Displaying items by tag: Global

Following the remarks to the UN about climate change by Dominica’s foreign minister (see https://www.prayer-alert.net/worldwide-pa-site/item/11038-un-assembly-climate-change-a-global-responsibility), on 7 October a UN intergovernmental panel added to that warning by stating that preventing an extra single degree of heat could make a life-or-death difference in the next few decades for multitudes of people and ecosystems on this fast-warming planet. It detailed how weather, health and ecosystems would be in better shape if the world’s leaders limited future human-caused warming to half a degree, instead of the Paris-agreed goal of 1 degree. Meeting the more ambitious goal requires immediate cuts in emissions of heat-trapping gases and dramatic changes in the energy field. The panel said it is technically possible, but saw little chance of the needed adjustments being made by every nation. See also the article ‘Bishop challenges Government on climate change’ in the UK section.

As climate change creates huge ecological and economic damage, more and more money is being given to at-risk countries to help them prevent it and adapt to its effects. But these grants can be diverted into private bank accounts and vanity projects. Senior staff at Kenya’s geothermal energy company went on compulsory leave after trying to embezzle US$19 million, and a Bangladesh fishing community cannot reach their cyclone shelter that was built on the other side of a river which isn’t crossable during bad weather. The contractor built the shelter next to his own house. Also 52 Maldivian families were relocated from islands vulnerable to erosion and sea surges. The government raised funds to house them. Construction never began; they were still homeless eight years after the relocation. Transparency International works to safeguard climate change funding from corruption, by monitoring and exposing corruption risks and supporting communities.

Politicians and the Bank of England now say that the chances of a ‘no deal’ scenario are high, and may leave the UK with no trading deals in place. Pray that a spirit of fear will not entrench our nation. WTO's director general believes ‘this is not going to be a situation where all trade stops and there is collapse in terms of the economy as a whole. The tendency is that prices will go up because you have to absorb the cost of that disruption’. The WTO facilitates 164 countries, without free trade agreements with each other, to trade using the same tax on imports and the same limits on the number of goods. After Brexit, the UK could lower/waive tariffs to stimulate free trade. Cheaper products could enter UK, but some UK producers could fold. We can pray for business to thrive. The UK already trades under WTO rules with China, US, Brazil and Australia, plus any country without a trade agreement with the EU.

Japan's weather agency has declared the heatwave sweeping the country a natural disaster, with 80+ deaths recorded since 19 July and the temperature reaching 41.1C. By 26 July over 22,000 were hospitalised with heatstroke, and the heatwave shows no sign of abating. People were urged to stay in air-conditioned spaces, drink water, and rest to prevent heat exhaustion. The fire department dispatched ambulances 3,125 times within Tokyo in just one day. Meanwhile, temperatures in Korea climbed to 40. Much of Europe is baking under a high-pressure ridge of tropical heat, climbing as far as the Arctic and blocking cooling rainfalls. Temperatures above 32 extended to northern Scandinavia, setting records in Sweden, Finland and Norway for stations above the Arctic Circle. There are unprecedented wildfires in Sweden. Algeria reached 51.3, the highest temperature ever recorded on the African continent. A brutal heatwave also struck Canada, with seventy heat-related deaths, and in the USA Dallas experienced highs of 43.

The 2018 Global Slavery Index revealed that North Korea has the most human slaves in the world. Research showed it keeps over 2.6 million people in modern day slavery - that is, one in every ten citizens is forced to work under slavery conditions. A UN Commission of Inquiry has observed that violations of human rights in North Korea are not mere excesses of the state, they are an essential component of the political system. Eritrea, described as ‘a repressive regime that abuses its conscription system to hold its citizens in forced labour for decades’, has the second highest prevalence of modern slavery. The others in the top ten are Burundi, the Central African Republic, Afghanistan, Mauritania, South Sudan, Pakistan, Cambodia, and Iran. Most of these nations have conflict, displacement, and a lack of physical security. However, the conditions in North Korea, Eritrea, and Burundi stand out because slavery is state-imposed.

South Asia IJM are searching for two teenage girls being exploited by a private sex-trafficking network. IJM worked with police for weeks to rescue them, but at the last minute they were moved from the target location. Please pray for a new strategy to find the girls quickly, without tip-offs making the traffickers suspicious. Also, remember the Dominican Republic mother of two sex-trafficking survivors struggling to provide for her five children. The European expat perpetrator in this case is offering her increasingly large sums of money to drop accusations against him, but she refuses every time. May God strengthen her and provide for the family’s needs. Finally, thank God for Kevin Hyland, who leaves the role of UK independent anti-slavery commissioner at IJM this month. The role was created under the Modern Slavery Act of 2015, and his work has been groundbreaking in uniting forces from NGOs, the private sector, and the Government to fight modern slavery. Pray for wisdom in the selection of his replacement. See

It has been almost three years since the ‘refugee crisis’ was brought to the world’s attention. Hundreds of thousands, maybe millions, came like a flood from the Middle East and North Africa to Europe, fleeing war, drought, terrorism and pain. Many Christians responded compassionately, with thousands volunteering across Europe to serve the refugees who had left everything behind. Many YWAM workers got involved through serving on the shores of Europe, along the migration route and in destination nations like Germany and Sweden. On the island of Lesvos alone, more than 1,000 YWAMers served in the camp, with a combined effort of approximately 20,000 days of work! While the number of volunteers has decreased, displaced people are still coming and helpers are still needed to meet practical needs and build relationships with the people in the camps. In 2018 refugees no longer live in camps. Host nations face the challenge of integrating thousands into their society.

In North America 70 wildfires are consuming 630,000 acres across Alaska, California, Colorado and other western states. Meteorologists warn of more blazes due to strong winds, dry conditions and low humidity. A huge fire in Canada’s British Columbia has been burning since 21 June at Comstock Lake. Another 12-hectare forest fire is being fought in Kawarthas near Toronto, Ontario.  In England a major incident was declared as moor fires converged in Lancashire. The Northern Ireland fire service has had to deal with 600 gorse fires this week and in Ireland Slieve Bloom mountains are alight with an uncontrolled fast-growing blaze. Nine out of ten wildfires are carelessly (or deliberately) started by people. A wildfire destroys ALL vegetation, causes erosion which degrades stream water quality and wildlife are burned, dehydrated and malnourished. The larger animals like deer can escape but squirrels, foxes and snakes are not always able to. Birds can fly away, but nests and eggs are destroyed. See also

Citizens are not usually incarcerated for their beliefs or peaceful activity in the West. Elsewhere Christian prisoners of conscience are threatened, not merely by criminals, but by an environment of unsanitary conditions, infectious diseases, untreated illness and extreme tortures at the hands of the authorities. These human rights abuses are enabled by a worldview that diminishes and even negates the Christian's value as a human being. Thousands of Christians are in prison for their faith, while others are held captive by jihadists. Pray for human rights lawyers like Gao Zhisheng (China), humble labourers like Aasia Bibi (Pakistan) and foreign nationals like Andrew Brunson (an American pastor in Turkey), Sister Gloria Narvaez (a missionary in Mali), and Dr Ken Elliot (an Australian missionary doctor in Burkina Faso). Pray for all prisoners and captives suffering physically, emotionally, and spiritually, exhausted and confused. Pray for those heartbroken by separation from family and friends.

Nestled in the Himalayas in north-eastern India, Sikkim has been leading a green revolution. Despite being small and isolated, with its people living in extremely tough mountainous terrain, it became the first Indian state to ban disposable plastic bags (1998) and is among the first to target single-use plastic bottles. In 2016 Sikkim banned packaged drinking water in government offices and events, and banned the use of disposable plates and cutlery to cut down toxic plastic and refuse problems. Pray for more governments to be active in promoting environmental programmes that end the global use of single-use plastic. Pray for more research and development into alternative materials to be used to manufacture food packaging, carrier bags, plastic pipes, electrical cable insulation, and artificial limbs. Pray for more innovative recycling and composting programmes, and thank God for the work of Christian environmental organisations such as A Rocha.