Nairobi, Kenya. Frs. George Vayaliparampil and Midhun Pulickal of St. Charles Luwanga Independent Delegation and Fr. Rohan Dominic, the Claretian NGO Representative to the UN met Mr. Iyad Abumoghli, Principal Advisor of Strategic Engagement with Faith Based Organizations of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) at the United Nations Office in Nairobi on September 11, 2018.
The discussion was centered on the process of applying and getting the NGO accreditation for our organization to UNEP. Fondazione Proclade Internazionale – Onlus (Claretian presence at the UN) has already the special consultative status granted by the Economic Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations (UN). The United Nations Environment Programme is the global environmental authority within the United Nations system that sets global environmental agenda and promotes environmental dimension of sustainable development. A consultative status at UN Environment is necessary to work with UNEP in environmental issues at the UN level. Environment and Climate Change is one of the focus areas of the Claretian presence at the UN.
During the conversation Abumoghli explained the new initiatives of his office to work with the Faith Based Organizations. According to him, “Following a series of initiatives and conventions organized in partnership with faith-based organizations, UN Environment launched the Faith for Earth Initiative in November 2017. The goal of ‘Faith for Earth’ is to strategically engage with faith-based organizations and partner with them to collectively achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and fulfill the objectives of the 2030 Agenda.”
‘Faith for Earth’ has three main goals:
- to inspire and empower faith organizations and their leaders to advocate for protecting the environment,
- to green faith-based organizations’ investments and assets to support the implementation of SDGs, and
- to provide them with knowledge and networks to enable their leaders to effectively communicate with decision-makers and the public.
