BANGKOK – As a leader in humanitarian accountability and standards, Church World Service Asia-Pacific hosted around 50 representatives of humanitarian aid organizations in the region to share views on the increasingly insecure operating environments in which they work, and the importance of accountability towards local partners. The conference, Responsibilities and Response: a Discussion on Policy and Standards, was organized by …

With more than a billion people worldwide lacking clean water and more than 2.1 million people most of them children dying each year from waterborne disease, water cannot be taken for granted.  In a recent visit to eastern Nicaragua, Church World Service Michigan staff Antoinette Lloyd-Evans and several colleagues met with partner CIEETS (Interchurch Center of Theological and Social Studies).  …

An ACT member working in Ethiopia has an extensive water project in the eastern part of the country.  One day, the chief mechanic was driving a pick-up truck filled with water construction materials to the project area. From the river bank of the right side of the highway Children were walking along the highway and crossing into the road with …

Bangkok – ACT Alliance’s “Safety and Security Awareness Week” is our opportunity to increase security awareness and good practice amongst Alliance members and our organisational partners.  This task is especially important given that concerns for safety and security in the delivery of humanitarian assistance have risen significantly in recent years.  Last month, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian …

Even though Shells Evangelical Lutheran Church, Grantville, Pennsylvania suffered a fire in their sanctuary and social hall by an arsonist, they still collected donations for the CWS Blankets+ program and will be collecting donations for the tools project in June. Shells’ congregation “gets it” and reaches out to those in need no matter what!  Shells Church mission statement is: “We …

Stella Mkiliwane brings her own experiences as a refugee mother from Zimbabwe to her work with the Refugee Ministries Centre, a Church World Service partner in Johannesburg, South Africa. A family therapist and social worker by training, her work for an international humanitarian organization in Zimbabwe exposed her to the suffering of her fellow citizens, especially to hunger and lack …

Port-au-Prince, Haiti – Just by sheer numbers alone, young people in Haiti are a vital force in society — roughly half of the country’s population of about 10 million is now under the age of 20. But young people face enormous challenges: in a country where still only half of the population is literate, acquiring an education is not easy, …

It is said in Bosnia that “To sing is to pray twice.” This old proverb eloquently captures the mission of Pontanima Interfaith Choir.  Our most earnest supplications have been the songs we have lifted up in the last decade.  When we could rarely find the words to utter even the briefest prayer, we relied on our songs to speak to …