Apply now to join our Faith Leader Environmental Advocacy Training in Cape Town

Dear Friends,

The Southern African Faith Communities’ Environment Institute (SAFCEI) believes that people of faith have a moral imperative to speak out against the socio-ecological injustices that face Africa’s peoples and their environment.

In witnessing for the Earth, SAFCEI believes that faith leaders can share our local experiences, network with each other, and learn from each other how best to advocate for the change we want to see.

SAFCEI works with all faiths on issues of environmental justice across the southern African region.  The Institute is coordinating a faith leadership environmental advocacy programme in Cape Town. FLEAT Cape Town will provide a platform for common action across the region. See https://safcei.org/project/fleat/ for more information.

For SAFCEI, advocacy involves the following:

• Local actions at faith community level that demonstrate a way of living which restores, rather than destroys, nature and the human community.
• Sharing stories of hope with other faith communities to inspire them to take similar actions and share their stories.
• Challenging governments and people in positions of power by reminding them to act from principles and values that protect the Earth’s living systems, including human society, as well as encouraging governments to support progressive Earth stewardship policies.

SAFCEI is calling for applications from people of faith, and particularly those in a position of leadership, in Cape Town, who want to be involved in environmental advocacy.

The training will take place on 2nd - 4th December 2020. If you have time to dedicate to advocacy work and a passion for addressing environmental injustices, please complete the application form and send it with a letter of motivation to SAFCEI, and a letter of support from a community leader such as a faith leader.

If selected, your data requirements for the three days of training will be supported.

This training is ONLY for participants who live and work in Cape Town.

This will be an intense three-day process of collectively sharing and designing an advocacy training programme, with input from various advocacy specialists. Issues of water, land, biodiversity, food, climate, and energy justice will be on the agenda. Practical action will be part of the programme and you will be asked to report back about the practical application of the training in your environment.

The training will be a in-person and residential in Cape Town with physical distancing in place.

While each FLEAT training is different and carefully designed for maximum impact in the geographical context of the participants, here are two videos to show you what happened at a former FLEAT training.

[embed]https://youtu.be/GSTjgw9vouQ[/embed]

Participants are expected to take experiences from the workshops and apply them in their faith communities between training sessions. They are expected to commit to working together on advocacy actions, in their own areas as well as more generally in the SADC region.

If selected, you will be required to commit to the FLEAT Programme and make yourself available for the second follow-up meeting.

Please forward the application form with supporting documents to revberry@safcei.org.za by 24th November 2020 at 12pm.

Disclaimer: safety and health will be a priority. All participants will be required to wear masks, wash and sanitize their hands, and be physically distant at all times.

Yours sincerely,

Rev Berry Behr

Faith Leader Liaison

t + 27 21 701 8145

c + 27 76 672 1932

revberry@safcei.org.za 

PO Box 106, Kalk Bay, 7990, South Africa

www.safcei.org