Welcome to Update

The Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund

Email Update – February 2016

Mission StatementAs an instrument of faith, PWRDF connects Anglicans in Canada to communities around the world in dynamic partnerships to advance development, respond to emergencies, assist refugees and act for positive change.

This list is an outgoing communication service from PWRDF only.

Government Matching Funds for Syrian Emergency Relief Work Extended We StayPWRDF Sees Surge in Donations for RefugeesSharing Bread (Three) a Food Security and Health learning ExchangeHunger on the HillNews from ACT AllianceKAIROS: Winds of Change

Events: Fred Says – Year Three: 5 A’s of Food SecurityInternational Women’s DayWorld Water Day

Partner Story:Irrigation Solution

Resources:Living Justice: Life Giving Waters

Government Matching Funds for Syrian Emergency Relief Work Extended

By Simon Chambers

Photo: Paul Jeffrey/ACT

The government of Canada has announced that the deadline for matching funds for eligible donations to

Canadian agencies working to provide relief to Syrians displaced within Syria and living as refugees in the

surrounding….read more: http://pwrdf.org/2016/government-matching-funds-for-syrian-emergency-

relief-work-extended/

We Stay

Boys discuss conflict resolution as part of a psycho-social program run by the Lutheran World Federation in the Zaatari refugee camp near Mafraq, Jordan. Photo: ACT/Paul Jeffrey

When the Syrian civil war started almost 5 years ago, PWRDF began providing relief to those displaced by the conflict through the ACT Alliance. Over the last five years as the conflict and the humanitarian crisis have grown, PWRDF’s response has grown as well, now involving ACT and also the Canadian….read more: http://pwrdf.org/2016/we-stay/

PWRDF sees surge in donations for refugeesBy Tali Folkins

Syrian refugee in Suruc, the largest refugee camp in Turkey. Photo: Orlok/Shutterstock

In the past four months, Canadian Anglicans have donated more than 76 times as much for Syrian relief than they did in the first eight months of 2015—and the spike is translating directly into more aid for desperate Syrian families. Since Sept. 12, 2015, The Primate's World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF) has received $488,605….read more: http://www.anglicanjournal.com/articles/pwrdf-sees-surge-in-donations-for-refugees

Sharing Bread (Three) A Food Security and Health Learning Exchange

Participants at Sharing Bread (Two) in 2015. Photo: Suzanne RumseyWhat better time to start making summer plans than in the depths of winter?! With that in mind, PWRDF is pleased to announce that it is once again offering a course at the Sorrento Centre on the shores of beautiful Shuswap Lake....read more: http://pwrdf.org/2016/sharing-bread-three-a-food-security-and-health-learning-exchange/

Canadian Foodgrains Bank is a partnership of 15 Canadian churches and church-based agencies working together to end global hunger. PWRDF is a member.

Hunger on the Hill

Are you interested in learning more about global hunger issues and how you can take action? Want to use your voice to effect change? Eager for a chance to help shape Canadian policy on hunger issues? Canadian Foodgrains Bank….read more: http://foodgrainsbank.ca/hunger-on-the-hill/?utm_source=Canadian+Foodgrains+Bank&utm_campaign=d67549f62b-February_TableTalk2_10_2016&ut

Dear colleagues,

It is with great pleasure that we announce the creation of a new ACT Alliance Community of Practice on Youth Participation.Youth under the age of 30 make up nearly half of the world’s population today. Nearly 90 percent….read more: http://us9.campaign-archive1.com/?u=1f4fe85b27aeaa1448409d457&id=d1f34e7c22&e=bc0513c563

KAIROS – Winds of ChangeIn response to the report and recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, KAIROS has launched Winds of Change, an education and action campaign. The first phase of the campaign is Education for Reconciliation, a petition campaign in partnership with the Legacy of Hope Foundation that calls for the implementation of the TRC’s Call to Action #62.i:

We call upon the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, in consultation and collaboration with Survivors, Aboriginal peoples and educators to make age-appropriate curriculum on residential schools, Treaties and Aboriginal peoples’ historical and contemporary contributions to Canada a mandatory education requirement for Kindergarten to Grade Twelve students.

Those who attended PWRDF’s National Gathering in November 2015 will recall that we undertook our own learning initiative in the form of the “Mapping Exercise” as one step in our journey to understand and “deepen our relationships with Indigenous peoples.” In keeping with that strategic goal, PWRDF volunteers and supporters are invited to sign the petition and encourage others to do so. KAIROS’s goal is to collect as many signatures as possible on petitions that will be presented in provincial and territorial legislatures in the spring of this year (2016). The deadline for petitions to reach KAIROS is March 15, 2016.

Information about the campaign and the petition, along with petition forms can be found at: http://www.kairoscanada.org/what-we-do/indigenous-rights/windsofchange-overview

If you have any questions about the campaign generally or the petition specifically, please contact KAIROS directly, or Suzanne Rumsey at PWRDF: srumsey@pwrdf.org

Events:

Fred Says – Year ThreeWorld Water Day 2016, Water and Jobs

Fred Says-Year Three: 5 A’s of Food Security

The World Health Organization defines food security as existing:“When all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life”.As in years 1 and 2 of PWRDF’s Fred Says Food Security Campaign, year 3 will feature partners and projects that represent an integral component of all of PWRDF’s programming. As Fred says: “it all starts with food”. Through the 5 A’s of food security we will dig deeper to broaden our understanding of what the above definition means and educate people on the complexities and the simplicity that are involved in addressing the barriers to food that exist for many people in today’s world.Stay tuned for more information and for the launch of year three of Fred Says-PWRDF’s Food Security Campaign.

International Women's Day 2016

Photo: UN Women/Ryan BrownThe 2016 theme for International Women’s Day is “Planet 50-50 by 2030: Step It Up for Gender Equality”. The United Nations observance on 8 March will reflect on how to accelerate the 2030 Agenda, building momentum for the effective implementation of the new Sustainable Development Goals. It will equally focus on new commitments under UN Women’s Step It Up initiative, and other existing commitments….read more: http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/in-focus/international-womens-day

World Water Day 2016, Water and JobsWhy a World Water Day?

World Water Day is an international observance and an opportunity to learn more about water related issues, be inspired to tell others and take action to make a difference. World Water Day dates back to the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development where an international observance for water was recommended. The United Nations General Assembly responded by designating 22 March 1993 as the first World Water Day. It has been held annually since then. Each year, UN-Water — the entity that coordinates the UN’s work on water and sanitation — sets a theme for World Water Day corresponding to a current or future challenge. The engagement campaign is coordinated by one or several of the UN-Water Members with a related mandate. http://www.unwater.org/worldwaterday/home/en/

Partner Story:Irrigation Solution

Irma Gonon and her family use the water storage system behind them to irrigate their crops and provide water for their home. Photo: Elsa Tesfay

Even after you’ve learned new farming techniques, it’s hard to grow enough food to feed and support your family without enough water to help the crops grow. This was the problem facing Irma Gonon and her family in Willy Wood, Guatemala.Irma had already received training….read more: http://pwrdf.org/2015/irrigation-solution/

Resources:

Living Justice: Life Giving WatersThis educational resource was designed by PWRDF Youth Council members Allie Colp, Asha Kerr-Wilson and Rosemary Parker to complement the current National Youth Project “Right to Water” of Anglican and Lutheran youth across Canada whose purpose is to bring clean, running water and water facilities to the First Nations community of Pikangikum in Northern Ontario where current water conditions have been devastating for the health of the community. Life Giving Waters equips participants to address this issue in their parishes and communities at events, parish/diocesan gatherings and educational sessions. Create an interactive, challenging space to explore questions about water resources and who has access. Life Giving Waters has six sessions and can be used as a whole or as a single session. This resource was designed for people who work with youth but can be used intergenerationally. http://pwrdf.org/resources/educational/