JourneyOnline
This will be the last issue of Social Responsibility Review for 2018. Watch out for our return in the second half of January. We wish you a Merry Christmas and a just and fair New Year!
What’s coming up
Carols for the Earth
Come and sing ‘Carols for the Earth‘ with the Australian Religious Response to Climate Change on Saturday, 15 December from 4pm – 5pm at Reddacliffe Place (Brisbane Square).
To remind everyone that we should be looking after the environment this Christmas, we will sing and hand out Christmas Turbines (stars) which can be put at the top of Christmas trees.
For more info: contact Peter via email pbranjerdporn@anglicanchurchsq.org.au or 0431 606 432.
Pride and pain
26 January is a day of both pride and pain: there’s so much to celebrate about Australia – but for many, “Australia Day” is a difficult day. Everyone needs to know both sides of the story: Pride and Pain. Check out the timeline shared by Australians Together; also, their list of 10 things to do this Australia Day.
Week in review
Attenborough offers dire warning at COP24 climate talks
Sir David Attenborough warns 200 delegates from 200 countries the “collapse of our civilisations and the extinction of much of the natural world is on the horizon” if no urgent action is taken against global warming.
1.5 billion less plastic bags in the environment
The ban on single-use bags by Australia’s two largest supermarkets has seen an 80 per cent drop in plastic bag consumption nationwide.
Watch this excellent video that highlights the pros and cons of different sorts of bags.
Can we handle the truth? Indigenous lives depend on it
Paul Daley writes for the Guardian: From frontier massacres to the theft of children, violence reverberates generationally, which is why a formal truth and justice commission is a crucial step towards conciliation.
Young brides in India are dying by suicide in alarming numbers
India accounts for almost 40 per cent of female suicides worldwide – and young, married women are most at risk. That’s just those that are recorded.
Factors reportedly include arranged and early marriages, young motherhood, low social status and domestic violence.
Women in India are also 2.1 times more likely to die by suicide than the global average, accounting for 71 per cent of deaths in women aged under 40.
Suicide was the leading cause of death in women aged 15 to 29, with death rates higher among women than men in that age group, it said.
Family violence in PNG
ABC’s Pacific Beat reports on the “senseless” death of Grace Gavera, shining the light on Papua New Guinea’s domestic violence problem. More than two thirds of women in PNG have experienced family violence. Listen to the four-minute report.
Call to action
How are you controlling your consumption this Christmas period?
Baptist World Aid has a five-part series – Faithful Consumption – which challenges us all to think about how we usually go about our holiday activities. They remind us, once again, how we can reduce our footprint on the planet, ensure our clothing and other purchases can reduce harm to the people who produce them etc.
After Christmas, please share with the Synod the ideas you put into place and how you moved towards just and fair Christmas celebrations. We can collect all your ideas and create a resource for 2019.
