In Caibareín, a small coastal town in Cuba's Villa Clara province, homeowners survey damage from Hurricane Irma in 2017. MCC photo/Bonnie Klassen
As policymakers in the United States consider how to address the challenges presented by climate change, advocates have an important role to play in promoting an equitable, global response that prioritizes the needs of the most marginalized. One such effort involves contributions to the Green Climate Fund. Through this fund, the countries that have contributed the most to climate change direct funds to countries that are most vulnerable to its impacts. GCF-funded projects include coastal resilience in Cuba, climate-resilient food security in Mozambique and sustainable cooking technology in Kenya and Senegal. Such projects increase stability, improve public health and address food insecurity - all of which are interconnected with climate change.
This year, the annual Ecumenical Advocacy Days conference, of which MCC is a sponsor, will focus on the topic of climate change. If you are not able to attend EAD, write your members of Congress to encourage them to support funding for the GCF.
"I think it's important that we continue advocating because it brings the perspectives of all people to light to address issues that citizens care about. I would tell others who are considering visits to their public officials to do it. We need political participation more now than ever, and it's life-giving to advocate for an issue one passionately cares about." - Andrea Troyer, EMU student
Read more from Clara Weybright and Eastern Mennonite University students as they reflect on meetings with senators to advocate for federal funding for the Green Climate Fund.
The spiritual place of Gureombi on a military base in Gangjeong, Republic of Korea. Photo courtesy of SeongHan Kim.
"Every military base transforms the lives of people on the ground. Sadly, often they are vulnerable people such as farmers and fishers who are deeply connected with the land and ocean from generation to generation. That is what I saw at the Gangjeong village [in the Republic of Korea]."
Read more from SeongHan Kim, peace educator and representative for MCC Northeast Asia, about the impact of military bases and militarism on local communities and sacred places.
The increased arrivals at the border can be explained by seasonal trends and a backlog of migrants, including children and teens, stuck in Mexico for a year or longer. The U.S. asylum and refugee system, largely dismantled under the previous administration, must be quickly rebuilt to provide safety for those who need it, as required by both U.S. law and our treaty commitments.
On March 16, Rep. Al Green (Texas) and nine other House members reintroduced H.Res. 235 supporting the demands of the #EndSARS movement in Nigeria to call for meaningful security reform that would end police brutality, increase government accountability and encourage the unrestricted use of public spaces for peaceful protests.
The recently introduced Honduras Human Rights and Anti-Corruption Act seeks to hold the Honduran president accountable for corruption and human rights abuses, while banning U.S. exports of guns and weapons to Honduran security forces. Corruption has been a significant issue in the country; for example, last month, a former Honduran congressman and brother of the Honduran president was sentenced to life in prison in New York for drug trafficking and other offenses.
Our office signed a letter to President Biden urging him not to support a renewed fumigation program in Colombia. Aerial fumigation, which destroys fields of coca, mainly affects low-income farmers, exposing them to a possible carcinogen and doing little to reduce coca cultivation or drug production. In addition to the public health and environmental risks, fumigations may contribute to local conflicts and violate the 2016 Peace Accords.
Continue to keep our brothers and sisters in Myanmar (Burma) in your prayers months after military leaders staged a coup and have been committing violent atrocities against protesters and civilians, including women and children. The U.S. House of Representatives passed the bipartisan Protect Democracy in Burma Act, which requires the Department of State to report to Congress efforts to support a return to democracy in the country and to call on the United Nations to hold those responsible for the coup accountable.
Write your senators and urge them to co-sponsor the Protect Democracy in Burma Act and to support the people of Myanmar in their pursuit of a peaceful resolution to this conflict.
Join us for Ecumenical Advocacy Days 2021 to advocate for climate justice and reimagine a world that lives out the values of equity and the beloved community. For more information and to register, click here.
If you missed the April 7th webinar, Martin Luther King on Racism and War, you can watch the recording here. Rev. Joanna Lawrence Shenk and Dr. Drew G.I. Hart spoke on the relevance of King's speech "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence."
We acknowledge and mourn the killing of our Asian American sisters and Latino brother in Atlanta, Georgia, on March 16, 2021. We encourage you to read this statement on increased violence and hate crimes against Asian American Pacific Islander people from Mennonite Church USA Women in Leadership Steering Committee.
