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The premise of the ministry is that Roma and non-Roma must find
together an integrated approach to address diversity. A prerequisite
to any program is the acceptance of marginalized people as a people
worthy of respect. The churches of Central and Eastern Europe,
redefining their own identify and gaining new acceptance after
the “Velvet Revolution,” have to play an important role
to civilize this relationship.
Burkhard was first appointed to mission service with the PC(USA)
in April 1998 to serve as a coordinator for special projects with
the Jinishian Memorial Program (JMP) of PC(USA)’s Worldwide
Ministries Division. His work focused on in the Republic of Armenia
and the Middle East. Established in 1966, JMP provides basic services
and direct relief to Armenians while encouraging the community-based
approach to economic development. As coordinator for special projects,
Burkhard oversaw the initiation and implementation of new development
plans and provides information and advice about sustainable development
themes throughout the Jinishian Memorial Program.
Burkhard is a member of Evangelische Kirche Berlin-Brandenburg,
one of the Protestant churches in the former German Democratic
Republic (East Germany) and has worked as a volunteer with this
entity since the 1970s in a program called "Justice, Peace
and the Integrity of Creation." This experience led him to
his current position.
"After the change of government," Burkhard writes,
"I felt encouraged by my volunteer experience to find work
in sectors which have to do with social concerns, community development,
and the environment. I was educated as an engineer, with special
technical training and experience in the scientific world. However,
at this point in my life I want to find a place in society where
I can serve human-scale development rather than merely contributing
to unlimited technical progress."
From 1994 to 1997, Burkhard was the director of a community-based
sustainable development project ("Local Agenda 21")
through the German Federal Environmental Protection Agency and
the Study Group of the Church Development Service in Berlin. Prior
to that, he was mayor and administrative head of his hometown,
Petershagen, from 1992 to 1994. He co-founded the Institute for
Regional Conversion after the fall of the Berlin wall (1989-1992),
concentrating on civil use of military resources. From 1974 to
1990 he was an engineer working in a staff research and development
position for power plants and agriculture in Berlin.
Burkhard got his graduate engineering degree at the Technical
University of Ilmenau in East Germany in 1974. He furthered his
education at the AGEF Training Center in Berlin, where he studied
object and team-oriented planning in development work in 1996
and mediation training in 1997.
As a member of Evangelische Kirche Berlin-Brandenburg, Burkhard
has been a speaker of the Council of the Evangelical Students
Congregation in East Germany (1972-1974) and a member of a working
group for disarmament within the theological studies department
of the Union of Protestant Churches in the German Democratic Republic
(1978 to 1990). He and his wife Christine have two adult children,
Juliane and Franziska.
Birthdays:
Burkhard - October 15
Christine - June 4
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