Tropical African Plants Facing Extinction
A new study warns that a third of tropical African plants are on the path to extinction, with much of western Africa standing to lose more than 40 per cent of plant diversity. Ethiopia, and parts of Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are the hardest hit regions, the researchers found. Species at […]
Oral Literature: Handy Hare and The Drought
One year the sun shone hotter than ever, there was no rain, and all the pools and rivers dried up. The animals gathered together, wondering what they should do. Then the Intelligent Elephant, who has the largest brain, addressed them: “I know where we can dig for water. But you must all help me. We […]
Bringing light where there is none
With the price of solar panels and batteries in rapid reduction, solar energy is becoming less expensive but we are a long way from guaranteeing energy for all. It will be very difficult to reach the United Nations target of guaranteeing a supply of electricity to the entire world population by 2030. However, the International […]
Bolivia: Good Living from periphery
Sumak Kawsay or ‘Good Living’, has its roots in the indigenous traditions of the Andes. And it is the dream of all human beings. The concept ‘Good Living’ has spiritual and mystical roots. With great wisdom, these native peoples cultivate their “ability to think, feel and know everything that exists: cosmo-feeling, cosmo-knowing, cosmo-living, as an […]
Eritrea: Under Siege
Many Eritreans have been forced to seek refuge in Europe, but little is known about the dictatorial and oppressive regime behind the forced migration that has placed many of them outside their ancestral home. The current wave of draconian regulations has been targeted against the Catholic Church in a bid to silence her. Ostensibly, it […]
Ecumenism in Africa: Dialogue in the Continent of Diversity
In ancient times, the word ecumene denoted the whole known world and defined that portion of the earth that was inhabited, in contrast with the lands as yet unknown. Later, the concept of ecumenism attained a religious meaning referring to the movements within Christianity that aimed at unifying their various denominations, separated by questions of […]
Burkina Faso: and the Desert Blooms
He has transformed sterile land into a forest by digging trenches in the hardened earth that hold water and other nutrients, allowing the growing crops to resist drought. This is an ancient unconventional technique known as zaï. The land is different in the province of Yatenga in the northern region of Burkina Faso, a few […]
Kenya: The Blood of the Lamb
The Gabbra are a nomadic people who live in the north-west of Kenya and the south of Ethiopia. An account of the celebration of ‘The Lamb of the Sacred Enclosure.’ “Orjale, you who were born on the mountains of Ethiopia, come to the feast with your spouse Bimbirra and your son Dida.” With these words […]
Oral Literature: What the Squirrel Saw
One very hot day, a small green grass-snake had made a good meal and looked about for a comfortable place to rest. He found some long, soft grass underneath a tree and curling himself up, he fell fast asleep. Now there was a squirrel up in the tree, and presently he noticed the sun shining on […]
Uganda: Educating the Heart.
A Catholic nurse dedicates her life to Meeting Point International, an association that takes care of more than two thousand orphans and HIV positive women. Kireka is one of the slums of Kampala, the Ugandan capital. It’s an enormous area of housing made of iron sheets where around 70,000 people live. It’s there that we […]