The following resources were published in the July-August 2016 issue of NewsNotes.
Nonviolence and Just Peace conference final statement: All individuals and organizations are invited to endorse "An appeal to the Catholic church to re-commit to the centrality of Gospel nonviolence." Add your name at: http://bit.ly/NVJustPeace2016.
Pax Christi USA National Gathering 2016: Plan now to attend the national gathering of Pax Christi USA in Linthicum, MD, August 12-14. The theme will be “Building the Beloved Community: Addressing the Signs of the Times with Bold Conversations Leading to Transformative Actions.” Speakers include Lisa Sharon Harper, Chief Church Engagement Officer for Sojourners, Dr. Adrienne L. Hollis, PhD, Esquire, Director of Federal Policy and Kerene Taylor, Federal Policy Associate for WE ACT for Environmental Justice, and Rev. Rocco Puopolo, S.X. of Global Youth Mission Services, Xaverian Missionaries. Learn more and register at: https://paxchristiusa.org/programs/nationalgathering2016/.
International Financial Institutions and Human Rights: Organizations are invited to sign on to this joint statement by over one hundred civil society groups (including MOGC) calling on international financial institutions to respect human rights and to do everything within their powers to support an enabling environment for public participation in which people are empowered to engage in crafting their own development agendas and in holding their governments, donors, businesses, and other actors to account. http://rightsindevelopment.org/?page_id=4691.
World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation: Last year, Pope Francis announced that the Catholic Church would join the Orthodox Church in marking the prayer day on September 1 each year. Learn more at: https://seasonofcreation.info/ Find prayer resources at: http://catholicclimatemovement.global/.
“Global Trends”: Read the new report by the UN High Commission on Refugees on the global migration crisis: http://bit.ly/UNHCRGlobalTrends.
An NGO response to the periodic report of the U.S. to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child: Read this report by ECPAT-USA concerning the optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights Of The Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography: http://www.ecpatusa.org/2016-alternative-report/.
First thematic report from IPES-Food: Read this new report entitled “From Uniformity to Diversity: A paradigm shift from industrial agriculture to diversified agroecological systems.” http://www.ipes-food.org/reports.
Five key takeaways from the TTIP leak for food and farming systems: The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy offers this six-page analysis of the proposals raised in the TTIP leak. Download the report at: http://bit.ly/298MTpI.
Venezuelan Politics and Human Rights Blog: Read and follow this blog hosted by the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA). It is a unique resource for journalists, policymakers, scholars, activists and others interested in understanding Venezuelan politics and human rights. http://venezuelablog.tumblr.com/