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APRIL 2011 - IN THIS ISSUE
1) KAIROS 2011 Election Kit
2) Roll with the Declaration
3) Ecumenical Conference on Mining
4) Federal Budget Out of Line with Canadian Opinion on Environment
5) Update on our Israel-Palestine Work
SPECIAL FEATURE
An Ecojustice Journey
FEATURE RESOURCE
"KAIROS is <NOT> going away" T-shirts
FEATURE ASSOCIATE
George Poitras
SPIRITED REFLECTIONS
Post-Petroleum Food Justice
KAIROS COMMUNITY
Bre Woligrowski & Catherine Verral
REFLECTION
Stay With Us
Easter Greetings
In this Holy Week - Earth Week, KAIROS remains grateful for your faithful companionship. Blessings to you all in this most crucial time of our faith journey, this Holy time of struggle and hope.
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KAIROS 2011 Election Kit |
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KAIROS offers a series of questions to aid KAIROS companions and communities find out where their political candidate stands on issues of concern relating to KAIROS' current program priorities: Climate Change, Indigenous Rights & Migrant Rights.
Keep them handy by the phone, the computer, and the front door. Have a conversation with candidates every chance you get. Check out the other resources we’ve linked to in the kit. And above all: VOTE!
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For media inquiries please contact:
Adiat Junaid
Communications Coordinator
ajunaid@kairoscanada.org
416-463-5312 x 223
1-877-403-8933 (toll free) |
Roll with the Declaration June action update
Things are getting exciting! Join KAIROS this June to celebrate Canada’s signing of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and to push for its implementation.
Please keep those signed petitions rolling in. They will be crucial to our collective witness to government in June. You can download the petition on our site.
Plans for June 20 events in Ottawa are well underway, led by a wide range of union, faith and Indigenous groups in the area. June 20 is going to an amazing day, but even before it arrives there are many options for local and regional participation in your own community:
Banner and more banners: Your faith community, union, class, tribal council, workplace and more are asked to create a beautiful banner supporting the UN Declaration and honouring the traditional territory on which you live or meet. Students at Queen of the Angels Catholic School in Duncan, BC and participants at an ecumenical workshop at St Mark’s United Church in Scarborough, ON take the March banner prize. Send us your photos of you and your banner and we’ll add it to our upcoming online gallery. See the Roll with the Declaration pages for banner instructions and for ideas on planning a related event. From the Blanket Exercise to the UNDRIPardy game show, we have resources to help.
Get it to the train on time! A train schedule has been posted to the Roll with the Declaration page. Have a look, and if you’d like to hold a banner or train send-off, we can get you in touch with other interested local groups. Several national unions and Christian Peacemaker Teams are already on board and more are coming. Together, we can offer a strong voice in support of right relationship and Indigenous rights.
Questions or ideas?
Please contact Anne Herteis, connect@kairoscanada.org or 1 877 403 8933 x243.
Ecumenical Conference on Mining
In early May 2011, church leaders from Canada, Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America will gather in Toronto for an ecumenical conference on mining, which is being hosted by KAIROS and several of its member institutions, in partnership with Norwegian Church Aid. They will be joined by Indigenous partners, social partners from the global South, church members and agency staff.
Check the KAIROS website for updates from the conference.
In the Greater Toronto Area there will be a public panel on Indigenous Rights, resource extraction and conflict, May 2, 6:30 - 8 pm.
To follow the conference on Twitter: #Ecumining >>
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For more information please contact:
Ian Thomson
Ecological Justice through Corporate Accountability
ithomson@kairoscanada.org
416-463-5312 ext. 222
1-877-403-8933 (toll free)
Updates on our Israel-Palestine work
Guide Yamen Elabed, Green Olive Tours, outside Jerusalem.
Photo: KAIROS/ Julie Graham
Violence in Palestine and Israel has flared in recent weeks. KAIROS has issued a statement on the violence against civilians, raising concerns about the absence of a meaningful peace process and the role of expanded Israeli settlements in the West Bank in blocking peace negotiations.
Kairos Palestine, a group of Palestinian Christian organizations, has also expressed strong concerns about the extremely tight restrictions placed on Palestinians’ access to holy sites in and around Jerusalem. It is easier for foreign tourists to visit the sites associated with Holy Week than it is for Palestinians, and year after year Palestinians have pressed Israel to open access in accordance with international law.
We urge all Canadians considering a visit to the region to spend time in the Occupied Palestinian Territories in order to learn about such impacts of the occupation, and to meet with Palestinian and Israeli groups who are working for peace. Our alternative tourism page offers some practical ideas.
In the midst of these continuing struggles, KAIROS is preparing to support the World Council of Churches’ World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel, May 29-June 5. KAIROS will offer an ecumenical bulletin insert, and we urge Canadian Christians to consider including the Week in Sunday liturgy. Please check with your denomination for additional information and resources; more information is also available on the WWPPI site.
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For more information on KAIROS’ partners and work in Israel and Palestine contact:
John Lewis
International Human Rights Program Coordinator
jlewis@kairoscanada.org
1 877 403 8933 x224
or
Julie Graham
Education Coordinator, Dignity and Rights
jgraham@kairoscanada.org
1 877 403 8933 x233.
KAIROS community members honoured
The KAIROS movement is blessed with activists and volunteers of all ages and background who offer their communities strong leadership in a great range of justice concerns. This spring, we offer special congratulations to:
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For information about joining or forming a KAIROS local group or joining our companions and communities program, please contact:
Caroline Foster
Partners & Network Associate
416-463-5312 x221
1-877-403-8933 x221
cfoster@kairoscanada.org
AN ECOJUSTICE JOURNEY:
Retiring Coordinator for Ecological Justice Dorothy McDougall reflects on climate change, suffering and the inspiration of Cochabamba
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"...Those of us in the Global North need to understand how deeply embedded we are in earth’s processes. We are part of an earth community, not over and above it. We need to once again see ourselves as citizens of the world rather than as consumers. This is so central to the Christian gospel that I wonder how we have gotten so far off track. In this Easter season, we need to once remember these words from Corinthians:
But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise;
God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.
1 Corinthians 1:27, NRSV
As I leave KAIROS, I continue to be daunted by the huge challenges that lie ahead, but I am filled with hope as I witness groups of people in the Global South, monetarily poor but rich in wisdom and experience, speaking out for climate justice/earth justice. I pray that I will have the courage to respond with the same courage and conviction, in my private life and in my political activism, as I move forward."
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Au courant, chic & cheeky.
Let KAIROS cover your back!
Make a statement and purchase the renowned KAIROS t-shirt
to support KAIROS!
Bound to become
a collector's item!
Shirts are available short or long sleeved with the text “KAIROS is (NOT) going away.” The KAIROS logo is displayed on the back.
Short sleeved - $20
Long sleeved - $25
Available in a variety of sizes.
Bulk discounts are available.
T-shirts are produced and manufactured by Me to We style and are sweatshop free and eco-friendly.
To order please contact:
Caroline Foster
Partners & Network Associate
416-463-5312 x221
1-877-403-8933 x221
cfoster@kairoscanada.org
FEATURE ASSOCIATE
GEORGE POITRAS
Indigenous Rights Advocate & former Chief of Mikisew Cree
In May 2009, an ecumenical delegation of ten leaders from Canadian churches and church organizations, a hereditary Indigenous chief from northern British Columbia, and partners from Ecuador and Nigeria traveled to Alberta to learn more about the Athabasca tar sands and their impact on the environment and people.
The delegation’s journey included a trip to the community of Fort Chipewyan, which is downstream from the tar sands projects. Fort Chip is home to three Indigenous groups – the Athabasca Chipewyan, the Mikisew Cree and the Métis.
The visit to Fort Chip would not have been possible without the help of George Poitras, a tireless advocate for his community on issues related to the tar sands and their impact on the health of his people and their lands. George is a former Chief of the Mikisew Cree who challenged the federal government’s lack of consultation on one of the projects on his peoples’ traditional territory. The resulting court decision - handed down in November 2004 - raised the standard for the government’s obligation to respect the right of Indigenous peoples to be consulted about projects which have the potential to impact on their lands and lifestyle.
As an internationally recognized spokesperson for his community, KAIROS is honoured that George will take part in the Ecumenical Mining Conference in Toronto, May 1-3.
SPIRITED REFLECTIONS
Post-Petroleum Food Justice
- Jim Davis
"I’ve been reflecting on the “oil-dependent,” if not oil-addicted, nature of our lives. Fossil fuels don’t just run our cars and heat our homes; they are a major ingredient in our industrial food production. As we approach peak oil (when oil production begins to decrease), food prices will go up, impacting disproportionately those who can least afford it. As the Africa partnerships coordinator at KAIROS, I’m mainly concerned about Africans who, having contributed least to global warming, already suffer disproportionate flooding, drought, desertification, conflict and migration as a result of climate change. "
Federal Budget Out of Line with Canadian Opinion on Environment
While the climate crisis received no direct reference in the budget, Environics Research Poll indicates that the Canadian public understand that the climate crisis requires a change in economic, social and environmental priorities.
Click here to read more on the poll >>
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For more information contact:
Sara Stratton
interim Manager Sustainability Team
ssttratton@kairoscanada.org
416-463-5312 x241
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