Being one of the two annual meetings of the Committee for World Service, this meeting will take place as a visit to an LWF country program, with a focus on exposure, thematic issues and topical issues pertinent to humanitarian and development action

On its visit to the LWF program in Myanmar, the Committee for World Service will be looking at challenges of the Rohinga conflict, encampment policies, inter-religious conflict and working in that setting and accountability mechanisms, as well as meeting with all the member churches in Myanmar and participating in a donor round table.

UPDATE

This event was updated from an event initially planned for 16 – 19 March 2020.

It was updated a second time from an event initially planned for 19 – 23 October 2020.

LWF European Diaconal Process – 3^rd Workshop

The European Diaconal Process considers questions of spirituality, motivation and practice, which influence both the professional diaconal and pastoral work and "everyday life". The response to populism, nationalism, racism and xenophobia are a key issue as are ecumenical and inter-faith working. The guiding orientation for the process is the concept of conviviality with the sub-themes of vocation, dignity and justice.

The projected result is the building up of an influential conviviality group that will be a resource to Lutheran churches. It will help them affirm diversity and contribute to public discourse by providing them with pedagogical material for use by local congregations, best practice examples for working with diversity in church and society and proposals for policy in church and the public realm.

Participants' registration deadline: 14 October 2020

Side Event at Human Rights Council 43rd session: Palestinian children from Gaza facing obstacles to access health services

Children from Gaza face many challenges to access health services. AVH’s own Dr. Khadra Salami, as well as representatives of Médecins du Monde and Physicians for Human Rights Israel will discuss some of these challenges: frequent delays in obtaining travel permits, the separation of children from their parents when they go to East Jerusalem for treatment etc.

Perspectives and proposals for what can be done to improve the situation will also be presented.

• All children diagnosed with cancer should be treated without delay
• Once diagnosed with cancer the child should get a permit for an initial period of one year for active treatment and appropriate follow up, after which an assessment will be done on a case by case basis
• All children referred for medical treatment outside Gaza should be accompanied by at least one parent

LWF has been present in Palestine since 1948. Due to the absence of a peaceful solution to the long-standing conflict between Israel and Palestine, human rights are frequently violated and protection needs are high. For 70 years, LWF has been operating the Augusta Victoria Hospital, situated on the Mount of Olives in East Jerusalem. AVH is today a leading tertiary health provider in Palestine, specialized in oncology, nephrology and diabetes. AVH covers a gap in the Palestinian healthcare system, enabling Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza to access health services otherwise not available to them where they live. 30 % of the cancer patients in AVH come from Gaza. Each year, the hospital receives between 80 and 90 new cases of children with cancer under the age of 18.

EVENT: Open to anyone who holds or can access a UN badge

Location: Room XXII, Palais des Nations

LWF Jerusalem

New guidelines for more inclusive humanitarian action

On 26 February, PHAP and International Council of Voluntary Agencies (ICVA) have organized in partnership with the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) secretariat and the Reference Group on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Humanitarian Action an online session to introduce the new Guidelines on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Humanitarian Action and discuss how to practically achieve disability-inclusive humanitarian action.

The event will discuss how to make a real difference for persons with disabilities and how best to implement these guidelines in practice. Humanitarian actors need to translate the IASC Guidelines into concrete improvements in their daily activities, continuing to work closely with persons with disabilities and their representative organizations.

You will hear from guest experts such as Sien Andries, an Inclusive Humanitarian Action Specialist at Humanity and Inclusion; Allan A. Calma, Global Humanitarian Coordinator at Lutheran World Federation (LWF); Kirstin Lange, Programme Specialist (Disability Inclusive Humanitarian Action) at UNICEF; and Elham Youssefian Inclusive Humanitarian Action and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Advisor at the International Disability Alliance.

To see when the live session will take place in your time zone, click here.

• Learn more about the event here

• Register for the event here
• Access the guidelines here

In view of growing concern worldwide about the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19), the LWF has canceled the World Service Global Leadership Team Meeting, and postponed the Regional Management Team Meeting for Asia until 2021.

For further information please contact the Head of Operations, Chey Mattner.

The World Service Global Leadership Team Meeting brings together heads of country programs in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean, alongside staff from the LWF Communion Office - to take a joint look at critical issues related to daily DWS programmatic and managerial work.

The meeting will include training workshops, simulation exercises and sharing of experiences, as well as a visit to a project of the LWF country program in Nepal.

Girls for a Future

The COVID-19 pandemic has had serious consequences for children worldwide, but especially for girls. School closures put especially girls at risk to not only lose out on education temporarily, but to drop out entirely, removing the opportunity to determine their own future. At the same time, the protection mechanisms which work in school are no longer in place.  LWF country programs in the past months have noted an increase in sexual and gender-based violence, early marriage and teen pregnancies which will likely become worse.

Online and on social media, LWF will share insights from the field, voices of girls and of LWF education and protection officers. Please share these insights, and support LWF’s work to empower girls.

Please follow, comment and share the #girlsforafuture #LWFforhopeandafuture on social media and join us on our profiles:

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Resources

‘Fund, Respond, Prevent, Collect’ to end violence against women

Together with international partners, faith-based organizations and global advocacy groups around the world, we use this opportunity to raise our voices for a stronger response and prevention of Sexual and Gender Based Violence.

This year’s campaign takes place 25 years after the Beijing Conference on Women and in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has exacerbated gender inequality and exposed other forms of discrimination and violation of women and girls' human rights.

We encourage LWF Member Churches and Country Programs from around the Communion to creatively engage with the 16 Days campaign and we offer resources to facilitate this.

Between 25 November (International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women) and 10 December (International Human Rights Day), let us stand together to promote gender justice and dignity for all.

We invite you to read and share our stories and resources, which you will find here:

16 Days - CAMPAIGN ACTION PACK - EN

16 Days 2020 campaign - Online Media Kit

Faith Actors Responding, Preventing and Advocating to End Gender-Based Violence in Uganda

This event, jointly organised by LWF, Side by Side, ACT Alliance and, Mothers’ Union Uganda, aims to amplify ecumenical partners’ work to end Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in Uganda.

Speakers will share best practices and learnings from their experiences tackling Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) in local communities, and in regional and national policy spaces.

The event also marks the opening of the global campaign ‘16 Days of Activism to end SGBV’. It includes a video message from LWF General Secretary Martin Junge urging churches to

Target audience: Faith Actors, Policy Makers and Women Right’s Organisations.

Event Registration

How ethnic communities are fighting for the rights of the Atrato River in Colombia 

On the fifth anniversary of the Paris Agreement, we present the case of the Rio Atrato, a river with legal rights, and the work of the ethnic communities protecting its rights as well as their own.

The LWF supports the Commission of Guardians of the Atrato for the effective implementation of the T-622 historic Court ruling in Colombia, which recognizes legal rights to the Atrato River and gives a series of directives to protect the rights of local communities in the Atrato Basin. With partners like the Climate Alliance and FIAN, this Zoom event aims to:

• Give more visibility to the fight of ethnic communities for the respect of their social, economic, cultural and environmental rights
• Raise awareness about key issues within the question of environmental protection and food sovereignty, and about the challenges faced by ethnic communities in Colombia in the face of industries such as mining 
• Present the lessons and practices of the emblematic case of the Atrato River, in particular with the recognition of the legal personality of the river. 

Speakers:

• Maryury Mosquera, Guardian for the Community Council COCOMOPOCA 
• Nixon Chamorro, Guardian for the Choco Indigenous Roundtable 
• Juan Carlos Morales Gonzalez, Director of FIAN Colombia 
• Harol Rincon Ipuchima, Coordinator for climate change and biodiversity of COICA and vice-president of Climate Alliance Europe 
• Musonda Mumba, Chief Terrestrial Ecosystems Unit of UNEP 

Moderator

• Elena Cedillo, LWF Program Executive for Climate Justice 

This event is co-organized by The Lutheran World Federation, FIAN international, FIAN Colombia, Climate Alliance, Climate Alliance Vorarlberg, and COICA. 

It is supported by Canton de Genève and ACT Church of Sweden.

Zoom Registration

Languages: Spanish, interpretation provided for English, French and German

Youtube Livestreaming

Related Content

LWF Colombia

Webinar on The Global Compact on Refugees and the Role of Faith-Based Organisations in Refugee Protection

The Global Compact on Refugees (GCR) represents the ambitions of the international community for strengthened cooperation and solidarity with refugees and affected host countries. The Compact calls for multi-stakeholder partnerships to address the complex nature of forced displacement. This is an opportune moment to assess the role of Faith-Based Organizations in supporting implementation, both within Europe and beyond.

Join representatives of the European Commission, UNHCR, governments, FBOs, refugee organizations and grass-roots activists to discuss the impact of the GCR, the role of Faith-based Organizations in implementing key pledges, as well as opportunities and challenges for forging effective partnerships.

Conclusions of the discussions will feed into the design of the “Welcoming the Stranger, Shaping the Future” International Conference, scheduled for 2022 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Organized by HIAS Europe, the Lutheran World Federation, Quaker Council for European Affairs and Islamic Relief Worldwide

In Collaboration with: ACT Alliance EU, ICMC Europe, CCME, EU Cord, DBI, A World of Neighbours

Zoom Registration

Language: English