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Quaker faith in action
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April 2021

Dear Friend,

I hope this email finds you well.

This month marked the start of the Quaker Peace and Social Witness Spring Sessions.  So far we have had two fascinating sessions; our opening workshop exploring the work of QPSW and the spiritual roots of our work; and the second session from QPSW’s Turning the Tide programme exploring ideas around conflict and having difficult conversations.

The online QPSW spring sessions is taking place throughout April, May and June and registration is still open! These sessions are a great opportunity to explore a wide range of topics and to find out more about the peace & social witness work of Quakers in Britain. Recordings of the sessions will also be made available, keep an eye out in next month’s Quaker Faith in Action. Learn more and book a place.

Please read on for news on the upcoming Peace Education conference, how Quakers can respond to the government's new immigration plan, new resources from our Economics and Sustainability team and much more.

In Friendship, 

Philip Wood

Quaker Peace & Social Witness
www.quaker.org.uk/our-work


Upcoming events

Featured event
 

The possibilities of peace education - Evidence and opportunities

The Quaker Council for European Affairs (QCEA) and Quakers in Britain are organising an online conference "The possibilities of peace education: Evidence and opportunities". 

The conference will explore together how education can sow the seeds of sustainable peace and heal divisions, drawing inspiration from a long Quaker tradition of peace education work.

Session topics will include:

  • Framing peace education
  • Peace education in conflict and post-conflict contexts
  • The policy case for peace education
  • Positive peace in schools
  • Racial (in)justice in education
  • Peace education in the context of forced migration 
  • Climate justice

The conference will take place online over three half days, from the 20 May until the 22 May. It is organised by QPSW & QCEA.
Find out more and register here

Tuesdays in May and June: QPSW Spring Sessions: What love can do - How Quaker faith impels us to act in the world.

Join us for our new online workshop sessions throughout April, May and June to find out more about the peace & social witness work of Quakers in Britain. 

The Spring Sessions will look the spiritual roots of our work, working with decision makers, climate and racial justice, peace campaigning, and more.  There will be time for discussion, question & answer sessions, and participatory activities. Everyone is welcome. If you have never heard of Quakerism before - or you’re thinking about how we can act in the world to create peace and positive change - you are welcome. You do not have to be a Quaker so please share widely with all those you think may be interested. 

Registration is still open.

Online. Organised by the Quaker Peace and Social Witness. Find out more and register


Saturday 15 May: International Conscientious Objectors’ Day - National Ceremony

May 15th marks International Conscientious Objectors’ Day where we remember those who have established, used and are maintaining the right to refuse to kill.

Due to Coronavirus restrictions this year's National Ceremony will be online, with a live stream from Tavistock Square where the event usually takes place. There will also be a minute's silence, songs and speeches from around the UK and beyond.

It will be an opportunity to honour and reflect on the courage and conviction of conscientious objectors. Those resisting participation in war and violence have been forced to endure much suffering. We are indebted to these past and present peacemakers.

Online. Organised by the Peace Pledge Union. Find out more here.

 
Tuesday 25 May – 29 June: Jews & Quakers Conference: On Privilege and Prejudice

Religious prejudice and privilege manifest in multiple ways in our society and our lives. Antisemitism is still common, and Quakers are not immune from it. The conference will be run as a short online course to be held over 6 consecutive weeks in 1 hour evening sessions.
Online. Organised by Woodbrooke. £110pp. Book a place.


Take action

Taking action for climate justice
Our economics and Sustainability team have put together a new resource to help you take action for climate justice.
 
The resource explores the Quaker understanding of the climate crisis, why we are mobilising for the UN climate talks this year and how to take action. However, at the heart of the resource is an exploration of social action. What is it? What forms does it take? How are Quakers engaged in social action? And how might we begin our own social action journey? We hope this means the resource will be useful to Quakers interested in any form of social action. You can read more about the resource and take a look here.

Woodbrooke Spiritual Accompaniment for Climate Activists

Has your Quaker faith inspired you to take action against the climate crisis? Do you sometimes feel spiritually lost, burnt out, or doubt that you are making a difference? Woodbrooke is offering Spiritual Accompaniment for Climate Activists to help be a listening ear, provide support and introduce you to resources and practices to build resilience. Email Learning@woodbrooke.org.uk to express interest. You can read more on Woodbrooke’s website

Join the Relay to COP26

The Young Christian Climate Network is coordinating this relay walk from Cornwall to Glasgow to call on the UK government to commit to providing fair climate finance to the world's poorest countries. Anyone of any age can participate by walking part of the route, helping to organise logistics, supporting with communications and social media or helping to run one of the ten residencies in cities around the country. Find out more and sign up to become a relay volunteer here.

Workshops to prepare for the UN climate talks
Curious about the UN climate talks? Wondering how to take action? Join an online workshop for your part of Britain to find out what Quakers are doing and how you can get involved. The workshop will include a presentation covering the UN climate talks 'essentials': What will be decided there? What commitments has the UK made? Will they be a success, and what does that mean? We will also speak about what Quakers in Britain is doing around the UN climate talks, and how you can get involved. Find out when we’ll be near you and register here.
 
Don’t worry if you cannot attend on the date scheduled for your region or nation, you are welcome to sign up for a different one!

Defund the Military: Lobby your MP

Average annual government spending planned for the period 2021-25 is £47bn for the military and just £6bn for reducing UK carbon emissions. This is one example of the enormous humanitarian and ecological costs of militarism.

The announced £24bn increase in UK military spending over the next four years is the largest percentage rise in almost 70 years.

A broad alliance is developing to resist the disastrous militarist priorities, including the Global Campaign on Military Spending UK (GCOMS UK), a network consisting of 36 organisations, including QPSW. In collaboration with its GCOMS UK partners, Campaign Against Arms Trade has set up a lobbying tool calling on MPs to challenge this militarisation drive in parliament.

Contact your MP using CAAT's tool

News & views

How Quakers can respond to the government's new immigration plan

Recently the UK Government has set out its new proposal for immigration. Our partners at Quaker Asylum and Refugee Network have written a blog exploring the UK government's new immigration plan and outline what Quakers should do to respond.

"At the heart of our Quaker testimonies lie equality, peace, truth, justice and simplicity. The government's latest immigration proposals challenge each of these values." Read the full article exploring the new plan though a Quaker lens.
 
Responding to the consultation
The 6-week consultation ends on 6 May 2021.
To respond, you can follow these steps:

Blog: Journey to COP26: an inner journey.

Bernie and Lawrence Jordan reflect on their Journey to COP26 and into the caves under the Yorkshire Dales.
These are all elements of our living world that are sacred, precious and under threat from climate change.

“The climate emergency is too big. As just two individuals, it overwhelms us and we feel paralysed. Why then do we feel compelled to do something despite the enormity of the challenge? After all we are optimists, and the most destructive effects will probably not be felt in the UK in our lifetime. It is complex. Wanting to do the best for our children, wanting to be able to look young people in the eye and say we tried. These are some of the things that help counter the feeling of insignificance. We want to be able to make a difference.

Our 'Journey to COP26' was born out of the need to raise awareness that time is running out and this year's United Nations climate talks (COP26) in Glasgow need to produce concrete results. We invited people of all faiths and none to join us in a celebration of the living Earth by making a journey to any place that is sacred to them.” Read more.
Thanks for reading! 
Quaker Faith in Action newsletter is sent out at the end of each month. News and comment can be found on the Quakers in Britain blog: www.quaker.org.uk/blog.

If you would like to send news, some feedback, or update your contact details, please email philipw@quaker.org.uk.
QPSW staff tweet updates about:
Disarmament and peace: @DisarmQuaker
Peace education: @PeaceEduQuaker
Economic and climate justice: @EarthEconQuaker
Peacebuilding in East Africa: @QPSWAfrica
Turning the Tide: @TTTideUK

For eyewitness reports from Palestine and Israel, subscribe to the EAPPI UK & Ireland newsletter
For peace education news, subscribe to our Peace Education Cluster
For a weekly round-up of news from Quakers in Britain, subscribe to Quake!
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