Environmental Justice is a cause close to the hearts of the Comboni Missionaries, Pope Francis, and so many others. On Wednsday, March 6, the community at the Cincinnati Mission Center hosted an evening dedicated to learning more about climate change, the environement, and our role in caring for creation. Comboni Missionary Fr. John Converset and Laura Schafer, an Associate of the Congregation of the Divine Providence shared their knowledge.

Cincinnati Area Initiatives to help our environment:

• Cardinal Land Conservancy 
• Soil and Water Conservation Districts (Kentucky, Ohio)
• This is the Ohio; Life Death Rebirth of the Beautiful River (April 4th screening in Boone County)
• Ohio River Foundation
• Kentucky Waterways Alliance (2nd most endangered report), Ohio River Way
• Civic Garden Center
• Green Acres Farm Foundation
• County Extension Agencies (Campbell, Boone, Ohio Counties)
• Last Mile Food Rescue (get show tickets for deliveries: https://www.concertedusa.org/)
• Edible Ohio Valley (farmers markets, sustainable food guide)
• Cincinnati Recycle Reuse Hub
• In-store Recycling: Kroger Plastic, Best Buy Electronics (no batteries), Staples (takes batteries), Cohen Recycling Christmas Lights (40 locations)
• Aldi: By 2025, 100% of packaging will be reusable, recyclable, or compostable . And more!
• Green Umbrella (Common Orchard, Faith Communities Go Green)  

Some of the figures/ideas also shared:

Our Living Planet – Cornell Bird Loss Study and best ways to help

Our Climate:

• Methane: 3 wins and 3 losses at the biggest climate conference ever
  • Methane is about 30 times more so than carbon dioxide when it comes to trapping heat. But it only stays in the atmosphere for about a decade, while carbon dioxide can linger for 300 to 1,000 years. So reducing methane emissions can curb warming in the near term. Global emissions need to fall 43 percent by 2030 compared to 2019 levels in order to keep the 1.5 degree C target in play, but the world is still far short.
  • More than 150 countries have signed The Global Methane Pledge, which promises to cut methane by 30 percent from 2020 levels by 2030. Large methane emitters like the US and Brazil offered more details about how they will regulate this greenhouse gas. That includes new equipment to monitor methane leaks, equipment to capture wayward gases, ending practices like flaring, and inspections to ensure compliance. Countries also agreed to contribute $1 billion to fund methane reductions. Private companies stepped up too. Dozens of oil and gas firms signed the Oil and Gas Decarbonization Charter, which commits them to ending methane pollution by 2050. If all of this is done, it could avert 0.2 degrees Celsius of warming (0.36 degrees Fahrenheit) by 2050. That is far from the 1.5 degree target.
  • Food production is humanity’s largest methane emitter, particularly raising cattle for meat and dairy.
• Livestock production accounts for 18 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, including 9 percent of carbon dioxide and 37 percent of methane gas emissions worldwide (source). An estimated 1,800 gallons of water go into a single pound of beef (source, break down of how/why). Largely due to tilling ground for corn, we have lost half of our top soil in the last 150 years and it could be gone in the next 60 by continuing those practices (source).
• Deforestation
  • Annually, deforestation contributes to a staggering 11% of greenhouse gas emissions (source).If deforestation were a country, it would be the world’s third largest emitter (source).
  • Different land uses and commodities often interact to drive deforestation. However, pasture expansion is the most important driver by far, accounting for around half of the deforestation resulting in agricultural production across the tropics. Oil palm and soy cultivation together account for at least a fifth, and six other crops—rubber, cocoa, coffee, rice, maize, and cassava—likely account for most of the remainder, with large regional variations and higher levels of uncertainty (source).

Our Food

• Food production is one of the biggest contributors (see above) to climate change, but can also be one of its best helpers. in addition to voting for effective policy makers, it is one of the biggest impacts an individual can make is through their food selections.
  • Through progressive grazing, cattle can also be one of our most effective tools in building grass that retains water, builds soil, and sequesters carbon. One acre of prairie/prairie plantings can store 1 ton of carbon in roots/soil per year.
  • Corn production used to feed cows is a large portion of the negative impact of industrial beef production. Cover crops could help. They have the potential to sequester approximately 60 million metric tons of CO2-equivalent per year when planted across 20 million acres (8.1 million hectares), offsetting the emissions from 12.8 million passenger vehicles (source).
• Ready to help? Everyone can help on some scale. Every adjustment helps. Ideas:
  • Substitute – add beef/pork/soy free meals to your “rotation,” use alternative milks.
  • Shop – Options with price per 1 lb hamburger:
    • Eaton Farms at Hyde Park Farmers Market ($9/lb hamburger)
    • White Clover Farm ($8/lb, 25 lb minimum)
    • Marketwagon – on-demand, weekly, home delivery from dozens of local farms. have to check individual farms’ practices ($8-10)
    • Kroger organic grass-fed ($8.50 vs 6-8 for regular)
    • Seven Sons ($11/lb but lots of bundles and sales, home delivery)
  • Signal – food labels can be unreliable and convoluted despite guides like this, but selecting and searching even what appears sustainable sends signals heard through the entire supply chain. Checking the label, buying the most sustainable option on the shelf…will drive improvements.

Love Thy Neighbor – Understanding Immigration

“It’s important to remember that immigration is an issue, immigrants are people,” Mary Anne Bressler stressed during a presentation about migration at the Comboni Mission Center on Thursday, March 31. 

Mary Anne is the Parish & Community Engagement Coordinator at Catholic Charities of Southwest Ohio (CCSWO). She, along with Elizabeth Clapp, Director of Immigration and Legal Services at CCSWO, were invited to speak at a justice and peace event promoted by the Comboni Missionaries.

The goal of this event was to educate people about the realities of immigation. Mary Anne started the presentation by speaking about the Catholic faith and what it teaches about migration.

Welcoming the Stranger

“Within the context of migration scripture actually has a very strong tradition of how we approach migration,” Mary Anne explained. Afterall, the Israelites were migrants out of Egypt, and the Holy Family were refugees for a time.

In Deuteronomy 10:19 it says “You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” Then in Matthew 25:35 Jesus renews this message by saying “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.”

We can also look to our faith leaders for guidance on how we should respond to migration and immigration. Pope Francis often speaks of the injustices migrants and refugees suffer. Even the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops even provides us with 5 Principles on Migration, including the statement that “persons have the right to find opportunities in their homeland,” and “persons have the right to migrate to support themselves and their families.”

What it all boils down to, Mary Anne explained, is to live with “empathy. That’s what Christianity is based on.”

The Difficult Journey

For the rest of the evening Elizabeth Clapp spoke about the legalities and difficulties of immigation. As an immigration lawyer with the CCSWO, she has helped hundreds of individuals understand their rights when it comes to immigration. 

Elizabeth started off by explaining the different types of legal statues people might have in the United States, such as undocumented, DACA, nonimmigrant visa, refugee, permanent resident, or citizen.

Her office helps people work their way through the often complicated legal system. In the state of Ohio applying for asylum is not easy or cheap. On average a person will spend $6,000-$10,000 trying to seek asylum. Unfortunately, 86-96% of asylum cases that go before an immigration judge in the state of Ohio are rejected, Elizabeth said.

The Legal Services office also assists undocumented people with filing court papers, seeking work permits, obtaining photo IDs, and more. 

This past year, in conjunction with the Refugee Resettlement Program, CCSWO helped settle 48 Afghan refugees. By the end of this year they expect to settle nearly 100 more. 

Beyond Status

Imagine migrating to a new country with nothing but the clothes on your back and perhaps one bag full of supplies. You probably don’t know the local language or customs. You left home, which was sometimes violent, seeking a better life for yourself. All of that would be overwhelming. 

To help migrants transition to life in the United States, CCSWO offers several programs. Many refugees arrive in the U.S. after facing a lot of trauma. Mental Health Services can help refugees and migrants work through that trauma. 

Through Su Casa Hispanic Center there are education programs, emergency services, case management, language classes, and more. 

How to Help

There are many things you can do to support CCSWO and immigrants. Donations are always welcome and will be put to good use helping your neighbors. Mary Anne said if you have neighbors that are immigrants or refugees, reach out to them and offer assistance, even if it’s just a kind word.

Hold a collection to help fill welcome baskets that are given to families as they are settled into a new home. Learn more about the baskets here: https://www.ccswoh.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Welcome-Baskets-Refugees-Flyer-OCT21-REV-100121.pdf

Lastly, you can volunteer. There are many opportunities to volunteer. Learn more here: https://www.ccswoh.org/get-involved/volunteer/

By: Roli Srivastava
This story first appeared in Comboni Missions Magazine summer 2021.

In a monsoon ritual of sorts in India’s financial capital, #MumbaiRain begins to trend on Twitter with the first showers—not because its residents are like weather-obsessed Londoners, but out of fear of the flooding that brings the bustling city to a standstill each year.

Disastrous floods, deadly heatwaves and devastating cyclones are taking a heavy toll on lives and livelihood in India which faces rising “human and economic costs of climate change,” says a new report by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI).

Researchers with the London-based global affairs think-tank said global warming is likely to have a negative effect on the country’s GDP—and that cost will not be borne equally.

Already the country’s poorest are the worst hit as temperatures rise, with their jobs, wages and health harmed by climate change, warned the ODI study, which reviewed evidence from existing papers on how climate change is affecting India. 

How is climate change hurting India’s poor?

Last month, Cyclone Yaas raged along India’s eastern coast, destroying thousands of homes, inundating dozens of villages and making 150,000 people homeless. The destruction came within a few days of another cyclone, Tauktae, the most powerful to batter the west coast in two decades, that ripped out power pylons and trees, collapsed houses and killed more than 80 oil workers on a barge.

The two extreme events were the latest in India’s cyclone calendar, which saw Amphan in 2020 batter the east coast, affecting 13 million people and causing over $13 billion in damage after it made landfall, the ODI report said.

The poorest are at climate risk twice over. Not only do they account for most casualties when climatic disasters strike, they also suffer losses in farming incomes from damage to crops and land, according to the United Nations and the ODI report.

About 70 percent of Indian households depend on agriculture for their livelihood, but they are struggling with lower yields owing to frequent droughts and lower rainfall, the report said.

Besides, an increase in hard surfaces, including asphalt and cement, has worsened water scarcity by preventing percolation of rainfall into the soil and depleting groundwater levels amid rising heat, the report noted. This, in turn, is hitting harvests and farm laborers’ wages.

Pushed out from villages with fewer jobs on the land, many seek work in cities where they live in poor conditions, largely invisible to urban planners and highly vulnerable to disasters such as the COVID-19 pandemic, according to migration experts.

The urban poor, living in metal or asbestos-roofed huts in major Indian cities where the temperature can exceed 48 degrees Celsius, are seeing a growing threat to their lives and productivity from rising heat, the ODI report said.

Climate change impacts in India could add about 50 million more poor people than otherwise projected by 2040 because of falling wages, rising food prices and slower economic growth, it warned.

How much is climate change costing India?

Mumbai, a city built on seven islands stitched together with massive areas reclaimed from the sea, was placed fifth among major coastal cities in the world for flooding risk by researchers cited in the ODI report.

The city incurs annual losses of $284 million, while India has suffered a loss of $3 billion in the last decade from flooding, said the report titled The Costs of Climate Change in India.

If global warming reaches 3 degrees Celsius, studies estimate that India’s GDP could contract by between 10 and 90 percent by 2100 due to a decline in agricultural activity, rising sea levels and other factors, it noted.

Floods and landslides in India affected about 11.4 million hectares of farmland between 2018 and 2020, the Indian government told Parliament last year.

Extreme weather cost India 2,000 lives and more than $37 billion in 2018, when the coastal state of Kerala was hit by the worst floods in a century and two cyclones pummelled the east coast, according to an annual climate risk index from sustainable development group Germanwatch.

How is India responding to the growing threat?

India has in recent years developed climate-resilient farming systems and improved its flood forecasting, according to government replies submitted in Parliament.

Administrators of 140 Indian cities, meanwhile, are also being trained to consider climate risk when planning infrastructure projects, to tackle “increasing frequency of cyclones, floods, heat waves, water scarcity and drought-like conditions.”

The Indian Jesuit Stanislaus Lourduswamy, better known as Father Stan Swamy, arrested for his commitment to defense of the Adivasis (“original inhabitants” of India), passed away July 5, in a hospital in Mumbai, in the west of India. He was 84 years old.

As reported by Dr. Ian D’souza, Director of the Catholic Hospital of the Holy Family, where he was hospitalized, he was placed in intensive care on July 4 after suffering a cardiac arrest. His death occurred as a result of a lung infection, complications after Covid-19 and Parkinson’s disease, which he already suffered from.

Independent observers and members of civil society in India say Father Swamy was seen as an opponent of the government because he fought for the enforcement of laws, passed by Parliament, which favor the lives of tribal people  and their constitutional rights. Expressing his deep sorrow, Cardinal Oswald Gracias, President of the Bishops’ Conference of India, said, “The life and commitment to the poor indigenous people and their struggles undertaken by Father Swamy will be forever remembered.”

Read more here.

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

The Global Catholic Climate Movement (GCCM) has a new name, with the blessing of Pope Francis: the Laudato Si’ Movement.

It was announced on July 29, 2021 in a webinar attended by more than 8,000 participants from around the world.
Tomás Insua, executive director of LSM, described the move as the result of a “synodal journey” aimed at a deeper ecological conversion.

Cardinal Michael Czerny from the Vatican Dicastry for Promoting Human Development said: “This name is a prayer…. When we name the movement now, every time we name it, we’re saying a prayer.”

Read more.

Bishops in Chad have called for an “inclusive national dialogue” that brings together stakeholders in the nation’s socio-political life to work together toward peace.

In a recent statement, the Chadian Bishops’ Conference (CET) highlighted that “the lack of real and sincere dialogue between Chadian socio-political actors has long plagued national life and is at the heart of current debates.”

CET further noted that the sudden April 19 demise of the Chadian president Idriss Deby Itno at the hands of military forces has brought the crises in the north-central African nation to the fore.

“The death of President Déby has made this crisis obvious, and this inclusive national dialogue and reconciliation is becoming an urgent necessity in order to enable all the children of Chad to come together and agree on a new social contract that should bind them for the next few decades,” the bishops said.

Read more.

Government officials in Peru announced on May 31 that the country’s official COVID-19 death toll had been far lower than the real number. Instead of 69,342 Peruvians perishing from COVID-19 as of May 22, as the Peruvian government previously reported, more than 180,000 actually have died from the virus.

Officials blamed the undercounting on “a lack of testing that made it difficult to confirm whether a person had died due to the virus or some other cause,” Reuters reports. The new figure means Peru has the highest per-capita death toll in the world.

The news comes at the end of a holiday weekend in the U.S., where millions of Americans resumed travel previously put on hold due to the pandemic. The U.S. continues to see COVID-19 cases decline with the rise of vaccination rates.

But in Brazil, Argentina, Peru and many other countries in Latin America, government and health officials are still struggling to contain the virus.

Read more at NPR.

Scientists from a range of disciplines and institutions have been grappling with the violent colonial legacies embedded within Western science. From archaeology to public health to natural history, efforts focused around naming and unwinding those legacies have flourished, particularly in the wake of last year’s racial justice uprisings.

A new paper in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution offers some steps that ecologists, in particular, can take to begin unraveling the colonial systems and perspectives that pervade academia.

“Ecology, like most scientific disciplines that exist in the world today, comes out of the history of universities that were founded in colonization,” says coauthor Jess Auerbach, an anthropologist at North-West University in South Africa. “And so our whole knowledge structure, as a kind of global research community, is based really in these processes of unequal power and violence.”

Read more in Ellie Shechet’s article in Popular Science.

A small but growing grassroots peace movement is trying to bring an end to the four-year secessionist conflict in Cameroon’s English-speaking regions—an internationally neglected crisis that is becoming increasingly deadly and complex.

Formal attempts to negotiate a settlement between the government and fighters demanding independence for “Ambazonia” have stalled. Internationally led efforts are hamstrung by deep divisions within the separatist movement, and by the refusal of the government—which argues that the conflict is an internal affair—to engage with external mediators.

Spurred by the lack of progress in getting the warring parties around a conference table, a series of grassroots peace-building initiatives—launched by private individuals, rights groups, and the Catholic Church—have cautiously moved in to negotiate local peace deals in Cameroon’s two anglophone regions.

But these interventions—many led by women—must tread carefully to avoid being labelled as either pro-government or supportive of the armed movements fighting for the independence of the English-speaking Northwest and Southwest regions.

Read more from The New Humanitarian.