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PWRDF report to FaithWorks
for the Diocese of Toronto Synod
The Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund is grateful to individuals and churches who have designated their gifts to FaithWorks for PWRDF, as well as to FaithWorks for grants received.
This past year, perhaps not surprisingly, our expenses were heavily weighted toward humanitarian responses. Climate-related emergencies along with war and conflict have combined to create extreme hunger around the world, prompting the number of refugees and displaced people to grow ever higher.
In Ukraine we are working with nine partners, meeting the needs of people with disabilities, and people without food and shelter as they struggle to cope with the ongoing war.
In the Horn of Africa, as people face a record-breaking drought, PWRDF is contributing to food security projects that are saving lives. We had the good fortune to welcome Mary Obiero of Church World Service Africa to Manitoba. She visited farmers who were supporting food relief through PWRDF and the Canadian Foodgrains Bank and that that our financial support is saving lives. Watch the video.
PWRDF is also investing in communities to help them become more sustainable and self-reliant. Our partners build wells and provide ways to make clean water accessible; they work with leaders to promote gender equality; they provide training to help women earn an income and become more independent. And they help people adapt to climate change by teaching conservation agriculture and providing seeds, tools and other necessary supplies to get started.
We don’t need to look to other parts of the world to see the effects of climate change. As Canada experiences the worst wildfire season in its history, PWRDF has launched a new In-Canada Emergency Fund that will accept donations BEFORE disaster happens, so that we’re always ready to respond. In the first few weeks of launching the new fund, PWRDF had already received more than $30,000.
PWRDF is also deepening its partnerships with Indigenous groups in Canada. Through the Indigenous Program Response Grant we are funding more Indigenous-led organizations who are working to engage youth, provide clean water, adapt to climate change and improve community health. Many of the grant recipient programs focus on restoring Indigenous language and culture, so crucial to community health.
During the pandemic, PWRDF introduced Praying with PWRDF, a weekly gathering on Zoom. Even as churches reopened after the pandemic, participants told us how much they valued the time to learn more about PWRDF and pray together. We now meet monthly. We also adapted a virtual version of our reconciliation workshop “Mapping the Ground We Stand On.” This Zoom workshop is still available to those who prefer to gather online, but we are grateful to be returning to in-person sessions and have conducted many in the Diocese.
Whether you are praying in your church pews or online at home, we ask you to continue to pray for the work of PWRDF and its partners. Your support is helping us work toward a truly just, healthy and peaceful world.
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