EDITORIAL

WOMEN’S JOURNEY TO FREEDOM

BY Rafael Armada | EDITOR

ON 9 August 1956 a multi-racial group of 20 000 South African women led by Lilian Ngoyi, Helen Joseph, Sophie Williams–De Bruyn, among others marched to the Union Buildings in Pretoria asking for the derogation of the pass laws, a system imposed by the Apartheid government which controlled the movements of black men and women within the country. These women passed on a memorandum in which they demanded, not only their right to free movement but better education for their children, the end of forced removals and other human rights to be respected as well as the end of the system of racial segregation. To commemorate this peaceful march, South Africa declared 9 August National Women’s Day; by extension, this month became associated with women.

On 1 April 2003, in the heat of a devastating war in Liberia, between President Charles Taylor and various militant warlords, Leymah Gbowee—later awarded the Nobel Peace Prize—mobilized hundreds of Christians, Muslims and internally displaced women for peace.  Wearing all-white clothing they gathered at the fish market every day for a week. They sat, danced, and sang for peace. 

As the week went on, over 2 500 women held a candlelight prayer vigil urging Taylor and the rebels to negotiate the end of the war. The international community joined the call too.  On 11 April the women marched through the streets of Monrovia proclaiming: “The women of Liberia say peace is our goal, peace is what matters, peace is what we need.”, while hundreds more joined the back of the group as it passed their homes.  Their march concluded at Monrovia’s Municipal Office where 1 000 women assembled, demanding a meeting with Taylor. On April 23, they met him; some presented the President with a statement onstage while the rest sat in the audience, holding hands and praying.  After the meeting, Taylor agreed to attend peace talks.

Next, the group targeted the rebels.  A contingent of women travelled to Freetown, Sierra Leone as the warlords would be meeting there.  Locating the hotel where the rebel leaders were gathered, some of the Liberian women lined the streets while others sat in front of the hotel, refusing to leave until they were given a meeting with the warlords.  Their sit-in brought media attention, helping to further spread their message of peace to the international community.  The women soon met the rebel leaders and convinced them to attend the peace talks. (nvdatabase.swarthmore.edu/)

These are two examples of the many initiatives for freedom led by women. We might ask ourselves: what do these both have to do with women and mystics, the theme to which this edition is dedicated? There is, however, a deep connection between them. Mystics embark on a journey of liberation geared towards communion with a God who sends them to humanity. The world and humanity are at their heart and they persevere in loving them, in a direction led by the Spirit. Mysticism and transformation become, therefore, two sides of the same reality, communion with God and care for the common home and her dwellers.
Happy women’s month!

EDITORIAL

IS THE SPIRIT OF JUNE 16 STILL ALIVE?

BY RAFAEL ARMADA | EDITOR

SOUTH AFRICA dedicated the month of June to Youth, in grateful remembrance of those who offered their lives for the cause of righteousness and justice, in Soweto, on 16 June 1976. Nearly 50 years since those events happened and even with democracy in place, young people in the country, in many respects, experience difficult circumstances such as unemployment, drug abuse, materialism and other types of oppression.

According to some of them, the spirit of June 16 is still alive; though their revindications have moved to something new. They believe that they are now more equipped to understand their differences and to work towards unity. Youths know how to voice their needs, especially through social media, particularly on issues regarding the environment, and social justice, among others, in which many are particularly active. They consider themselves opinionated to a large extent on many issues and those that are technologically skilled feel they are not easily gullible to hear-say. However, many are still trapped as victims of manipulation and multiple kinds of abuse. Youths feel that they could contribute a lot more to a society which is mainly governed by elders and that often does not gives them the deserved role and space. They claim they need to be trusted and to be allowed to show their rich capabilities.

Indeed, the youth have a great amount of energy, generous dreams, talent and flexibility, all necessary qualities in a dynamic and inter-relational world. They can improve society in many ways, especially through collaboration and networking. Many believe they would be able to uproot corruption, improve social services and channel their creative energies into the betterment of society. Facing challenges such as unemployment, some, unfortunately, get discouraged; however, others take the initiative to create their own little enterprises.

Adults need to listen to the youth; support them and strengthen them through their experience. Adult supporters can play a crucial role in assisting the youth, especially teenagers. The Church needs to be a place for them to discover their identity, based on being made in the image of God, being unconditionally accepted and loved by Him and belonging to a family, which in many cases might be their only structured point of reference. The youth need the guidance, comfort and spiritual upliftment which the Church can offer to them.

As Pope Francis states in his letter to the youth, Christus Vivit (CV), “Jesus himself eternally young wants to give us hearts that are ever young…of compassion, kindness, humility, meekness and patience” (Col 3:12). Youth need a heart capable of loving, whereas everything that separates us from others makes the soul grow old.” (CV13); and in CV 15 the Pope also warns us all, with the words of Apostle Paul to Timothy: “Let no one despise your youth” (1 Tim 4:12).

Pope Francis instituted the Day of Grandparents and Elders which is celebrated worldwide on the upcoming Sunday 23 July. Their experience of life—like of those who were youngsters, on 16 June 1976—may become a source of inspiration, encouragement and wisdom for the youth of South Africa today.

EDITORIAL

THE FUTURE OF WORK

BY FR RAFAEL ARMADA | EDITOR

ON 30 NOVEMBER 2022, ChatGPT, an Artificial Intelligence (AI) hatbot or conversational robot was launched. Capable of answering any type of question with a logical meaning and formulating human conversations, in the first two months on the market, it has reached 100 million active users becoming the fastest growing app of all time.

Speculations about AI’s influence on our lives, and the future of work have arisen. Will it supplant humans, destroying a high number of jobs? Ushering in, as we are, the 4th Industrial Revolution and the implementation of Information Technology taking place, a sense of insecurity among workers in traditional sectors is quite understandable. Workers feel threatened by robots which might take their jobs. Their anxiety is not baseless, since AI has the capacity to perform redundant tasks and process huge amounts of information accurately and at an incredible speed. Nevertheless, AI has its limits, i.e. establishing human relations, and is still imperfect in generating unpredictable and creative responses as humans do.

Many experts, among them Juan José Fernández, Professor of the Department of Business Law at the University of León, Spain, consider that after every technological revolution, there has been an increase in productivity, followed by the creation of more and better jobs. Even if some jobs are lost, new ones appear. (elpais.com)

Be that as it may, it seems evident that our flexibility and formation will be necessary to adapt to new jobs as well as to keep on learning new skills throughout our lives. Work is an integral dimension of the human person which dignifies us—a work which pursues the common good and takes care of creation and the next generations. On the occasion of the 109 years of the founding of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Pope Francis reminded us of how crucial it is to integrate everyone into the job market, counteracting a ‘throw away’ culture which leaves many people jobless, abandoned on the margins of society, under the indifference of the rest. (vaticannews.va). In 2023 the ILO will promote a Global Coalition for Social Justice to strengthen global solidarity and to bring about investments in decent work and reduce inequality. Pope Francis also advocates for dialogue among governments, business people, workers, various religious confessions and Christian communities, aimed at achieving dignified work for all.

The informal economy often lacks mechanisms of social protection and many migrants, particularly women, are excluded from any social benefit and are forced to accept jobs under exploitative conditions.

Youth are also subject to the worst effects of unemployment with a global figure among those aged between 15–24 which is three times higher than the adult population. Currently, two-thirds of the global youth labour force remain without a basic set of skills, a circumstance that restricts their labour market opportunities and pushes them into lower-quality forms of employment. Education and new skills training are absolutely critical for them.

South Africa currently experiences several challenges in terms of job creation, but undoubtedly has the potential to join the list of African countries which foresee a brighter future in employment in the decades to come.

In April we approach the central feast of our Christian faith—the Passion, Death and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. The celebration of Easter calls us to be beacons of hope and to work tirelessly to promote in the world a dignified living for every person and their families.

Happy Easter to all!

Editorial

103 MILLION LIVES

BY Rafael Armada | EDITOR

MIGRATION IS a very complex and extended phenomenon among human beings worldwide. There are many reasons why a person leaves his/her home and moves to another place. The right to freedom of movement and residence is a fundamental human right (Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, Article 13), and is also acknowledged by the Church, as Pope St John XXIII stated: “When there are just reasons in favour of it, anyone must be permitted to emigrate to other countries and take up residence there” (Pacem in Terris n. 25).

Once said, the truth of the matter is that the majority of the inhabitants of the world do not leave their place of origin. Only 3.6% of the global population (281 million) have migrated. Approximately two thirds of them abandoned their countries due to work-related reasons, and the rest, 103 million, were forced to leave because of violence, climate change, natural disasters or extreme poverty, despairing conditions which no human being should endure.

According to UNHCR statistics (unhcr.org/refugee-statistics/), for mid-2022, 103million people worldwide were forcibly displaced: 32.5 million refugees, 53.2 million internally displaced people, 4.9 million asylum seekers and 5.3 million others were in need of international protection. At the end of 2020, before the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the number of internally displaced people across the world was 55 million, 48 million due to conflicts, the highest ever recorded, and 7 million because of natural disasters (Global Report on Internal Displacement 2021.internaldisplacement.org/).

These 103 million had to leave their home under extremely harsh conditions, in many cases their dignity was violated and humanity cannot close their eyes to them. As Fr Rampe SJ indicates in his article: “They are not just statistics, but human beings; men, women and children forcibly displaced, who experienced calamitous social, political and environmental circumstances which threatened their welfare, their lives, their very humanity and inherent dignity. The importance attributed to borders and nationality over and above respect and protection of human dignity, has regrettably landed the international community in a situation of undesirable diminishing humanity.”

Sr Marta Vargas agrees: “we have created a labyrinth of limits and walls as a society; walls of refusals and rejections”. South Africa experiences now an acute economic and social crisis, and sentiments against foreigners flourish among some citizens. However, it is often forgotten the positive (even economical) contribution that migrants represent to society, also as job creators.

Nevertheless, worldwide the migrations need to be dealt with in an orderly manner, avoiding situations of inhuman suffering and deaths on their journeys (such as the tragic drownings in the Mediterranean Sea, smuggling by mafias, etc), and integrating the migrants on arrival, offering them basic services, such as accommodation, health and education; avoiding xenophobic attacks and scapegoating attitudes at the destination countries.

On 22 February, Ash Wednesday, we begin the season of Lent. For us Christians, it is a journey of hope and liberation towards Easter. Like migrants and refugees, we will also have to leave behind what hinders our advancement towards Christ.

During this time of grace, we can contemplate with compassion and mercy the exodus of refugees and migrants in their search for a dignified life. We can understand better their reality, avoiding being trapped by ideologies that close our hearts. As Tony Magliano, a Catholic social justice and peace columnist says: “Lord Jesus, heal our indifference, and inspire us to welcome these strangers as valuable members of your one human family, so that on the Day of Judgment we may gladly hear you say, ‘I was a stranger and you welcomed me’” (scross.co.za).

EDITORIAL

A step forward

BY Rafael Armada | EDITOR

SOME GOOD news came from the Conference of the Parties (COP27), celebrated in Egypt and ended on 20 November 2022.

More than 190 nations agreed to create a global fund for ‘loss and damage’ to compensate developing nations who are particularly vulnerable to the devastating effects of climate change; a sign of hope for the future of humanity. However, the challenge still lies ahead, as Mohamed Adow, Director of Power Shift Africa points out in the Daily Maverick: “We have the fund, but we need money to make it worthwhile. We have an empty bucket. Now we need to fill it so that support can flow to the most impacted people who are suffering right now at the hands of the climate crisis.” 

For Africa, which contributes only 4% of global CO2 emissions—compared with 32.4% for China and 12.6% for the United States—and suffers great destructive effects, this is indeed a step in the right direction.

Global warming, a consequence of human behaviour, is affecting rainfall patterns all over the world. Droughts and floods provoke calamities in different regions of the earth, their consequences being more acute in poorer nations.

Due to over-exploitation and increasing demands, water, the pillar of life, has become a limited resource in many areas of the world. The survival of humanity depends on its preservation. While many struggle to find drinkable water and lack proper sanitation in arid regions or crowded cities of the South, others waste or consume the liquid gold in excess. In South Africa, the average water consumption is 234 litres per person per day, high above the global average of 173 litres. Some of the articles in this issue refer to the need for saving water, through rainwater collection or changes in our domestic habits and the urgency of improving the maintenance of the distribution and water treatment systems. As we are reminded, in South African urban centres, 37% of the treated water is lost through leaks and burst pipes.

Water pollution is another challenge to global health. The preservation of rivers, wetlands and catchment areas is a priority. We all need to take responsibility for it. Marshlands play a very important role in the purification of water. The examples of Klip River, south of Johannesburg, and the restoration of wetlands in Lesotho, mentioned by Jill Williams and Carla Fibla respectively, show the importance of preserving swamps and avoiding the outpouring of great volumes of polluted water from mining, industries and agriculture into them, which impedes their cleaning function as traps for heavy metals and chemicals.

A special word of gratitude for her contribution to this edition goes to Dr Rudo Sanyanga for her inestimable work.

The season of Advent and Christmas is here, with the celebration of the birth of Our Lord. It is a time of hope as we walk closely with our Mother Mary. Today, millions are expressing their belief in a more fraternal way of being in the world, living in harmony with creation. Water is also a symbol of the new life in Christ received through baptism. We celebrate the giving of life and the gift of water, and That which quenches all our deep desires. A blessed Christmas to all!

EDITORIAL

You shall be my witness (Acts 1: 8)

BY Rafael Armada | EDITOR

THESE WORDS from Scripture give title to Pope Francis’ message for World Mission Sunday which will be celebrated on Sunday, 23 October 2022. This year, the Church commemorates the 4th centenary of the founding of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, an Institution which “co-ordinates, organizes and promotes missionary activities” and two hundred years of the founding of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith; together with the Association of the Holy Childhood, the Society of Saint Peter the Apostle and the Pontifical Missionary Union, they form the Pontifical Missionary Societies (PMS). The work of the PMS is to support through prayers and financial aid the missionary activities of the Church and to remind Christians that we are all missionaries; and that is also the very nature of the Church.

Pope Francis unveils his message in three “key phrases that synthesize the foundations of the life and mission of every disciple”:

‘You shall be my witness’. Christians are called to bear witness to Christ, as a community of disciples, through an authentic way of life and through the proclamation of the Word. “Mission is carried out together,” says the Pope. Even if one single individual is evangelizing, he or she is doing it on behalf of the entire community. The disciples are sent to “live the mission.” Despite many difficulties encountered, the missionary vocation is a precious gift sealed under the dynamics of the passion, death and resurrection of Christ.

‘To the ends of the earth’. The mission of the disciples is universal. It is lived as a mutual and enriching exchange, a sharing of faith among peoples of various cultures and origins. Refugees and immigrants have, in fact, become missionary witnesses of Christ in their countries of arrival, bringing new life to the communities that welcome them. “Pastoral care of migrants should be valued as an important missionary activity that can also help the local faithful to rediscover the joy of the Christian faith they have received,” says Pope Francis. Integrating them in their midst, the receiving communities show a meaningful way of being missionaries.

“There are still geographical areas in which missionary witness of Christ has not arrived to bring the Good News of His love,” Pope Francis reminds us. The mission ad gentes, reaching out to those who do not know Christ is therefore still very relevant, even if the concept of mission has been expanded to include “social and existential horizons”.

‘You will receive power’ from the Holy Spirit. The Pope mentions that “no Christian is able to bear full and genuine witness to Christ without the Spirit’s inspiration and assistance. The Spirit, then, is the true protagonist of mission.”

The recent martyrdom of a member of our Comboni family, Sr Maria De Coppi, in Mozambique, is an example of a life totally offered to God and to the people she served. The spirit of St Daniel Comboni is alive among us as we celebrate his feast on the 10th October. May he guide us, and as he expressed in his own words, writing to Cardinal Simeoni in 1878, “our present troubles are a further proof that the work for the regeneration of Africa is God’s work.” (Writings of St Daniel Comboni, 5185).

Editorial

A New Kairos for the Church

BY FR Rafael Armada | EDITOR

ST FRANCIS of Assisi, kneeling down in front of the crucifix in the little chapel of San Damiano, heard an interior voice saying: “Francis, go and rebuild my Church”. He first thought that the Lord was referring to fixing the building, but later on, he realized that his calling was, in fact, to reconstruct the Church of Christ which was in an appalling condition in the 13th century, plagued by scandals and malpractices.

Once again, when Pope St John XXIII announced the inauguration of the Second Vatican Council, opening the doors and windows of the Church, bringing fresh air inside and connecting her to the World, nobody would have imagined that such an old and peace-loving Pontiff could bring that kind of earthquake and novelty into our ecclesial community.

These are Kairos events or God’s moments when the Holy Spirit blows, bringing newness into the Church and, subsequently into the world. Similarly, the calling of Pope Francis, on 7 March 2020, for a Synod on Synodality, is another happening inspired by the Spirit. Starting on 10 October 2021 and concluding with an assembly of Bishops in October 2023, the Church has embarked on a process of listening, reflecting, praying and looking at understanding herself, and what it entails to become a synodal Church; a semper reformanda (always in need of reform) community of the People of God.

A synodal church never ceases to respond to new realities faced in the various moments of human history

A synodal Church never ceases to respond to new realities faced in the various moments of human history. Through participation, communion and mission (the three themes of this Synod on Synodality) all her members are welcome to engage in searching for the true identity and vocation of the Church of Christ in today’s world. For the first time in her history, the process is done bottom up, involving everyone in the universal dioceses in a journey of mutual listening and spiritual discernment. The purpose of this exercise is to express how we see ourselves as a community of believers, what needs to be reformed or what structures need to be transformed.

The Church has been exposed, in recent years, to scandals due to abuses of power, made visible among others, in sex, money and conscience matters, which have greatly damaged her credibility, causing so many people to leave her and to renounce their faith. Clericalism has dominated our modus operandi, depriving the lay faithful of their place and role—rooted in their baptismal vocation—in the community.

A synodal Church needs to listen to those who have been pushed to her margins (agnostics, women in their leadership role, divorcees, secularized priests, LGBTI people, among others) to form a community that is welcoming to all and values the contributions that each individual can offer. An inclusive Church needs to go and reach out to those who have been discouraged and have abandoned her. She cannot wait inside the parishes for them to come back. Referring to this synodal process, Cristina Inogés-Sanz, lay theologian and member of the methodological commission, envisions that a synodal Church will be contemplative, open to conversion and will welcome the changes which the Spirit will offer.

EDITORIAL

Ending hunger

BY FR Rafael Armada | EDITOR

WHILE WRITING these lines, images on TV of the cruel war in Ukraine daunt us. Appalling as they are, we may nevertheless realise that this is not the only war or situation of violence currently happening in the world. Other wars often remain silent in the media despite having devastating effects among huge throngs of the global populations. Hunger—considered an ingestion lower than 1 800 calories per day—is one of them. According to UN estimates, it affected 720–811 million people in 2020, about one in 10 on earth. World agriculture produces food to provide everyone with at least 2 880 kilocalories per day, enough for all, but unfortunately, more than 30% goes to waste. The number of hungry people is on the rise—roughly 70–161 million more in 2020 than in 2019. However, its proportion to population varies according to regions, being the highest in Africa, with an estimated 22% of its peoples.

The 2021 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report—a collaboration between UN agencies—outlines three major causes of the recent rise in hunger and food insecurity: conflict (the primary reason for 99.1 million people in 23 countries in 2020); climate variability and extremes; and economic slowdowns and downturns (exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic).

We still do not know the impact the war in Ukraine will have, particularly in Africa, but looking at the volume of grain imported from Ukraine and Russia and the current increase in fertilizer prices, makes us presume that it will be important. “Half the world’s population gets food as a result of fertilizers. If that’s removed from the field for some crops, [the yield] will drop by 50%”, according to Svein Tore Holsether, President of Yara International. The second of UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals, namely eliminating hunger by 2030, will face another setback.

These situations and their challenges call for a transformation of food systems. UN agencies consider six ways to ensure access to affordable healthy diets for all, sustainably and inclusively. According to them, the world needs to make a great peace-building effort, foster climate-resilient crops, support the most vulnerable sectors of societies and lower the cost of nutritious foods. Poverty and structural inequalities are an obstacle to healthier diets.

Many of our current food systems favour monocultures, highly dependent on fertilizers and commercial seeds, vulnerable to global price fluctuations of commodities. Big corporations and retailers dominate and control worldwide prices. Small farmers, herders, and fishermen who produce about 70% of the global food supply, are exposed to food insecurity, with poverty and hunger most acute among rural populations.

Looking at the condition of children—an estimated 14 million under the age of five—who suffer from severe acute malnutrition worldwide, South Africa is not exempt from this reality. Child stunting, a so-called ‘slow violence’, remains at a high rate of 27% and it has not decreased over the last 20 years. This is a worrying situation since stunting, particularly in the first 1 000 days of the life of a child, hinders brain development with associated cognitive impairment, weakens their immune system and jeopardizes their full potentialities. At the same time, 13% of South African children under five years are overweight or obese. The high prevalence of malnutrition, manifested both as undernourishment and obesity, clearly indicate the need for healthier and more nutritious ways of life.

Grass-root initiatives, some portrayed in this issue, show that a different way of obtaining food is possible and we can combat malnutrition by producing locally and in a sustainable way.

Lent is a time when we reflect upon realities of suffering in the world—conflict and hunger are two of them—though always with an outlook of hope. While we question ourselves about the causes of suffering, we try to sympathize with the victims and find ways to respond to their plight. We remain with our eyes fixed on Jesus who stood for truth, endured injustice perpetrated against Him and gave His life to show us the way to glory, through His Passion, Death and Resurrection. Happy Easter!

Radar

No Future Without Quality Education

BY Rafael Armada | Editor

SCHOOLS RE-OPENED in South Africa a few weeks ago. We saw long queues of parents at their gates, anxiously struggling to secure a place for their children. Looking at the scene with concern, we may ask ourselves: what went wrong? However, the other side of the reality is that, in the last decades, the rate of enrolment in South Africa has increased considerably, with more than 90% attendance of children of school-going age. Something to be grateful for and to be celebrated.

COVID-19 has created a global disruption and it is estimated that 10 million children in the world will not come back to school. In South Africa, it has also exposed the flaws of the educational system and the effects of inequality. Students in affluent and mainly urban schools have been able to continue their on-line education; in rural areas and townships, where disrupted learning in the classroom has not been replaced, children have lost more than a year of tuition.

The SA government invests large amounts in education annually (19.5% of its budget and 6% of its GDP, in line with other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development-OECD countries), but the results are rather disappointing. Corruption and negligence contribute to it. South African’s learners occupy the last positions in international reading and comprehension exams and in mathematics and physics. The knowledge gaps in the foundational phase cause high dropout rates and hinders learners to advance to upper levels of education. Only 7% of the students reach university, while in other equivalent countries the figure reaches 29%.

Why is this happening? Montfort Mlachila and Tlhalefang Moeletsi, in their 2019 study, Struggling to make the grade: a review of the causes and consequences of the weak outcomes of South Africa’s education system, identified some causes of inefficiency in the educational system, especially in rural and township schools. First of all, they see a low level of qualification among many teachers; a flat salary system which does not consider performance outcomes, demotivates them to improve their curricula. Accountability of their commitment is often fairly poor (i.e. high levels of absenteeism) and in many circumstances are over-protected by their trade unions.

Schools in rural areas and townships lack decent infrastructures. Poor maintenance, service delivery protests that are often accompanied by the destruction of the school buildings, and natural disasters, such as the recent storms in Kwa-Zulu Natal and Eastern Cape Provinces, add further challenges. Therefore, schools are overcrowded. Moreover, the higher the number of students, the greater funding the school receives; so, principals tend to promote their schools to get more funds—often not used to build more classrooms—causing stress among teachers, burdened with an excessive number of learners in their classrooms. Violence, drugs, bullying are also common in schools and add even more challenges to teachers. These are obstacles that are added to family situations of poverty, abuse, and lack of food and transport.

The need to reverse this dire situation is more than urgent. Without quality education, we cannot aspire to have jobs and a decent future for the next generations. The gap of inequality will widen even more. In 2020, Pope Francis called for a Global Alliance inviting all sectors of society (government, families, teachers, communities, religious bodies, among others) to unite forces in creating a new model of education. “It takes a village to educate a child and we need to create that village”, said the Pope quoting an African proverb. This Global Alliance on Education should find ways to transmit knowledge and values with the dignity of the person at its centre. The Pope speaks of education in justice, solidarity, goodness and beauty that counteract the throw-away and individualistic culture of indifference—but also, to form well-equipped professionals that can render a good service to the society. The example of the Kenyan Franciscan Brother Peter Mokaya Tabichi, narrated in the inside pages, is indeed inspirational. Time is running out. There is no future without quality education.

EDITORIAL

Hope In A Collective Action

BY Rafael Armada | EDITOR

A crucial conference on climate change (Conference of Parties, COP26) has taken place in Glasgow, from 31 October to 12 November. Nearly 200 countries gathered to discuss global warming. It has already been proved and made evident that human behaviour has placed humanity on the verge of a climate catastrophe.

An urgent call to drastically reduce the warming rate, aiming to maintain global temperatures below 1.5ºC, compared to pre-industrial times, has been restated at this conference if we want to avert a disastrous situation for human lives and biodiversity on the planet.

Global warming is already felt in many parts of the world, creating havoc through many different climatic effects such as floods, drought, raising of sea levels and hurricanes, that particularly affect the most vulnerable on earth. A loss of biodiversity is also taking place at an alarming accelerated speed all over the world. If trends do not change, more and more people will sink into acute poverty and more flora and fauna will disappear forever.

“We have received an Eden, we cannot transform it into a desert for future generations”, said the Pope during the ‘Faith and Science’ gathering at the Vatican on 4 October. It is our responsibility to care for the planet and creation as an amazing gift given to us by God. As Pope Francis has reiterated, regarding climate change, urgent action needs to be taken.

The richer countries, mostly responsible for the damage caused, need to fulfil their promises on climate change, matching their always auspicious long-term pledges towards net zero-carbon emissions with their rather stingy short-term commitments. So far, there has been a clear discrepancy between the two.

However, the good news is that, at COP26, the nations have committed to come together and revise their National Determined Contributions (NDCs) annually, instead of every five years. That will clearly make visible their concrete steps taken and their accomplishments made against climate change. The developed nations have also re-committed, though with regrettable delay, to fulfil their promises made to developing countries to help them with their transition to green energy, adapting their economies and assisting them in repairing ongoing damages suffered due to climate change. All nations have to increase more generously their commitments for 2030; “even if the world meets its 2030 targets, it is still heading for a catastrophic 2.4ºC of warming this century,” says Climate Action Tracker.

The populations in the Global South, the least of the polluters, suffer the worst consequences of climate change, mainly caused by the developed regions of the world. The case of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project in Uganda, portrayed on the pages of this issue, if not averted, can be one of them.

A just transition, with an adaptation that looks to alternative renewable sources of energy—taking into consideration maintaining jobs for those now employed in the polluting sectors of the economy—is more than urgent.

When you read these lines, it will probably be the time of Advent. This is a season of hope. Its readings invite us to expect with confidence and joy the coming of the Lord, not waiting idly, but actively and in a constructive way. In the fight against climate change, we need a similar attitude, to live in hope that we can reverse the climate catastrophe that will affect millions of people on earth, especially the poor. The commitment needs to be decisive due to the urgency. The active presence of youth activists from the Global North and South in COP26, united and convinced of the importance of their collective actions, is a clear sign of a new mentality rising in humanity and a sign of hope for the world.