Author Archives: winifredd

Journeying to and engaging in COP 28

Some of the NGO groups at the UN have started their travel to Dubai, UAE for COP 28 which starts on November 30th.

VIVAT International and UNANIMA International are among them. VIVAT had prepared recommendations and sent to the COP28 Presidency and the countries’ Focal Points: 
* COP28 UAE Presidency: Sultan Mohamed Al Jabar (President), Iman Ustadi (Deputy Chief Negotiator), and Hana Al Hashimi (Chief Climate Negotiator) * Pacific Countries: Vanuatu, Fiji, Cook Islands, Marshall Islands
* Asian Countries: Indonesia, the Philippines, Timor Leste, Maldives * Latin America and the Caribbean: Ecuador, Barbados, Costa Rica * African Countries: DRC, Ethiopia, Kenya. Mozambique, Niger, Senegal, South Sudan, Tunisia.

We have signed on this statement.

Letter-to-Barbados-focal-point_COP28-UAE-2Download

UNANIMA have prepared a position paper that reviews the key focuses of COP28 as outlined by the COP Presidency, and makes recommendations given our research and advocacy. The Policy Statement, on the other hand, focuses more specifically on the needs and experiences of women, children, and girls in relation to climate change and the need for a just transition to a more sustainable future.

COP28-Position-Paper-UNANIMA-InternationalDownload
COP28-Policy-Statement-UNANIMA-InternationalDownload

UNANIMA delegation will be attending the first week of COP28 in Dubai from November 30th-December 8th. UNANIMA International is sponsoring a side event titled “A Global Catholic Letter on Climate Change to the COP28 Presidency” (along with Vivat International and other Catholic organizations) on Tuesday, December 5th, from 6:30-8:00pm (UAE time) which Jean will be moderating and Liana will be presenting at.

UNANIMA will provide updates on COP28, including a live stream to the side event once that’s available, and we hope that you’ll join us virtually on social media and other platforms. When published I will also insert the link for you to access.

The Laudato Si Movement offers opportunities for engagment with COP 28 in mind a) On line petition b) Virtual prayer service c) Panel event

Please join us for these three upcoming online events, held in the hope of authentic faith, praying and acting for COP 28:

Nov. 29, 2023 at 7pm – 8pm ET. Offered by the Boston Chapter of the Global Catholic Climate Movement and the NH Care for Creation Committee – a Laudato Si’ Circle

Join us in a spiritual wave of prayer for meaningful decisions and urgent action. We pray that all who gather for this COP will feel they are on holy ground and act accordingly, for the sake of all creation–God’s great gift of love. All are welcome. Register here!

Nov 30, 2023 at 12pm ET

Catholic Climate Covenant and Laudato Si’ Movement warmly invite you to an online conversation with renowned climate scientist, Dr. Katharine Hayhoe and Fordham professor of theology, Dr. Christiana Zenner about COP 28 and the invitation of Catholics in this gathering, both in Dubai and at home. Register here! 

November 25 –

UN Women kicks off a UN-wide annual campaign on 25 November, the International Day to End Violence against Women.

Over the following 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, we are asking governments, institutions, and citizens to show us how much the world cares about ending violence against women and girls under the theme “UNITE! Invest to prevent violence against women and girls“.

Led by civil society groups around the world, the campaign is supported by the United Nations through the Secretary General’s initiative, UNITE by 2030 to End Violence against Women.

For more information visit English: UN Women Website; X: @un_women Facebook: @unwomen Instagram: @unwomen LinkedIn: @un -women
TikTok: @unwomen ESPAÑOL. X: @onumujeres Facebook: @onumujeres Instagram: @onumujeres LinkedIn: @onumujeres FRANÇAIS X: @onufemmes Facebook: @onufemmes Instagram: @onufemmes

The GSIJP Office has 16 templates prepared to raise awareness of the different types of violence that is occuring across the ‘Good Shepherd World.’ Our 16 days campaign is a conbination of calling for an end to all violence against girls and women, while standing with and demaning change to facilitate the ending of violence. Watch out for for social media posts on X (Twitter), Facebook and Instagram. The global theme of this year’s 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence is “Invest to prevent violence against women and girls.” Let us UNITE in demanding an end to all forms of violence against girls and women! #16DaysOfActivism #NoExcuse

An Informative Guide to COP 28

“WE MUST MOVE BEYOND THE MENTALITY OF APPEARING TO BE CONCERNED BUT NOT HAVING THE
COURAGE NEEDED TO PRODUCE SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES.” Pope Francis in Laudate Deum

Justice Coalition of Religious at the UN (JCOR) has prepared and made available an informative guide to COP 28 in four Languages: English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. It is 13 slides with all your questions answered as to what is COP 28 and what is happening there.

What are the advocacy priorities? a) Transitioning to clean energy (end fossil fuel usage); b) deliver climate finance (money to fund climate action); (c) put nature, people, lives, and livelihoods at the heart of climate action; (d) mobilize an inclusive COP 28 (Ensuring that Indigenous People, youth and climate vulnerable communities are at the policy-making table generating and sharing implementable solutions. Read more HERE

Pre-COP 28 Faith Leaders Summit – 6 – 7 November 2023

Photo from the website

Check out the Faith Leaders Summit Website for a summary of the Summit which took place recently in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, the host country for COP 28 later in the month. Jeffrey Sachs delivered one of the presentation. A copy of his address is HERE Opening with an overview of the global situation he asks why do the politicians of powerful nations do what they do? He proposes a four point answer – in summary – arrognace, greed, corruption and hersey. ‘We must heed Isaiah, to beat swords into ploughshares.  With today’s technologies, our modern ploughshares and pruning hooks are powerful enough to end hunger worldwide, to feed all of humanity, and to protect the environment.‘

Comments are wecome.

November – Ending Violence Against Women

Towards the latter part of November we focus attention on the 16 days campaign to end violence against women. The theme this year is  “UNITE! Invest to prevent violence against women and girls” The campaign begins on November 25th – the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women – and runs until December 10th. While we do not have one specific position paper addressing this issues – the 6 position papers as a whole, address gender based violence from the economic, social, ecological and political aspects, across the life cycle of girls and women.

The theme for the prayer for November is focued on Ending Violence Against Girls and Women

November-2023-PrayerDownload
Oracion-de-noviembre-de-2023Download
Priere-du-mois-de-novembre-2023Download

Read more HERE; Types of Violence against Women and Girls; The Climate-Care Nexus

COP 28 – Is this on your agenda?

News from the Laudato Si Movement on preparations for COP 28. COP 28 will take place from November 30 to December 12, 2023 hosted by the United Arab Emireates in Dubai. There is deep concern about the urgent need for action at COP28, especially in the face of the alarming promotion of fossil fuels by the host and so many other powerful nations. “The fossil fuel industry and its armies of poisonous lobbyists are putting immense pressure on governments worldwide to do the opposite of what is needed to protect God’s sacred gift of Creation.” Are you aware of the fossil fuel industry in your country? How can you join a campaign to end fossil fuels now?

Pope Francis wrote in Laudate Deum, COP28 “can represent a change of direction, showing that everything done since 1992 was in fact serious and worth the effort, or else it will be a great disappointment and jeopardize whatever good has been achieved thus far” (54). (Picture below from Laudato Si Movement letter)

Learn more about UNFCC Review the schedule of the conference is here

‘Laudate Deum’ follow-up to Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical Laudato Si’.

Read the full text HERE This is a much shorter document than ‘Laudato Si’ relevant and to the point with regard to the situation of the world today. On glancing my favourite paragraph is No 38. ” In the medium-term, globalization favours spontaneous cultural interchanges, greater mutual knowledge and processes of integration of peoples, which end up provoking a multilateralism “from below” and not simply one determined by the elites of power. The demands that rise up from below throughout the world, where activists from very different countries help and support one another, can end up pressuring the sources of power. It is to be hoped that this will happen with respect to the climate crisis. For this reason, I reiterate that “unless citizens control political power – national, regional and municipal – it will not be possible to control damage to the environment”. [31]”

Read five takeaways provided by Maryknoll HERE The end of their blog page suggests two actions:

What can you do now?

Join a webinar to learn more about Laudate Deum, organized by the Catholic Climate Covenant tomorrow, Thursday, Oct. 5 at 12pm Eastern Time.

Sign a letter to world leaders at the UN Climate Change Conference COP28 in December about the need for wealthy nations to contribute to the Loss and Damage Fund to help countries most vulnerable to climate change.

UNICEF – Page is live for International Day of the Girl

UNICEF Website Link Working Group on Girls is the group through which Good Shepherd/GSIJP Office is engaging. Twitter: @IDG_Summit Facebook: @DayoftheGirlSummit Instagram: @IDG_Summit

GSIJP Office Social Media: Twitter Facebook Instagram

The 2023 Girls Speak Out will take place on October 11 at the United Nations Headquarters in NY at 3.00 p.m. EST

Site logo imageDay of the Girl Register for the Girls Speak Out 2023!

IDG Support Team Sep 19
The 2023 Girls Speak Out will draw upon the  IDG theme of “Invest in Girls’ Rights: Our Leadership & Wellbeing” focusing on action for girls’ rights. This begins with fulfilling, protecting, and respecting girls’ rights. It demands trusting girls’ leadership as equal partners, ensuring there is space for girls to be heard, to participate and co-lead, and respecting their voices, perspectives, and lived realities as decision-makers and as the leaders of today. This also requires investing in and supporting girls’ health and well-being as well as their education and including girls in determining what their needs are while working in an intergenerational effort to meet those specific needs. In listening to Girl Advocates’ perspectives and Girl Activists who are already making change, the overarching questions at this year’s Girls’ Speak Out will be: How are you taking action for girls’ rights? How are you investing in, supporting, and working towards the realization of girls’ rights? Register Here
In-person Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/717402930477?aff=oddtdtcreator
Virtual Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/717421947357?aff=oddtdtcreator

In collaboration with the Working Group on Girls, the GSIJP Office is cosponsoring with Istituto Internazionale Maria Ausiliatrice (IIMA) Salesian Sisters of Don Bosco an IDG Sponsorship Day on October 7 ‘Investing in Girls’ Leadership and Power.’ This is an X/Twitter Storm starting at 11.00 a.m. EST. Follow social media for more details.

Join girls from Asia Pacific on October 7 from 10.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. Malaysian time in their celebration. LINK TO REGISTER

UN General Assembly 78th Session – High Level Week – The Stakes are High

The words of the UN Secretary General at a press conference following the opening of the 78th Session of the General Assembly

” My appeal to world leaders will be clear: 

This is not a time for posturing or positioning. 

This is not a time for indifference or indecision. 

This is a time to come together for real, practical solutions.

It is time for compromise for a better tomorrow.

Politics is compromise.

Diplomacy is compromise.

Effective leadership is compromise.

If we want a future of peace and prosperity based on equity and solidarity, leaders have a special responsibility to achieve compromise in designing our common future for our common good.

Next week here in New York is the place to start.”

All you every need to know about the General Assembly and what is taking place from September 16 to 29

JCOR have prepared a very informative guide in Powerpoint to help us navigate at home and at the UN Headquarter in NY. It is available in four languages English, French, Spanish and Portuguese. Get a sense of when your national leaders are going to address the assembly on Slides 6,7 and 8. Social media with sample messenging are towards the end.

Read about the Sustainable Development Summit and the Sustainable Development Action Weekend in English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese

My proposed scheduled

Saturday September 16: Mobilization Day: Opening Session of the SDG Action Weekend followed by ‘Towards a Rights-Centered Gender-Transformative Economy, including a new International Financial Architecture” organized by Women’s Major Group, with the suppor of UN Women. It will be live on UN Web TV from 12.00 pm – 2.00 pm. EST. This is followed by a side event at 2.15 pm. entitled from SDG Summit to Summit of the Future: building the UN we Need in Conference Room 4 and lastly at 4.15 pm EST : Towards the Realisation of SDGs: Multi-stakeholder, Intersectional and Intergenerational Approach.

Sunday September 17th: I will attend the Global People’s Assembly at the Church Center. 9.00 am EST Opening Plenary; 11.15 am Which Financial Architecture for Economic Justice; 1.30 pm Linkages of Pushback, Linkages of Resistence: Gender, Climate, Migration and Democracy and at 3.00 p.m. join the Climate March.

Monday, September 18 is the first day of the SDG Summit with a leaders dialogue taking place in the UN. From 9.00am – 11.00 am EST I will attend the second day Global People’s Assembly in a session entitled Feminist Economy. The conclusion of the day is around Civil Society Networking followed by Final Plenary and Public Action at 6.30 p.m. EST Concurrently, Religions for Peace have an event TRILATERAL PARTNERSHIP OF REGIONAL FAITH-BASED NETWORKS FOR THE SDGs: Register HERE to attend virtually. Register HERE to attend in person.