en todo el mundo continúan abogando por la justicia climática (particularmente en apoyo de la resiliencia comunitaria en países en desarrollo), la reducción de la emisión de gases de efecto invernadero, el aumento de la accesibilidad a  nuevo y adicional financiamiento climático, y acciones climáticas que son guiadas por la inclusión de los principios de derechos humanos, equidad, equidad intergeneracional, participación plena y significativa de la juventud, y justicia de género.

Como ACT Alianza, creemos que el Acuerdo de París (AP) proporciona un marco político significativo que tiene el potencial de orientar acciones ambiciosas para afrontar el cambio climático y sus impactos. La meta de mantener el aumento de la temperatura global en 1.5 °C, o bien por debajo de los 2 °C, requiere de  la movilización y acciones climáticas a nivel nacional. Simultáneamente, se necesita realizar esfuerzos significativos para crear una resiliencia global al cambio climático por medio de la transformación de las economías y sociedades hacia una vía de desarrollo basada en bajas emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero. Por lo tanto, la implementación del AP debe estar vinculada a la transformación de todos los sectores económicos y debe hacerse en conjunto con la implementación de otros marcos políticos claves, en particular los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible (ODS) y el Marco de Sendai para la Reducción del Riesgo de Desastres (MSRRD).

Esta caja de herramientas está diseñada para apoyar las acciones de incidencia de los miembros, foros y socios de ACT Alianza a nivel nacional. Se enfoca en los tres instrumentos estipulados en el AP, las Contribuciones Determinadas a Nivel Nacional (NDC, por sus siglas en inglés), los Planes Nacionales de Adaptación (NAP, por sus siglas en inglés) y las Estrategias de Largo Plazo (LTS por sus siglas en inglés), que son  estrategias de desarrollo hacia mediados de siglo, basadas en bajas emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero. ACT Alianza anima a que todo el trabajo de incidencia climática se guíe por los principios de la justicia climática.

Llamamos  a todos nuestros miembros y foros a usar esta caja de herramientas, no solo con fines de incidencia, sino también para la creación de capacidades y para facilitar las discusiones y reflexiones internas, con el fin de asegurar la integración de las especificidades de los contextos nacionales en nuestro trabajo global de justicia climática.

Esta caja de herramientas está disponible aquí en español y aquí en inglés.

ACT Alliance is pleased to share our new Resource Guide to Climate Finance: An orientation to sources of funds for climate change programmes and action. It is available in English and Spanish.

Ambitious climate action in developing countries depends on the mobilization and accessibility to financial resources. Climate finance is important for mitigation efforts, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and also for adaptation, to support communities in adapting to climate change and reducing the adverse impacts of climate change on their communities.

This Resource Guide is designed to assist ACT Forums, members, partners, Faith-Based Organisations (FBOs), and others to identify some of the funds available within the global climate finance architecture that may be relevant for their climate-related programmes and projects.

The Guide covers 25 multilateral, 16 bilateral, 13 private, 10 faith-based, 3 national, and 1 regional grant providers. It is inclusive of funds with high eligibility criteria, as well as funds that are more accessible for small, less institutionalised organizations with modest climate change project experience.

The Guide explores some of the frequently asked questions related to climate funds including background information, sectoral and regional focus, eligibility criteria, application deadlines (where known), contact details and online links for additional information. Each analysis ends with a brief assessment of the relevance of the fund for ACT members as grant-seekers.

It is recommended that you use this Resource Guide to complement your ongoing search for climate finance sources. We would like to encourage you to use this resource and to share it with your networks and partners. We are pleased to offer any additional support in using the toolkit.  

The English version is available here.

The Spanish version is available here.

For any questions or comments please contact Joanna Patouris, joanna.patouris[@]actalliance.org.

ACT’s General Secretary Rudelmar Bueno de Faria addressed the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches (WCC) on 15 June 2018 at a Plenary Session entitled Ecumenical Diakonia and Sustainable Development.

ACT, the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the WCC have developed a study document on Ecumenical Diakonia with the aim of encouraging dialogue and building the capacity of churches and ecumenical partners to engage in diakonia and sustainable development.

In his address, de Faria acknowledged the efforts and influences of churches and faith based organizations (FBOs) in communities. “Historically, churches have played a prophetic role, they have shaped local and global political and development agendas and have emphasized values of inclusion and human dignity,” he said.

Despite these positive contributions, there is at the same time a growing level of polarization occurring between communities on certain social and political issues. The increased amount of segregation and discrimination occurring in different parts of the world is bringing the human rights framework and sustainable development under attack. “Even some churches are associating themselves with populist politicians, political parties and economic groups that promote agendas that deepen exclusion and undermine human dignity,” said de Faria.

De Faria acknowledged the crisis of values that is occurring around the world and urged churches and FBOs to raise their prophetic voice to support marginalized communities. “The time is ripe for ecumenical diakonia. We need to leverage our Christian values and uniqueness as FBOs and to establish strategic partnerships with religious and secular organizations that are fighting to uphold human dignity, peace and justice,” he continued.

Agenda 2030 and its Sustainable Development Goals provides churches and diaconal organizations and institutions with a political and transformational framework to engage in ecumenical diakonia and to address the factors that are undermining development and human life and are putting God’s creation at risk.

De Faria further noted that the increasing recognition of the role of religion in development also presents an opportunity for diakonia and building alliances with people of faith and religious communities in the struggle for justice.

“We have to recognize that we are in an era of change and we should together identify the potential for the prophetic and political engagement of churches and diaconal organizations,” he said. “Although there is much work to still be done, the first step is to recognize that we are a part of one ecumenical movement and we will work together,” concluded de Faria.

In the past few months more than 2000 children have been separated from their parents as their families tried to cross the US border. Audio of children wailing in agony as they are ripped away from their parents continue to be broadcast by the media around the world.

“The actions of the US administration not only violate a range of international human rights conventions but contradict basic human decency,” says Rudelmar Bueno de Faria, ACT Alliance General Secretary.

Earlier in the month, member organizations of ACT Alliance based in the USA joined a range of faith-based groups in decrying the action of the US government, saying that they were ‘unnecessarily cruel and detrimental to the well-being of parents and children.’

“Today, on World Refugee Day, there is a record high number of displaced persons in the world, most of them in developing countries, with little solidarity coming from the OECD countries regarding refugee reception and resettlement,” de Faria continues. 

ACT Alliance reaffirms the spirit and the letter of the convention on the rights of the child and reiterates the importance of protecting children and their families that nurture them.

The preamble of the convention states: “Convinced that the family, as the fundamental group of society and the natural environment for the growth and well-being of all its members and particularly children, should be afforded the necessary protection and assistance so that it can fully assume its responsibilities within the community.”

“What is happening in the USA takes away any assurances that these children will be protected and provided for. It demeans the concept of rule of law, which should serve people and communities rather than expose them to danger and suffering,” says de Faria.

The US action takes place in a political climate that includes the US’s stated withdrawal from the UN Human Rights Council and Germany’s crisis over refugee reception. Hungary is locking its asylum seekers into prison-like transit zones and Australia has mastered offshoring asylum.

“As ACT Alliance, drawing from our mandate and mission as a church-based humanitarian and development organization, and guided by our faith values, we condemn this approach that targets children and families. We strongly urge the US government to stop separating children from their families and to implement a policy that is in conformity with international human rights and humanitarian law and basic human decency,” says de Faria.

“Our hearts, thoughts, prayers and solidarity are with the children and the families affected by these monstrous actions.  Today and every day, as ACT Alliance we stand for human rights and today specifically the right to seek and enjoy asylum,” concludes de Faria.

For more information, please contact:
Isaiah Toroitich (isaiah.toroitich [at] actalliance.org)
Global Advocacy and Policy Coordinator, ACT Alliance

Simon Chambers (simon.chambers [at] actalliance.org)
Head of Communications, ACT Alliance

This week, ACT’s General Secretary Rudelmar Bueno de Faria joined leaders from the world’s major Christian denominations in a joint letter calling on communities to engage in the Season of Creation.

Season of Creation is celebrated every year from September 1 to October 4 by Christians around the world through prayer and action to protect the environment.

The letter affirms the growing commitment of Christian leaders to environmental protection across various denominations. “As the environmental crisis deepens, we Christians are urgently called to witness to our faith by taking bold action to preserve the gift we share,” the letter reads.

“As a faith based network, ACT Alliance recognizes the moral and spiritual obligation to care for creation and for the people and communities that are most affected by environmental degradation,” said Bueno de Faria. “I encourage ACT members to mobilize their communities and networks to engage in the Season of Creation through prayer and action for environmental protection and for solidarity with the most vulnerable,” he continued.

“The ACT Alliance will continue to engage with governments, civil society, people’s movements, faith based organizations, and others for environmental protection. The Season of Creation provides us with a moment to acknowledge the role of human impact on the environment and importantly to reflect on the gift of creation,” said Bueno de Faria.

The letter is available below and on our website here.

______________________________________________

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

“But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you; or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?” (Job 12:7-9, NRSV)

Once every year, from September 1 to October 4, members of the Christian family set aside time to deepen our relationship with the Creator, each other, and all of creation. This is the Season of Creation, which began in 1989 with the first recognition of the day of prayer for creation by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of the Orthodox Church, and which is now ​embraced by the wider ecumenical family.

During the Season of Creation, we join together to rejoice in the good gift of creation and reflect on how we care for it.  This season offers a precious opportunity to pause in the midst of our day-to-day lives and contemplate the fabric of life into which we are woven.

As the environmental crisis deepens, we Christians are urgently called to witness to our faith by taking bold action to preserve the gift we share. As the psalmist sings, “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein.” (Psalm 24:1-2)  During the Season of Creation, we ask ourselves: Do our actions honor the Lord as Creator?  Are there ways to deepen our faith by protecting “the least of these,” who are most vulnerable to the consequences of environmental degradation?

We invite you to join us on a journey of faith that challenges and rewards us with fresh perspective and deeper bonds of love. United in our sincere wish to protect creation and all those who share it, we join hands across denominations as sisters and brothers in Christ.  During this season, we walk together towards greater stewardship of our place in creation.

“O Lord my God, you are very great! You are clothed with splendor and majesty, covering yourself with light as with a garment, stretching out the heavens like a tent.”  (Psalm 104:1-2)  

With you, we give thanks for the community of believers around the world that is bringing love to creation this season, and we praise the Creator for the gifts we share.

In God’s grace,

Archbishop Job of Telmessos, Permanent Representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to the WCC, on behalf of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew

Most Rev. & Rt. Hon Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury

Cardinal Peter K.A. Turkson, Prefect, Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development

Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tveit, General Secretary of World Council of Churches

Rev. Dr. Chris Ferguson, General Secretary, World Communion of Reformed Churches

Bishop Efraim Tendero, Secretary-General of the World Evangelical Alliance

Rev. Dr. Martin Junge, General Secretary, Lutheran World Federation

Mr. Rudelmar Bueno de Faria, General Secretary, ACT Alliance

Fr. Heikki Huttunen, General Secretary, Conference of European Churches

More information is available at the Season of Creation website SeasonOfCreation.org

_____________________________________

The Season of Creation Steering Committee is comprised of ACT Alliance, Anglican Communion Environmental Network, ARocha, Christian Aid, Global Catholic Climate Movement, Lausanne/World Evangelical Alliance Creation Care Network, Lutheran World Federation, and World Council of Churches.

The anti-government protests which started on April 18 have resulted in further political instability and a rising death toll in Nicaragua. Initially spurred by President Daniel Ortega’s plans to change social welfare conditions, protests became deadly after violent clashes with police. Last week, conflict across various cities in Nicaragua, escalated as a demonstration held by mothers and relatives of disappeared and deceased youth was violently repressed by military and paramilitary groups.

The National Dialogue for Peace which aimed to facilitate discussions between government representatives, students, unions, farmers, and other members of civil society has broken down and has been suspended indefinitely. Growing frustrations over corruption and an autocratic government has exacerbated the situation and protesters are calling for the resignation of President Ortega.

“As ACT Alliance, we express our solidarity with the Nicaraguan people and our concern about the escalation of confrontations across the country.  In this moment, it is crucial to find ways to immediately stop the violence and resume the dialogue– with broad participation– to overcome the current crisis and agree on a national pact to find sustainable solutions to the causes of these conflicts,” says Rudelmar Bueno de Faria, General Secretary of ACT Alliance.

The ACT Alliance Nicaragua Forum has issued a Statement reaffirming the need for reconciliation, peace and democracy in Nicaragua. “As faith-based organizations, we work for peace, justice, solidarity, dialogue, inclusion and peaceful coexistence among Nicaraguan brothers and sisters, we reiterate our solidarity and accompaniment to all expressions in favour of reconciliation based on justice and we raise our prayers to the Creator so that the conflict in Nicaragua ceases, the doors to understanding are opened, the rights of all are respected and the welfare of each person is guaranteed,” the Statement reads.