Resources in NewsNotes Sept-Oct 2025
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The Struggle to Protect Farmers’ Seed Systems
The following is a summary of a policy brief by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy about the unhealthy control industrial agriculture has over family farming around the world.
Trump Administration Targets Legal Immigrants
The executive branch is waging legal warfare against the legal designations that protect people from deportation back to the dangerous countries they have fled. Immigration Advocacy Intern Rehema Klueg reports.
Gaza: U.S. Christian Groups Oppose Israeli Military Plan
Twenty member organizations of Churches for Middle East Peace released the following joint statement on Aug. 26 calling for Israel to halt its planned military offensive in Gaza City.
Gaza: Orthodox Rabbis Call on Israel to Address Hunger
Eighty Orthodox rabbis signed the following open letter on August 20, 2025, demanding “moral clarity, responsibility, and a Jewish Orthodox response” to what they called a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Gaza: Greek and Latin Patriarchs Speak Against War
In reaction to the Israeli government’s announcement of a plan to take control of Gaza, the Greek Orthodox and Latin Patriarchs of Jerusalem issued the following joint statement on Aug. 26 calling for an end to the war.
Sudan: Famine and Foreign Aid Cuts
As new frontlines in the Sudanese civil war worsen the humanitarian crisis, U.S. and U.N. agencies cut international humanitarian funding. Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns Program Associate Fellow Mark Joyce reports.
Haiti: Stop Illegal Weapons Trafficking from the U.S.
Ninety-six civil society organizations sent the following letter on August 26, 2025, to the leaders of the Department of State and Department of Homeland Security asking for immediate action to stop the flow of illegal weapons from the United States to Haiti.
Haiti: A Perfect Storm of Suffering
As the violent crisis in Haiti deepens, Haitians in the United States are going to court to protect their right to Temporary Protected Status.
Global Plastics Treaty Setback
UN plastics treaty negotiations collapsed in August 2025 after countries failed to bridge fundamental divides, particularly regarding the contentious issue of whether to include limits on plastic production and restrict harmful chemicals.
Catholics Work Together to Defend Climate Rules in U.S.
Eight U.S. Catholic organizations are working together to keep U.S. regulations on greenhouse gas emissions from cars and power plants.
Global South Bishops Call for Climate Action at COP30
Catholic bishops from Africa, Asia and Latin America issued a joint statement to world leaders asking for transformative actions at the UN Climate Chance Conference COP30.
Maryknoll Lay Missioners at 50 are Hope in the Darkness
Lay Missioners joined with Maryknoll Sisters, Fathers & Brothers, and Affiliates for celebration and reflection on being missioners of hope in dark times.
Maryknoll OGC Joins 100+ Organizations in Calling on a Just Peace for Palestine
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined over a hundred other organizations in a letter to leaders and delegates to the high-level UN Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine in support of a viable Palestinian state.
Justice for Immigrants and Refugees Policy Brief
This is an excerpt from our two-page policy brief on U.S. immigration and refugee policy.
Maryknoll OGC Joins Open Letter in Support of H. Res. 317
In an open letter to the U.S. House of Representatives, Maryknoll Office for Global concerns joined a coalition led by Back from the Brink: The Call to Prevent Nuclear War in a message in support of a House Resolution urging a reversal of the nuclear arms race.
Maryknoll OGC Signs Letter to Senate Urging Against Foreign Aid Funding Rescission
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined the Interfaith Working Group on Foreign Assistance in this letter to the leadership on the Senate Committee on Appropriations to ask for the rejection of the House bill that rescinded over $8 billion dollars of foreign aid, with the potential to cause irreparable harm and human suffering.