People on the South Pacific island of Vanuatu sheltered in churches and schools as a powerful tropical cyclone hit overnight. Scores are feared dead and thousands affected in one of the largest cyclones to hit the country.
On 8 March 2015, International Women’s Day, Caritas Internationalis and the Fidel Goetz Foundation will award two 10,000 euro prizes to honor women who have been “sowers of development,” working to end hunger in their communities.
Pope Francis reminds us that Lent is an invitation to renewal for the Church and among the faithful. To be able to respond to this invitation, Pope Francis warns us against the ‘globalisation of indifference’.
Caritas urges governments to prioritise the needs of unaccompanied migrant children on World Migrant Day and to increase employment opportunities in home countries for young people.
Oceania includes an area referred to ‘The Amazon of the Seas’ because of its rich biodiversity. The region is vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change and we are the first people who will experience migration as a direct result of such climate conditions.
We must attend to the social, emotional and spiritual needs of all those facing health challenges. For many years, Caritas and other Catholic Church-inspired organisations have delivered health care to people who need it in both emergency and day-to-day situations, building the capacities of local communities to prevent the onset of illness and provide medicines and other life-saving supplies for treatment programmes.
Caritas’ response to the HIV epidemics is measured, not only in realizing expected outcomes, but also by the greater enjoyment of human dignity among persons living with or affected by HIV.