April 10, 2017
April 5, 2017
NAFTA Renegotiation: a call for proactive advocacy
By Eileen Schuhmann | Presbyterian Hunger Program Over the past several years, civil society and faith communities have come together to pressure the U.S. Congress and the White House to oppose the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement between the U.S. and 11 Pacific Rim nations. Presbyterians have been very engaged in efforts to stop… Read more »
March 21, 2017
Haiti’s New President Worries Land-Rights Advocates
By Cindy Corell | Mission Co-worker, Joining Hands Haiti With more than 2 million of its almost 11 million citizens still suffering seven years after a catastrophic earthquake struck in 2010, Haitians living on the island took another harsh blow in October 2016 when Hurricane Matthew hit. The massive storm took lives, destroyed crops, livestock… Read more »
March 15, 2017
Waste from Huanuni Mine Harms Communities Downstream
By Chenoa Stock | Mission Co-worker, UMAVIDA, Joining Hands Bolivia The Bolivian Joining Hands Network, UMAVIDA (Joining Hands for Life), focuses their campaign for water rights and environmental justice in the city of Oruro, a principal center for mining, Bolivia’s second largest industry. Located just outside of Oruro, the small town of Huanuni is… Read more »
March 13, 2017
Serious Blow to Anti-Corruption Efforts in Africa
By Jaff Bamenjo | RELUFA, Joining Hands Network Cameroon In 2010, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act was passed by the U.S. Congress. The bill included an anti-corruption rule that required the disclosure of payments to governments by oil, gas and mining companies. The anti-corruption rule, “Section 1504,” was celebrated by civil… Read more »
March 13, 2017
Sand Mining in Sri Lanka Endangers Coral Reefs and Livelihoods
By Herman Kumara | Praja Abhilasha, Joining Hands Sri Lanka The Sri Lankan Government, in partnership with the China Communication Construction Company (CCCC), is moving forward with its plans to build a Port City, a business and tourism district that extends the city of Colombo onto a man-made island. The government promises that the Port… Read more »
March 13, 2017
Addressing Food Insecurity through Community Grain Banks
By Jaff Bamenjo | RELUFA, Joining Hands Cameroon For several decades, food insecurity and hunger have been a major concern in the extreme north region of Cameroon. The food insecurity situation has been attributed primarily to erratic rainfall, the semi-arid Sahel desert climate, rocky topography in some areas and inadequate food storage facilities. Hunger is… Read more »
December 12, 2016
A New Song: Joining Hands with La Oroya, Peru and Standing Rock, ND
By Rev. Ellie Stock | Joining Hands Peru Partnership, Presbytery of Giddings-Lovejoy It is a long story… It all began with a song…in Girl Scout Camp…many moons ago…when I was seven,”Land of the Silver Birch, Home of the Beaver“, an adapted Native Canadian tune and Canadian folk song where the singer/story-teller extols the beauty of his homeland—the… Read more »
December 9, 2016
Relocated Congolese Communities Hold Mining Company Accountable
By Ibond Rupas A’nzam | Coordinator of POM, Joining Hands Congo The mining sector is so far the main driver of economic growth in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The mining code and mining regulations issued in 2002 and 2003 respectively attracted a large number of private investors, particularly in the Copperbelt region of Katanga… Read more »
December 8, 2016