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Breathing Life into Pollinator Garden @ La Vista July 25th, 2022
Master Gardener and Master Naturalist Susan Murray plus nine volunteers are in the process of renewing the La Vista Ecological Center Pollinator Garden begun in 2014. The monarda, a native plant that provides nectar for many bees, butterflies, birds, wasps, and other pollinators, is in full bloom. Our plan is to introduce more diversity so that, when the monarda has peaked, other natives will continue serving pollinators throughout the season as well as adding color and interest. This will happen over a period of years.
(Photo courtesy of MrGajowy3, Pixabay)
When some of the plants complete their blooming cycle, they die, making the garden less than attractive. However, we leave those plants because their seeds continue to serve other pollinators. In the winter they provide valuable habitat for species that overwinter here. Rather than clean them up so the garden has a tidy appearance, it is important to continue to provide for native animals.
(Animation courtesy of Matt Wasser, Lottie Files)
This garden was created in response to the disappearing monarch butterfly. It, along with many other pollinators, are endangered by use of pesticides and reduction in habitat. It is also a way to give flesh to the Missionary Oblates Land Ethic statement and the Pope’s encyclical Laudato Si.
Our brochure explains the pollinator garden and includes quotes from both documents. The garden is also an educational tool, modeling a way to create this kind of garden and encouraging others to replicate it in the back yards, on a smaller scale.
Download this brochure to learn more about Lavista’s Pollinator Garden.
Microsoft & Cisco Face Shareholder Pressure Over Public Disclosures July 12th, 2022
(Photo courtesy of Salvatore De Lellis, Pexels)
“…the Greater Manchester Pension Fund, and the Oblate International Pastoral Investment Trust (OIP), want Microsoft to fill in some of its transparency gaps and set an example across the tech sector. “
Missionary Oblates and OIP Trust join other responsible shareholders in calling for greater tax transparency and accountability from Microsoft and Cisco.
When corporations fail to pay their fair share of taxes in jurisdictions where they operate the burden for financing public services falls on each and every citizen in those jurisdictions.
Faith Groups to Congress: Support Peace Through Diplomacy in Ukraine July 11th, 2022
Photo courtesy of Wilfried Pohnke, Pixabay
It has been more than four months since Russia invaded Ukraine. In response to the terrible human toll of this illegal assault, OMI JPIC joined nearly two dozen faith organizations, under the leadership of Friends Committee on National Legislation, in sending a letter to every member of the U.S. Congress urging lawmakers to avoid actions that would escalate, expand, or prolong the war in Ukraine.
The signers recognized the precious and equal value of every human life. As in every war, the burdens have fallen most heavily on the world’s most vulnerable people. With so many lives at stake, the letter urges Congress to fulfill its moral duty to do everything it can to support diplomatic efforts that create incentives for a negotiated settlement necessary to reach a just and lasting peace.
Visit Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL)’s website to read the letter to the U.S. Congress, view the list of signers, and send an action alert.
Fr. Séamus Finn, OMI Offers Peace Prayer at Interfaith Gathering June 23rd, 2022
Out of shared concern for the trauma and sorrow wrought by war, Religions for Peace and UNIAPAC came together to promote multireligious collaboration in service of humanity, hosting an Interfaith Prayer for World Peace on Tuesday, June 22. Fr. Séamus Finn, OMI, invited to offer a prayer of intercession, prayed the Peace Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi.
In the face of violent conflict and self-serving avarice, Religions for Peace and UNIAPAC are advocating for an alternative paradigm, human fraternity. They recognize that all are called to protect our brothers and sisters in humanity, irrespective of our differences in faith, and work together to cultivate peace and shared flourishment through dialogue and cooperation.
As people around the globe suffer from wars, deprivation and ecological precarity, they are calling on faith leaders of the world’s religious and spiritual communities to come together to pray for peace.
The International Christian Union of Business Executives or UNIAPAC is an ecumenical organization for Christian businesspeople.
Fr. Séamus Finn, OMI Interviewed by Berkley Center, Georgetown University June 20th, 2022
Background: Investment policies and priorities for faith communities have come to the fore in recent years, working alongside wider socially 
responsible investment policies and involving active efforts to shape directions for private sector impact. Fr. Séamus has played active roles in initiatives within his order (Oblates of Mary Immaculate), the Catholic Church, and faith communities broadly. He spoke to a group of Georgetown University students and other colleagues on April 27, presenting his work and exploring underlying issues related to investment policies and action to shape them.
Fr. Séamus brings a long history of active efforts to shape faith consistent investment policies and practice. As director of the Oblates’ United States Province Office of Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation, he coordinates their advocacy work on behalf of marginalized peoples and communities living in poverty; the priorities are “accompanying those in need” and “being present where decisions affecting the lives and the futures of the poor are made”, in both the public arena and the private sector.
He served as chair of the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility’s board of directors for 5 years and is the Director of Faith Consistent Investing for the Oblate International Pastoral Investment Trust. The latter includes an active shareholder investment program both for the U.S. province and for the congregation, and a presence at different legislative arenas and at international institutions like the World Bank, IMF and the UN. He serves on the boards of several organizations focused on justice priorities in the public policy arena.
Read the full interview: https://bit.ly/3O9TzHp
