Today we spent a full day visiting Fombe village in the Chickhwawa district. We met with many of the families (all farmers) and learned a lot about how they are trying to adapt to the changing and uncertain rainfall. We heard story after story of farmers telling us that before the rains used to come in October now they come in December. Here’s a group of us in Fombe village today. When the rains do come they come in downpours... Read more
by Alexei Laushkin Energy poverty is a major challenge when it comes to climate change and Malawi. Only 6% of the country has acess to electricity, with the vast majority of that power coming from centralized grid systems in the cities. Without energy you are literally in the dark. Here’s an example of the sort of energy access available in one of the villages we visited. This is what energy poverty looks like in the villages of Malawi. This is the... Read more
Our U.S. team are all in country today. We spent the morning meeting with representatives from the government, church, and civil society to hear reports on climate impacts and how they’re responding. Their stories and reports were startling. More than once we heard “the challenge and level of response needed is comparable to our efforts around HIV/AIDS.” They have seen a six fold increase in major events which include droughts and floods. The predictability of planting no longer exists. Short... Read more
by R. Scott Rodin, MTh, PhD An intersection in north Spokane was once surrounded by tall Ponderosa pines. I always loved arriving at this intersection. It gave me the feel of being on a forest service road deep in the woods. One day several large, yellow pieces of earth moving equipment arrived and over the following weeks diesel-belching machines managed to bulldoze and dispose of acres of forest. Not one tree was left. This once pine-laden piece of nature became the... Read more
by R. Scott Rodin, MTh, PhD Ten years ago I faced a crisis of faith. I’d been raised to believe that there was a pecking order to God’s love: our eternal souls first, our physical bodies a distant second, and creation a very distant third. Life and faith were evaluated through this criteria screen, and creation almost always paid the price. What caused me to question this flawed filter was my Trinitarian theology. In considering God’s triune nature I reached a... Read more
by Alexei Laushkin I was walking along the Bull Run-Occoquan Trail in Northern Virginia a few years back and all around me I was surrounded by miles and miles of bluebells and two themes stuck with me. In the height of spring there is a real and genuine renewal of creation. Yes, it is still under the curse but there is a beauty and consistency that comes with spring. It is a poor foreshadow of new life, but it is... Read more
The Bible provides a direct mandate to be caretakers of the garden (Gen 2 v.15). While creation still belongs to God, he has graciously entrusted it to our care and stewardship. This was our first calling, recorded early on in Genesis 1 and 2, and we remain God’s caretakers over all creation today. Check out what Bill Hybels, Tri Robinson, Joel Hunter, and others have to say in this 26:00 minute documentary. Read more
by Alexei Laushkin Every spring EEN places a special focus on the need to preach about creation care, usually through Creation Care Sunday and sometimes through days of prayer. It seems natural given the stunning colors of spring and new life to talk about our responsibility to make sure that life is tended in such a way that it produces abundance. The question is why should most preachers bother? Isn’t it a bit of a... Read more
Listen in as Alexei talks with Dr. Richard Alley, the Evan Pugh Professor of Geosciences at the Pennsylvania State University and the host of PBS’ Earth the Operators Manuel. They talk about Dr. Alley’s work and some of the latest trends in climate science. Be sure to listen in! Read more
by Paulo R.B. de Brito I watched the movie Life of Pi a few weeks ago. The story-line revolves around a 16-year old Indian boy named Piscine Molitor “Pi” Patel, who survives a shipwreck in which his family dies, and he finds himself stranded in the Pacific ocean on a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. I really enjoyed the movie and watching it made me realize how dependent we are on fresh water. Water is life for us and for our planet.... Read more
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