Swords into plowshares
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Swords into Plowshares is the blog of the Peacemaking Program and the Presbyterian Ministry at the United Nations of the Presbyterian Mission Agency of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
Seeking peace. Striving for justice. Together.
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Posts with category: Water
March 18, 2013UNICEF Tap Project 2013
This year, the UNICEF Tap Project would like to invite you to transform the world's largest social network into a water network.
No one can survive without water. Yet nearly 800 million people do not have safe, clean water to drink, and more than 2.5 billion people live without a proper toilet. The lack of these basic necessities isn’t just inconvenient — it’s lethal. Every day, nearly 4,000 children under age five die from waterborne diseases.
Through the UNICEF Tap Project and your social network, you can help stop these needless deaths.
Why the UNICEF Tap ...
February 6, 2013
UNICEF Tap Project
This year, the UNICEF Tap Project will live on Facebook. You can donate using the UNICEF Tap Project Facebook App and keep the water flowing with the help of your Facebook friends. With your support, we will turn the world’s largest social network into a water network. We will raise awareness about the world water crisis and provide an essential resource to children around the world like we’ve never done before. More information on how you can be a part of the world’s biggest water network for children is coming soon. So stay tuned…
But you can ...
June 7, 2012
Message from UN Secretary General on World Oceans Day
This year’s World Oceans Day falls as the international community marks an important milestone: the thirtieth anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
When the Convention opened for signature on 10 December 1982, it was rightly characterized as a “constitution for the oceans.” Forged through a process of negotiation among more than 150 States, the treaty is a living monument to international cooperation.
When it was adopted, the Convention on the Law of the Sea made treaty history. With 320 articles and 9 Annexes covering every aspect of the oceans and marine environment, the Convention sets out a delicate balance of rights and duties.
The protection of the world’s oceans and coasts is among the key goals of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, which will open in Rio de Janeiro in just 12 days. The Convention is contributing to this goal through its provisions, including on the preservation of the marine environment, marine scientific research and the transfer of marine technology.
We must do more for our world’s oceans, which are threatened by pollution, depleted fishery resources, the impacts of climate change and the deterioration of the marine environment. Rio+20 must mobilize the United Nations, governments and other partners to improve the management and conservation of oceans through initiatives to curb overfishing, improve protection of the marine environment and reduce ocean pollution and the impact of climate change.
There could be no more fitting way to commemorate World Oceans Day than for all countries that have not yet done so to ratify the Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Let us make 2012 another milestone year for the world’s oceans, so that we can set sail toward the future we want.
April 9, 2012
Clean water from Clifton Presbyterian Church
Clifton Presbyterian Church in Maxwelton, WV
Helps with the UNICEF Tap Project
by Larry Davis
When the Presbytery of West Virginia held a seminar at the Presbyterian Ministry at the United Nations, they learned about the UNICEF Tap Project. Earlier this year, the presbytery invited congregations to participate in this effort to provide clean water to children around the world. Clifton Presbyterian Church in Maxwelton responded. Larry Davis writes:
As a result of the receipt of a Presbytery of West Virginia email about the UNICEF Tap Project for 2012, the Clifton Presbyterian Church in Maxwelton, WV (population 181) decided to ...
March 14, 2012
Christ the Living Water
During the 56th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women, participants made connections women from around the world. Participants also made connections with the Presbytery of New York City. On Sunday, several participants preached in congregations of the presbytery.
Emily Denon, student at Vanderbilt Divinity School, preached at Glen Morris Presbyterian Church. Her text was John 4:5-42. This passage contains the story of the Samaritan woman who met Jesus at Jacob's Well.
The sermon begins with a consideration of water - water that plays a key role in literature and in the Bible - water that plays a ...