Game-changers Women go from poverty to profit

Counter-culture Transformation in Malawi

What if… you could stop hunger?

Ireland

Spring 2013

tear

Be part of a miracle www.tearfund.ie

spring 2013 teartimes 32 spring 2013 teartimes

Welcome

Welcome to our first issue of Tear Times for 2013! Thank you for being part of our mission to bring justice and

transform lives through a worldwide network of local churches. In wishing you and your family a very happy new year, I look ahead to 2013 with expectancy that God will continue to bless our work and use us to build his kingdom in some of the poorest places on earth.

I expect that, like me, you will be blessed and encouraged as you leaf through the pages of Tear Times and read the stories of how families and communities are working their way out of poverty.

On pages 3–5, you’ll encounter some inspirational women who are being empowered to develop successful businesses and provide for their families. We at Tearfund believe that each of these women deserves a Business Woman of the Year award. I’m sure you will too!

On pages 6–7, you can read about a visit that I made to Malawi in September with Markus Köker, our International Programmes Manager. We met many people living with HIV in the villages where our partners are working, and it is a privilege to share their stories with you.

On page 15, we introduce the What If campaign, and ask you to support us in influencing Irish politicians to campaign for change. Did you know that there is enough food in the world to feed everyone – and yet nearly 1 billion people go to bed hungry every night? Please do what you can to support this life-saving campaign.

Thank you once again for your continued support and we trust that, as the Lord blessed our work in 2012, he will do so again this year.

Sharan KellyChief Executive

TearfundWe are bringing hope and demonstrating love to the most vulnerable and marginalised people – through the local church.

© Tearfund Ireland 2013. All rights reserved. Permission is granted for the reproduction of text from this publication for Tearfund Ireland promotional use only. For all other uses, please contact us.

Cover photo: Christine Audo is chairwoman of the Church of Uganda’s Omulala Farming Group that is helping families adapt to a changing climate by growing drought-resistant orange trees. Photo: Geoff Crawford/Tearfund.

GET IN TOUCH WITH US!Tearfund Ireland 2nd Floor, Ulysses House22–24 Foley St, Dublin 1enquiries@tearfund.ieTel: 01 878 3200www.facebook.com/tearfundireland

Sharan Kelly, Chief Executive

Tearfund Ireland. Registered Charity No. CHY 8600

Providing women with a way to earn an income gives them dignity and self-respect and benefits both families and whole communities. Niamh Daly explores how empowering women breaks the cycle of poverty.

Chicken farming is providing vital new income for Marie Carmelle Larosse in Haiti. Photo: Tearfund.

Global poverty has a woman’s face. About 70 per cent of people living in poverty are women (WHO, 2000: World

report on violence and health). The good news is that, when women forge their way out of poverty, everyone benefits. Children eat better and achieve better results in school, the family unit becomes more secure and relationships within communities improve as families improve. Empowering women empowers communities. And that’s why Tearfund is quick to support women and their efforts to help themselves.

As I write, Ireland has recognised its top female entrepreneurs with the 2012 Irish Business Women of the Year awards. Mother-of-two Natasha Lynch, from Cork, has just been awarded the overall prize for her business, Essential French.

Natasha is my first cousin and I’m proud of her gaining this recognition for her business skills. But across the world, in places where they don’t often give awards for achievements, there are many other amazing women who are made of the same entrepreneurial stuff as Natasha.

If we at Tearfund were giving out Business Women of the Year awards, then these are just some of the women whom we would choose to recognise for the incredible ways in which they refuse to let poverty define their lives:

Business Women of the Year – HAITIEntrepreneurs Marie Carmelle Larosse and

Louis Soinie have developed a successful chicken-rearing business after the earthquake in 2010. The women received a small grant from Tearfund, followed by some marketing and small business management training, and as a result they were able to double their stock of chickens and build a second chicken-house. Now, at any one time, they are raising 400 birds in their remote mountain community of Duclos. ‘Before, members of our community had to purchase frozen chicken meat from the market. Now they can buy fresh chicken conveniently in our community,’ says Marie. ‘We would like to expand the business and sell eggs in the future.’

The female face of poverty

Game-changers

Natasha Lynch, Irish Business Woman of the Year.

4 spring 2013 teartimes spring 2013 teartimes 5

Business Woman of the Year – ETHIOPIA

Mother-of-four Birtukan used to beg on the streets of Arba Minch, Ethiopia, so she could feed herself and her children. Subjected to degrading insults from passers-by, she stopped begging during the day and resorted to begging at night instead.

When she heard from neighbours that Tearfund partner Ethiopian Kale Heywet Church was giving out money, she wanted to be part of it. ‘I ran to be one of the first in the queue!’ she says.

However, the church wasn’t handing out money – they were forming self-help groups. ‘[The staff] said they would teach us to save and manage what we have.’

Most of the people at the meeting left without signing up, but Birtukan registered for a group and started by saving some of her begging money each week. After a while, her group saw her commitment and offered her a loan from their savings. She bought onions and charcoal to sell at market. Slowly, her business grew.

‘I have taken a total of four loans and have repaid them all,’ she says proudly. Her husband

used to work far away, but he is now able to live with his family and help with the business.

Business Woman of the Year – INDIA Born into a life

of drudgery in a desperately poor slum, Bharti was expected to resign herself to a life of cooking, cleaning, fetching water and looking after siblings.

But, despite having no education or vocational skills to lean on, Bharti wanted more. She refused to accept the shackles that society tried to put on her as a ‘worthless’ girl of the slums.

When she heard a devotional song being sung at a Community Care Centre run by Tearfund partner Imcares, Bharti went inside to see what was going on. ‘I was surprised to hear that they were teaching girls tailoring skills for free,’ she says. ‘I joined immediately.’

Since she enrolled on the course, her training has led to employment at a clothes shop. And, when Bharti received her certificate to show she had passed a government-approved tailoring exam, she experienced the joy of being given her own sewing machine at the shop.

For the first time in her life, Bharti believes that she might be able to reach her full potential.

‘I now run a regular stall in the market place. People have stopped insulting me. They now respect me and treat me like a proper person.’

‘I’ve had malaria fourtimes and last time

I thought I would die.’ Agnes

Orphaned at a young age and then rejected by her husband for failing to bear a child, Agnes Anyabo has suffered in every imaginable way.

In recent years, she has lost both her home and vegetable patch to extreme floods and drought. At times, all Agnes has had to eat is wild leaves.

The Church of Uganda saw the desperate need in Agnes’s village and encouraged a group of women to meet together. The church began to teach them drought-resistant farming skills, provide citrus-tree seedlings and tools – and empower the women to adapt to the changing climate and become self-sufficient.

‘The group means so much to me,’ says Agnes. ‘I could never have done this by myself.’

€10 a month – for a year could provide seeds, tools and training for at least two women to become apprentice citrus-tree farmers.

€25 a month can pay towards training for a farming group such as Agnes’s Omulala Women’s Group – to helping them yield more, fetch better prices for their crops and provide for their families.

Help women like Agnes leave poverty behind

Call 01 878 3200 today or go online at www.tearfund.ie

Game-changers

Photo: Geoff C

rawford/Tearfund.

CHANGES TO TAX RELIEF ANNOUNCEDIn the December budget the government announced plans to simplify the system of tax relief on charitable donations by introducing a single rate of 31% tax relief on all private donations. This applies from January 1st 2013. For supporters who donated to Tearfund during 2012 we will be sending out CHY2 form for completion shortly, alternatively the form can be downloaded online at www.tearfund.ie/giving/tax_efficient_giving

A slum in Mumbai. WarrenAllott/Tearfund

spring 2013 teartimes 76 spring 2013 teartimes

Malawi update – counter-culture transformation

Markus Köker, Tearfund Ireland’s new International Programmes Manager, reports on his visit to Malawi to see how LISAP (Livingstonia Synod AIDS Programme) is reducing the rate of HIV transmission from mother to child. Before taking up his new role with us, Markus was working in South Sudan and with Tearfund partner International Cooperation Cambodia (ICC).

The first thing that strikes you when you visit Tearfund’s work in Malawi is the welcome you receive. I have never

experienced anything like it. Villagers met us with welcome banners, songs and gifts, including live chickens.

Travelling with former CEO Reuben Coulter, and new CEO Sharan Kelly, I met groups of volunteers from every aspect of the project: the ‘Mother Buddies’ work (where church volunteers visit pregnant mothers living with HIV to ensure they are receiving the medication they need), HIV support groups, care groups and youth groups.

I was particularly encouraged by the innovations of the HIV support group. This group are using locally grown ingredients (from the neem tree) to make nutritious power drinks and snacks for people whose strength is weakened by the virus. The drinks taste good!

Changing lives The tangible impact that the project is having

on the lives of many families is inspiring. I met Jane and her husband, Gondwani (pictured right), who are both living with HIV. On becoming pregnant, Jane followed all the instructions recommended by LISAP and baby Judith was born without HIV. LISAP also played a big role in encouraging Gondwani to take an active interest in his baby’s birth and development – by going with Jane to attend the delivery, and then the HIV-testing and antenatal clinic.

This is radically counter-cultural, and Gondwani is leading the way in encouraging other soon-to-be-fathers to be more involved. And community leaders are open to the change. ‘Culture has limited men from going to the antenatal clinic,’ one leader told us. ‘Now, we are trying to relax the rules that hinder spouses going together. It is not good to keep cultures alive that make us die.’

When I was asked how husbands in Europe view the role of rearing children, I spoke of how my wife, Elke, and I work in partnership to raise our daughters, Malin, aged three, and Jana Lena, who’s six. ‘As a couple, we share the easy bits and the hard bits of our marriage,’ I told them. The group applauded.

Prevention is better than cure In the local culture, fostering love within a

marriage is not seen as important, so people often look for relationships beyond the family unit and run the risk of being infected with HIV. As a result, marriage counselling is becoming part of the project.

LISAP is also working with young schoolgirls who run the risk of turning to prostitution in order to pay their school fees. Many such girls contract HIV through prostitution.

Strength for the weary

Where’s Reuben? Reuben and his wife, Grazna, are settling down well in Geneva. Reuben has taken up a role as Senior Manager for Africa with the World Economic Forum (WEF) – a think-tank which brings together politicians, business leaders and civil society to address global development challenges. WEF is best-known for its annual conference in Davos in Switzerland.

Jane and Gondwani both HIV with their baby Judith who was born free of HIV thanks to Tearfund partner LISAP. Photo: Markus Kőker.

The Sunday school classes of St John the Baptist Clontarf present their work in response to hearing about Markus recent visit to Malawi.

Samples of drinks and snacks from HIV Support Group. Photo: Markus Kőker.

Jane and baby Judith, baby Judith was born free from HIV through the work of Tearfund partner LISAP. Photo: Markus Kőker.

Connected Church A group of nine people from Holy Trinity Church Rathmines recently spent a week with LISAP, and we look forward to sharing their feedback in the May edition of Tear Times.

How you can get involvedPlease pray that God will give us wisdom and the rescources we need as we partner with LISAP in this vital work.

If you would like to give financial support to Tearfund’s HIV work in Malawi, please call us on 01 878 3200 to find out more.

THINGS I’M GOOD AT…

Women in Ethiopia are working together, using their talents to support their famiies and change their communities. A talent or gift from God is a powerful thing, especially when it’s put to good use. Sometimes, we need other people to point out our talents. That’s why God places special people such as teachers, parents, pastors and club leaders in our lives to encourage our gifts and help us use our talents. God has given each one of us something special that we are good at. He wants us to enjoy our gifts and use them because he made them for us to enjoy. What talent is God highlighting in your life today? (Yes, you have lots, you really do!)

1 Corinthians 7:7

MEMORY VERSE

‘But each person has his

own gift from God; one has

this gift, another has that.’

In the parable of the talents in Luke 19:13–27, the man gave each of his servants ten minas. But how much is ten minas worth today?

1 Talent = 60 Minas

1 Mina = 100 Drachmas1 Drachma = A day’s wageSo the man gave each servant about two to three years’ worth of wages. In today’s money, that would be about €60,000 each! WOW!

Put your talent in the spotlightPull-out page for kids H X B O Z N C T U D F R S O W A L E N A T W U L L M P E C Q Z E I C E Z G T S N K U N S O E O T S Q K H E G L R D E T F I G G X W B J I N Q I N Z H K M W Q U J H

WORD SEARCH

TALENT

GIFTED

SKILL

XFACTOR

GENIUS

LEGEND

DID YOU KNOW?

MUDDLED UP

SPOT THE DIFFERENCE

Some of the words in this verse have been muddled up – can you write the correct version underneath?

WORK-OUT TIME – Flex

your mustard seed muscles

Just as a mustard seed

starts off tiny but grows into

a big tree, our talents often

start off small but grow into

something impressive as

we practise. A talent is like a

muscle – the more you exercise

it, the bigger it gets.

Can you spot 7 differences

between these

mustard trees?

(How many different types

of bird do you recognise?)

‘The kingdom of heaven is like a perch which a tree took and planted

in his birds. Though it is the largest of all your seeds yet when it

becomes, it is the smallest of garden plants and grows a man so

that the field of the air come and mustard seed in its branches.’

Matthew 13:32

‘The kingdom of heaven is like a __________, which a _______ took and planted in his ________. Though it is the __________ of all your seeds, yet when it __________, it is the __________ of garden plants and _______ a _______ so that the _______ of the air come and __________________________ in its branches.’ Matthew 13:32

ARE YOU MARVELLOUS AT MATHS?

Read the parable of the talents in Luke 19:11–27.

Fill in the numbers and add them up to find the total.

+ + + + = A B C D E

Father God, thank

you for giving me

gifts and talents.

Please help me and

other special people

in my life to realise

what they are.

Please help to use

them, grow them

and to really enjoy

them too. Amen

A = The number of servants the man called (verse 13)B = The number of minas he gave each servant (verse 13)C = The number of extra minas the first servant gained (verse 16)D = The number of extra minas the second servant gained (verse 18)E = The number of extra minas the third servant gained (verse 20)

I likemakingthings

I’m good at making friends

Singing and music

CookingSportsScience and

maths

Colour in the thought bubbles with the talents

you have and add more talents

in the empty bubbles.

Original photos skodonnell/jhorrocks/iStockphoto. filo/

iSto

ckph

oto.

Fancy a small bar of Fairtrade

chocolate? Just send us your

completed puzzle page, with your

name and address (with your parents’

permission), and we’ll happily send you

a bar of chocolate in the post.

Marvellous at M

aths? answer: 35

spring 2013 teartimes 1110 spring 2013 teartimes

Update from Bishops’ Appeal

The Church of Ireland Bishops’ Appeal has a long history of raising substantial funds for Tearfund partners around the world. Lydia Monds, Education Advisor Bishops’ Appeal, recently travelled to Cambodia to see how these funds are being used to bring justice and transform lives.

In impoverished, rural communities in the north-west of the country, the Cambodia Hope Organisation (CHO) is working with

incredibly vulnerable people who are at risk of being trafficked. Through education and training, CHO enables teenagers and families to be educated and learn essential job skills so they can earn a living, and become less vulnerable to being caught in trafficking.

Young people are being trained to become seamstresses and mechanics, and then being offered small grants and loans so they can form cooperatives and set themselves up in business. These initiatives are changing the course of their lives and enabling them to lift themselves out of poverty.

Where villages have no nearby school, CHO provides ‘School on a mat’, to give children basic literacy and numeracy skills. After witnessing the benefits of education, the majority of parents go on to send their children to mainstream schools.

Being able to read and write is having far- reaching implications for many communities. One benefit is that they are able to avoid healthcare scams where corrupt medics are benefiting from people’s ignorance by prescribing the wrong medication to keep them coming back for more. This, and high interest rates from money-lenders, have been the two main reasons why people have run up debts and lost their land. Putting a stop to this allows people the chance to build a more secure future for themselves, their families and their communities.

These initiatives are changing the course of their lives and enabling them to lift themselves out of poverty.

While working hard to stop people from being trafficked, CHO has also put in place a strong support programme for people who have been left traumatised by their trafficking experiences. ‘A safe haven’ is a CHO project that provides counselling, legal aid and a secure home in the aftermath of exploitation. It grieved me that so many of those benefiting from the project were young children, who were slowly learning to trust again. The project provides education and job skills as well as help and support for people to reintegrate into society. The support continues for years.

The value of Tearfund’s support for an organisation such as CHO is immeasurable. As a small and committed local organisation, CHO says that having international networks, strong friendships and accountability, as well as prayer support, gives it strength, and enables its work to expand.

The Bishops’ Appeal is privileged to be involved in this work.

Currently, Bishops’ Appeal is focusing on the work of Tearfund in Myanmar, where the local church is training and equipping communities to rebuild themselves in the wake of civil conflict. You can find out more about the Bishops’ Appeal at www.bishopsappeal.ireland.anglican.org

Protection from trafficking

Young girls learn seamstress skills so they can make a living and become less vulnerable to being trafficked. Photo: Tearfund.

Young boys learn how to be mechanics so they can earn a living and escape generational poverty. Photo: Tearfund.

The Bible encourages us to earnestly seek God: ‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled’ (Matthew 5:6). In the coming months, we focus our prayers on hunger. We connect with the power of God to transform the lives of people in poverty. And, crucially, we pray for people suffering the painful, desperate hunger for food, and who live on land where drought has destroyed cattle and the crops. But we also praise our Lord who provides through his church, ending hunger because his followers hunger and thirst for righteousness.

FEBRUARYHungry for God’s powerIn all four gospels, we read that Jesus fed thousands with just a few loaves and fishes. It shows how concerned Jesus is for those who hunger. The awful truth is that people are starving when there’s already enough food for everyone, and that’s an injustice Jesus calls us to challenge. As we approach the start of Lent, we’ll look at why almost 1 billion people still go to bed hungry every night and how we can speak out to change that.

SUNDAY 3RDThen Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty’ (John 6:35). Thank God for the truth of this promise in your life today.

SUNDAY 10THAs we move into Lent this week, pray that we will be a people who work to see physical hunger ended and in doing so invite everyone to ‘taste and see that the Lord is good’ (Psalm 34:8).

SUNDAY 17THMoses in Uganda is a ten-year-old boy who knows how it feels to go to bed hungry, having had just one meal a day. Thank God that you can share your faith and resources freely with others – and give thanks for all Tearfund Ireland’s supporters who responded generously to the Stop Hunger Now appeal and committed to giving regularly so children like Moses have enough to eat every day.

SUNDAY 24THClimate change is causing more floods and droughts which make it harder to grow food successfully. This puts already vulnerable communities at even greater risk of hunger. Father God, help us as the global church to join with others and speak prophetically to people in positions of power, such as our government ministers.

MARCHHungry for justice The greatest global health risk today is hunger and malnutrition, a far bigger risk than HIV, malaria and tuberculosis combined. At this time of Lent, we focus on the one-in-seven people worldwide who aren’t getting enough food.

SUNDAY 3RDToday, nearly 1 billion people are waking up hungry. That’s more than the populations of the European Union, USA and Canada put together. International Women’s Day is on Friday, and we pause to think how women, as well as children, are particularly dogged by hunger. Pray for God to stir up hearts and minds so this scandal gets the attention it truly deserves.

SUNDAY 10THMany of Tearfund’s partners are involved in small-scale initiatives – equipping farmers with better skills to feed their families. Pray for the effectiveness of such schemes to be more widely recognised so that more are adopted.

SUNDAY 17THIn Zimbabwe, Tearfund partner River of Life is having major success in teaching conservation farming techniques which enable people to produce better yields. Give thanks that these educational initiatives mean people can thrive, not just survive.

SUNDAY 24THHalving the number of hungry people worldwide is one of the UN’s Millennium Development Goals. The World Food Organisation reports that, while good progress was made in the 1980s and early-1990s, hunger has been rising slowly but steadily for the past decade. Pray urgently that world leaders will re-commit to tackling hunger as a priority.

SUNDAY 31STThis Easter Sunday, we celebrate the fact that God has made a world with enough for everyone, but we remember that human activity is using up resources in ways that are unjust – causing devastating problems such as hunger. Pray that the church will use its voice to speak out against the injustices that contribute to climate change.

APRILWith love From UgandaIn Ogongora village, Lucy is an amazing grandmother. Lucy has been given a precious gift to look after – her four grandchildren, for whom she must provide food, clothes and everything else they need. In a poor African village, that’s not easy.

SUNDAY 7THAlthough I’m old, I have gained much knowledge from the church and community mobilisation training. This has helped me take a step and start a small fish business,’ says Lucy. Praise God for the church in Ogongora, that it is inspiring people of all ages to use their resources to overcome poverty – through support from Tearfund’s partner, Pentecostal Assemblies of God.

SUNDAY 14TH‘What makes me very happy and fills me with joy is when I am seated with my grandchildren and they play,’ says Lucy. Please join Lucy in prayer today, lifting up her four grandchildren: David, 11, Hilda, seven, and two-year-old twins Canna and Noah.

SUNDAY 21ST‘God has given me many friends. I know that in church I am really loved,’ says Lucy. Ask God to place someone on your heart, and follow it up with a chat, a phone call or an email invite for coffee or a meal.

SUNDAY 28TH‘In this community, the church has three baskets. One is for tithe, one is for gifts and one is for mercy gifts. We use this to help families like Lucy’s,’ says Pastor Joseph. Lord, we praise God that the church in Ogongora, like so many across the world, is a community that provides for the poorest and most vulnerable. Amen.

MAYLessons from NehemiahNehemiah was a man of God who demonstrated courage and faith, trusting the Lord even in the face of opposition and intimidation. This week, we reflect on the different ways Nehemiah prayed and we follow his example as we pray for Tearfund’s partners and people living in poverty in the communities they serve.

SUNDAY 5THWhen Nehemiah heard news that the wall and gates of Jerusalem were in disrepair, his response was to weep, fast and pray (Nehemiah 1:3–4). He knew that, without protection, the city was vulnerable. Pray for people whose lives are vulnerable because of poverty, and for Tearfund’s partners as they weep, fast and pray with them.

SUNDAY 12THNehemiah understood the balance between praying and doing. He made a plan and immediately put it into action by speaking to the king. With no more than a brief prayer for favour (Nehemiah 2:4), he explained the problem and the solution. Ask God to grant favour to Tearfund’s partners who advocate to people in positions of power.

SUNDAY 19THEven in mundane work, such as rebuilding a badly damaged wall and gates, people need to come together to get the job done (Nehemiah 2:18 and Nehemiah 3). Praise God for Tearfund’s partners who work in coalition with others to deliver basic services such as water, sanitation and healthcare to communities living in poverty.

SUNDAY 26THAfter the hard work of rebuilding the wall and securing safety from their enemies, God’s people rejoiced (Nehemiah 8:12). They had accomplished what most people said was impossible. Praise God for Tearfund’s partners who accomplish the impossible, particularly those responding to disasters.

LET US PRAY

News

Trip of a lifetime

Marathon runners get Daily Mail coverage

Tearfund on tour

After months of fundraising and prayer, Shauna Hussey travelled to South Africa to join a Transform team.

She worked at Rehoboth Children’s Village in Port Shepstone, KwaZulu-Natal, for a month: teaching maths and English to seven-year-olds, supporting an Olympic-themed holiday Bible club, and working with a voluntary nurse at the village’s health clinic.

‘

‘The children’s attitude to life changed mine,’ says Shauna. ‘They have showed me real joy. I’ve come away with a passion for justice and advocacy, to serve whoever the Lord puts on my heart and to speak up for the vulnerable.’

To find out more about this year’s Transform trips, go to www.tearfund.ie/get_involved/overseas

Elizabeth Booth from Open Arms Church in Newbridge led a group of nine to complete the Dublin City Marathon. They were featured in The Daily Mail and raised more than €3,000 for their Connected Church programme

in Haiti which provides 145 restavick (slave children) with the opportunity to attend school with Salem Baptist Church in Haiti.

To find out more about Connected Church, contact our office on 01 878 3200.

Tearfund staff and volunteers were busy around harvest time and in the run-up to Christmas with a number of guest slots at church services. A special thanks to Ruth and Robbie Burns and Sophie Byrne who were able to share their first-hand experience of Tearfund’s work overseas.

It was wonderful to meet supporters and friends of

Tearfund in Donegal, Bandon and Carrigrohane (Cork), Graniamore and Mohill (Sligo) and Ardoyne (Carlow), Clontarf (Dublin) and many more. Tearfund Ireland’s Niamh Daly covered four services among the Carrigrohane Union of churches on one Sunday morning alone! This was only possible because of support from Bill and Janet Lane – thank you.

14 spring 2013 teartimes

TAKE ACTION TODAYHelp us put climate change adaptation firmly on the agenda of the Millennium Development Goals review. You can join our What If campaign at www.tearfund.ie/advocacy – and email key Irish decision-makers to ask for their support.

What If campaign

spring 2013 teartimes 15

For 2013, we launch a new campaign – What If – because we believe there’s a common factor linking the Irish presidency of the council of the European Union, the sea, climate change and global hunger. And we think that’s… you!

Let me explain, writes Niamh Daily. As part of our presidency, Ireland will be hosting a conference on world hunger and climate

change in April. This conference will start to build the agenda for new Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which will set the vision for the next decade.

Climate change adaptionAs the main polluters, the developed world has

an ethical imperative to ensure poor countries are able to adapt to climate change. The ability of the developing world to adapt to climate change and the ensuing droughts and floods will have a huge bearing on the ability of these countries to feed themselves in the future. Currently 13 per cent of the world’s population (that’s the equivalent of the population of the US, Canada and the European Union) go to bed hungry every night because they simply do not have enough food to feed themselves. This will continue to increase if climate change adaptation is not supported urgently.

The big question in all this is, ‘How will this adaptation be funded?’ International aid budgets are currently stretched to the limit and, in Ireland’s case, we have reduced ours.

Shipping levyThis is where the sea comes in. Every

time you take to the skies with Ryanair or Aer Lingus, part of the price of your ticket is a levy to help compensate for

the environmental impact of this type of travel and offset carbon emissions. The international shipping industry has yet to introduce such a levy.

We want to see this levy championed by our government, along with a commitment from the politicians that the money raised by the levy would be ring-fenced for climate change adaptation by the developing world. And we’d love you to join us in speaking out – and urging the government to act.

What if… you could stop hunger?

Photo: Dan Prat/iStockphoto.

The Exchange, 50 Lower Gardiner Street, Dublin 1Friday 8 February, 2pm to 8pm

€25 – early bird booking (before 18 January, 2013). Standard €35

Ardfallen Methodist Church, Douglas Rd, CorkSaturday 16 February 2013, 12pm to 5pm

€15 – early bird booking (before 18 January, 2013). Standard €25

More of a conversation than a conference, it’s for all.Leaders. Followers. Young. Old. Everyone. All Christians passionate about seeing God transform Irish society, starting with them – whether church

leader, stay-at-home mother or business person.

Pain and suffering...

Sent to test us? A lack of faith? Punishment?

The result of living in a fallen world?

How can we bring the hope of the resurrection

into the reality of today’s world?

Book your place nowCall 01 878 3200 today or go online at www.tearfund.ie