What About The People Who Live There?
All eyes are on China this week – most of this month, in fact. The long-awaited Beijing games kick off on Friday, and the most discussed topic of the games seems to have nothing to do with sports. It’s been the question of air pollution. The world waits to see if the draconian efforts of the Chinese government will give them the ‘blue sky games’ they are hoping for.
The claim is that US$10 billion has been spent trying to clean up the air: Half the cars are off the road, factories and construction sites have been shut down, much of the working population has been given a compulsory (and probably unpaid) holiday. Foreign athletes are being given masks to wear as they prepare for their events.
The media is breathlessly waiting for the answer: Will it work?
But I have another question: Does it matter? So what if the air over the Olympic ‘Bird Nest’ is marginally cleaner for a few days or even for two weeks? The athletes and reporters will leave; the cars will come back, the factories will reopen, the construction sites will grow noisy again, and the people of Beijing will be right back where they started.
Here’s the Wall Street Journal’s brief analysis of China’s current situation:
Twenty of the globe’s 30 most polluted cities are in the Middle Kingdom, according to the World Bank. Another list puts the Chinese tally at 16 of the top 20. Some 70% of the country’s lakes and rivers are contaminated, according to Chinese environmental officials. Hundreds of millions of rural Chinese lack clean drinking water.
It’s tempting to look at Beijing (or Nairobi, or Sao Paolo or Karachi) and think, ‘Thank goodness my kids don’t have to live there…’ But that’s not the point is it? We’re called to care for those who do have to live there – and let’s not forget that what goes around comes around. When we look at Beijing, we’re also getting a glimpse of our own futures, wherever we live. It is only a question of time before the ‘invisible’ environmental crisis in Madison WI or Roseville MN becomes all too visible. Unless… [For more on our ‘invisible’ environmental crisis, get a copy of my book and read chapter 1, “Running on Empty”]
And that is why we’re here – and why we’re glad you are partnering with us.
In Kenya…
Our team (Craig & Tracy, Jan, Francis, Dorcas, Winnie and others) continues with their regular activities of tree planting, monitoring several Farming God’s Way sites, and most importantly, spreading the vision. Craig has just finished teaching a thirty hour intensive course to 25 pastors in training at the Kenya Baptist Bible College. Jan has found her time consumed by the pesky details of getting settled in a new place, buying a vehicle, setting up housekeeping and so on. But she’s now ready to move ahead, and will be working primarily on publicity efforts in the greater Nairobi area. As a whole, the team is focusing on plans for the future, including a major conference in Ethiopia next spring. Understaffed and underfunded (what’s new?) the team is looking for at least two new members. Pray with us that the right people will be found. These are local hires – if you are in the US, watch this space for recruitment opportunities for you coming shortly.
In Madison…
Fred and Stacey have joined the Madison office team and are fitting in well. Fred will be managing a lot of the behind-the-scenes machinery (web, financial, etc) that no one sees but that makes everything else possible, while Stacey works to make my time and efforts more efficient. Fred and Stacey are self-supported for the time being – in other words, they are really, really serious volunteers. We’d love to pay them (and they would love to be paid!) for their efforts as soon as our funding base for the US office increases sufficiently, but even I have had to accept reduced compensation for several months. If you can help us, please do so! (Contributions are tax deductible.)
Expect a new improved website within the next few weeks, including a lot more information on our overseas projects and plans. And we’ll be announcing locations and dates for the Our Father’s World seminar in the coming year. Write to us for a copy of ‘How to Host An Our Father’s World Seminar’ if you’d like to see how easy it is to bring this weekend event to your own church, campus or student conference event.
And beyond…
As I write to you, Jason and Nancy Goodden are en route to Cornwall in the UK where they will be setting up our Care of Creation UK office. This effort will be in close partnership with A Rocha UK (as many of our efforts in the US will be linked in partnership with A Rocha USA and other likeminded evangelical environmental organizations) and will focus, as here, on mobilizing the church in the UK toward a God-centered response to the environmental crisis. If you are in the UK, by all means contact Jason to find out how you can be part of this effort.
How about a partnership opportunity for your church?
An exciting opportunity has presented itself to partner with churches in Africa interested in working with their local communities to adapt to climate change through reforestation, forest management and renewable energy projects. These churches are looking for churches in the US to partner with them on developing these community-based programs. African churches will work to assist local communities over the long-term to adapt to the threats brought about by climate change and ecosystem changes; churches here will have a chance to move beyond what they can do directly in their own communities and build upon efforts to address both poverty and poor stewardship of God’s creation in areas that need it most. There are several projects in Africa that are looking for partner-churches to help them get started. We should note that these are not Care of Creation managed projects, and Care of Creation is seeking simply to act as a match-maker between those who need help in Africa and those who may have help to offer in the US. Contact us if you’d like more information on this opportunity.
And finally, thank you…
On behalf of our entire Care of Creation family, thank you for your part in helping us grow and serve. We appreciate your gifts – but we desperately need your prayers! And we are grateful for both…
In Him,
Ed Brown
For the Care of Creation family
