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JPIC Report Fall/Winter 2013 Issue Available October 24th, 2013
The Fall/Winter 2013 issue of JPIC Report is now available on line as a PDF. It is also available in print form. Please contact Mary O’Herron in the JPIC Office if you want to be added to the mailing list.
You can find all issues of JPIC Report on this website in the Resources section. (Download a PDF of the latest issue)
World’s Scientists Issue urgent Warning on Climate Change October 3rd, 2013
Late rains in Bangladesh stress crops and livestock.
Last week, the highly esteemed Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its latest assessment of the science behind human-caused climate change. For the first time, the IPCC has offered guidance on the amount of CO2 that can still be put into the atmosphere and still stay below the temperature rise of 2 decrees Celsius: about 1 trillion tons more. The IPCC—which is made up of thousands of the world’s leading climate scientists from more than 120 countries—is now 95% certain that human activities are causing climate change. Previously, the scientists had been 90% certain.
In response to this report, Dr. Kevin Ahern, assistant professor of religious studies at Manhattan College, wrote The Moral Imperative to Act for Climate Justice. There, Dr. Ahern says that [t]he IPCC report draws attention to two facts that call Catholics and all people of good will to action, and highlights the work of the Coalition as an example of how Catholics are faithfully addressing climate change. It should be noted that the U.S. Catholic bishops used the third IPCC report as the basis for their call to action by the Catholic community when they wrote their 2001 statement, Global Climate Change: A Plea for Dialogue, Prudence and the Common Good.
The UK charity, Christian Aid, is urging governments to heed the warnings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). According to Independent Catholic News, Christian Aid’s Senior Climate Change Advisor, Dr. Alison Doig, warns that people in developing countries are already facing the grim reality of a changing climate [and says that t]his report demonstrates the urgent action needed to stop climate change in its tracks by committing to rapidly reducing global carbon emissions.”
Thanks to the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change for this information.
Financial Transparency Coalition Meets in Africa on Problem of Illicit Financial Flows September 30th, 2013
The new Financial Transparency Coalition is meeting in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on October 1-2. The theme for the conference, is “Towards Transparency: Making the Global Financial System Work for Development.” Fr. Seamus Finn, OMI, US JPIC Office Director, is officially representing ICCR (Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility) at the conference.
Nearly a trillion dollars a year has been secreted out of developing countries, robbing them of revenue needed desperately for development. The coalition was formed to do something about this problem that is central to the development of poor countries. According to the Coalition, half of the illicit financial flows – a staggering $500 billion – is coming from Africa. Flowing from crime, corruption, and tax evasion, these illicit transfers represent a drain on developing economies that is equivalent to eight times the size of global foreign aid.
The US JPIC Office is involved in several inter-connected organizations in Washington, DC, working for greater financial justice and transparency. These include the Tax Justice Network USA, (where Fr. Finn serves on the Board), and the FACT coalition (Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Campaign). The international Financial Transparency Coalition was launched in May of 2013, in response to the growing awareness and activism around the problem of illicit financial flows.
World Migration Report 2013 September 26th, 2013
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has published its annual report on migration, World Migration Report, 2013: Migrant Well-being and Development. This comprehensive look at migration patterns and the well being of migrants is available as a PDF download from the IOM website. It is available in English, French and Spanish.
According to the IOM website, “Many reports linking migration and development concentrate on the broad socioeconomic consequences of migratory processes, and the impact of migration on the lives of individuals can easily be overlooked. In contrast, the WMR 2013 focuses on migrants as persons, exploring how migration affects quality of life and human development across a broad range of dimensions.”
Vatican Hosts Mining CEO’s in a “Day of Reflection” September 11th, 2013
Participants of the “Vatican Day of Reflection on Mining” in front of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace in Rome
The CEOs of some of the world’s top mining companies went to the Vatican for a day-long meeting last Saturday to discuss better ways to operate in communities that are increasingly protesting the destructive impacts of mining. Communities are fearful – with good reason – of the impacts of mining on their water, land and air.
Saturday’s “day of reflection with the mining industry,” was organized, at the request of leaders in the mining sector, by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. It included the CEOs of Anglo American, Rio Tinto and Newmont Mining, who alone represented companies with well more than $100-billion (U.S.) in market value. The chairmen, presidents or senior executives of dozens of other companies, ranging from AngloGold Ashanti to African Rainbow Minerals, were also present. Fr. Seamus Finn OMI, from the USP JPIC team in Washington DC, was invited to be a part of the team that prepared the day of reflection and offered input during the day. Pope Francis offered a message of greeting and challenge to the group and offered his prayers and blessings on the event.
The companies were interested “to open a dialogue where mining interfaces with the community … to hear other views with the promise of all of us making a difference.”
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