In honor of Earth Day, we're sharing how caring for creation is an important part of responding to the global displacement crisis.Estimation 23 million people Every year, extreme weather events cause displacement, putting families already exposed to extreme poverty, hunger and conflict at even greater risk.
Nyawaraga's climate change story
When historic floods affected Nyawaraga's community in South Sudan in 2021, she and her three children were forced from their home.
Floods have inundated fields, destroyed food supplies, destroyed schools and health facilities, caused flood-related illnesses and injuries, and separated families from humanitarian relief efforts.
With nowhere to turn for help, Nyawaraga and her children took shelter under a tree in another village. She had no mosquito net to protect her children or herself from bites, nor blankets to keep her children warm. Soon two of her children became ill. Heartbreakingly, one of them passed away.
Around the world, families like Nyawaraga's are in an unprecedented crisis. Climate disasters are causing displacement and the impacts are severe.
By donating today, you can build resilience to climate change and respond to the urgent needs of people displaced around the world, including those displaced by climate-related events.
fallen creation
You don't have to read deeply into the Bible to know that God's intent in creation was good. Throughout the first chapter of Genesis, the Bible says that God repeatedly observed everything he had created, including water and earth, plants and animals, and “saw that it was good.”
And he gave humanity a special responsibility to steward and care for his creation. But when we hear stories like Nyawaraga's, we know that something is terribly wrong with God's good creation. Floods and famine, drought and disease all demonstrate the devastating truth that when sin entered the world, it affected not only humanity but everything God had created.
Because of the Fall, we now live in a world where our relationship with God, with ourselves, with each other, and yes, even with creation, is broken. Today, these disruptions are giving rise to one of the world's most pressing crises: a global displacement on a scale the world has never seen before.
Chaining crises: climate and mass displacement
Although the term “climate refugee” is not an officially recognized category for refugee protection or resettlement purposes, climate is a key driver of displacement. The United Nations estimates that 23 million people are forced to flee each year due to extreme weather events caused by climate change, such as heavy rains, prolonged droughts, extreme heat, and cyclones.
Moreover, 70% of refugees, 80% of internally displaced persons Participants come from countries on the 'front line' of the climate crisis. These communities, often located in what the United Nations calls climate “hotspots,” bear the greatest burden of interconnected crises, despite growing climate instability and global The resources needed to adapt to the growing number of displaced people are lacking.
In families like Nyawaraga's, we see already vulnerable families being disproportionately affected.
climate multiplies the crisis
For communities struggling with the weight of poverty, hunger and conflict, climate change serves to exacerbate the crisis. The climate report Loving the Least of These, published in 2022 in partnership with World Relief and the National Association of Evangelicals, says environmental change and disasters are “driving already poor people deeper into poverty.” There was found.
Climate disasters are also hitting those already displaced hardest. “Refugees, internally displaced persons and stateless persons are among the most vulnerable to changes caused by climate change,” the report explains.
And that synergy doesn't stop there. Competition for scarce resources such as livestock, arable land, and clean drinking water is fueling an increase in armed conflicts worldwide as more communities are pushed into poverty or displaced into neighboring communities.
The International Institute for Strategic Studies' latest Armed Conflict Report states that “the accelerating climate crisis continues to act as an amplifier of both the root causes of conflict and the institutional weaknesses of fragile states.”
While the exponential challenges of climate change are serious and the impact on families like Nyawaraga's can be devastating, there is still time to respond and make lasting change.
Build resilience to climate change in communities around the world.
Responding to climate change
Just when Nyawaraga's situation looked most hopeless, help was already on the way.
Global Relief staff traveled by helicopter, motorboat and canoe to provide critical health and nutritional care to people stranded and displaced by floods in South Sudan. When these vehicles were unable to perform the job, staff members waded through the water with supplies on their heads.
A World Relief mobile medical assistance team soon arrived in Nyawaraga's community, and she immediately brought the sick child to the team. The child was tested and tested positive for malaria. She was given medicine and within three days her child made a full recovery.
At World Relief, we are grateful for the opportunity to provide lifesaving relief to families displaced by climate-related drivers like Nyawalaga. And care for creation prompts us to take our responses a step further.
Creation care initiatives
We believe that the suffering we are seeing from climate-related events is a symptom of the emotional scars that occurred in the fall, and our efforts toward healing and recovery are essential to the impact of climate disasters. We also understand that we must go deeper than just addressing the direct impact.
Entrusted as stewards of the natural world, we are committed to God's commitment to restore broken relationships and enable creation to thrive by prioritizing care for creation as we address the world's most pressing crises. You can participate in the work.
Here are just some of the ways we are caring for creation and responding to the climate crisis.
- In South Sudan, We are working with farmers to adapt their farming practices to new climate realities, such as growing rice in areas that continue to be flooded.
- In Kenya etc. We are partnering with Michigan State University to test innovative technologies in a pilot of “Groundwater Storage Technology.” This helps the soil retain water and nutrients, making agriculture possible even in dry climates.
- In places like Malawi, We respond to climate-related disasters like Cyclone Freddie, which displaced 650,000 people in 2023. He distributed food and other necessities to 400 families.
- In South Sudan, Chad, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, We provide emergency aid and services, including food, shelter and supplies, to people experiencing displacement caused or exacerbated by climate-related challenges.
- And in the US, We are increasing our advocacy on the impact of climate change on the world's poor and strengthening protections for those affected.
Additionally, we are working to address climate instability at its source wherever World Relief staff and programs operate. Through our focus on recycling, reducing consumption, and buying and building ethically, we live our values of caring for creation as God's chosen stewards.
Learn more about our commitment to environmental stewardship and creative care.
Would you like to value creativity?
Earth Day draws our attention to the inherent beauty and value of God's creation, while also reminding us of the stewardship we have been given to care for this earth and those suffering as a result of our rapidly changing climate. It is also a reminder of responsibility.
The difficult reality is that climate-related displacement is expected to continue to increase in the coming years and decades. In Nyawaraga's home country of South Sudan, communities have faced devastating flooding for the fifth year in a row, exacerbating existing ethnic violence and conflict. Strong storms like Cyclone Freddy are predicted to increase. Predicting climate patterns is becoming increasingly difficult. And the world's most vulnerable communities are at greatest risk.
However, there is much we can do.
We can be agents of restoration and reconciliation by working with local churches and communities to care for creation and our neighbors affected by climate change around the world. would you like to join?
kelly hill I am a senior content writer at World Relief. She previously served as Volunteer Services Manager for World Relief Triad in North Carolina. With a background in international and intercultural communication, she is passionate about the power of her stories to connect people with diverse experiences.
