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Report on Oblate International Congress on Ministry with Migrants Now Available July 6th, 2009
L to R: Maurizio Giorgianni (Italian OMI in Korea), Gen Oliveira (Brazilian OMI in Japan), Andrzej Jastrzebski (Polish OMI in the Oblate General Administration in Rome) and Daniel LeBlanc, Oblate representative at the United Nations.
The symposium, titled “Together on a Journey of Hope” was held in Mississauga, Ontario, from June 8-12, 2009. Oblates from North five continents gathered to learn, strategize and sensitize themselves on the challenges of migrants and immigrants in areas where Oblates are working. This was the first Oblate international symposium on migration.
Companies, Communities and Religious Investors – a conference on socially responsible investment June 8th, 2009
A conference on Companies, Communities and Religious Investors, jointly organized by eight church- and faith-based bodies, was held in Dublin on 5 March 2009. The conference brought together more than 80 participants representing ecumenical organizations, Christian denominations, religious orders, non-governmental organizations and the responsible investment sector.
The conference explored the impact of business on human communities and the natural world, concomitant theological and moral issues, and the role of religious investors in promoting greater corporate and investor responsibility. The conference was designed to enable a sharing of perspectives and experience, leading to a deepened understanding and the development of broad agreement on the types of changes needed. This was coupled with practical knowledge and ideas to help faith-based investors engage with the critical issues facing the world. The context of an unprecedented financial – and sustainability – crisis gave added salience to the subject of the conference.
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Conference Report available (Download PDF)
Demand for a Globally Negotiated and Increased SDR Funding Without Conditionalities June 3rd, 2009
Stop increased funding to the IMF which only makes it a stronger enforcer of developed country restrictions through conditionalities.
NGOs Oppose Nearly 100-Billion-Dollar Pledge to IMF
WASHINGTON, May 31 (IPS) – A broad coalition of civil society groups, as well as some U.S. lawmakers, are fighting what they call a “blank cheque” from the U.S. to expand funding for the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
On May 22, the Senate passed a 91.3 billion-dollar-wartime spending bill that included 108 billion dollars for the Washington-based Fund. The bill will now have to be reconciled in a conference committee between the Senate and the House of Representatives whose own version omitted any IMF funding. The funding was the U.S. part of a larger package agreed by the G20 leaders at their April meeting in London, where they pledged to provide 1.1 trillion dollars in additional funding to the IMF.
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G20: Prioritize the Needs of the Poor April 7th, 2009
On April 2, the Group of Twenty (G20) World leaders met in London to discuss the global financial crisis and explore ways to address the situation. Created in 1999, the G20 is a meeting of Finance Ministers on matters of global finance. It is composed of a group of seven (G7) wealthy nations, namely Germany, the United States, Britain, Japan, Canada and Italy; 12 members from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and South Africa (the only Africa nation in the G20) and representatives from the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Union.
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Civil Society Groups Urge President Obama and Congress to Curb Food Speculation to Fight the Global Hunger Crisis March 27th, 2009
Letter to White House, Congressional Leaders Demands Swift Action
WASHINGTON, DC – Tuesday, a coalition of faith, hunger, international development, farm and food organizations including the Oblate JPIC Office, sent a letter to President Obama requesting decisive support for efforts to wring out excess speculation in agricultural futures markets that threatens the food security of hundreds of millions of people. The letter notes that “A significant part of last year’s food price fluctuations were the result of excessive speculation in the commodities markets by the very hedge funds and investment banks that helped create the current economic meltdown.”
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