Systemic racism may seem challenging to understand, but with examples from Dr. Ingrid Waldron’s research and her lively explanations of how threats to land and water, climate change, and the pandemic negatively impact Black and Indigenous communities, it becomes very clear. 

 Dr. Ingrid Waldron is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Health at Dalhousie University and the Director of the NGO Environmental Noxiousness, Racial Inequities & Community Health Project (The ENRICH Project). As the Director of the ENRICH Project over the last eight years, Dr. Waldron has been investigating the socio-economic, political, and health effects of environmental racism and other public infrastructure inequalities in Mi’kmaq and African Nova Scotian communities. 

 The ENRICH Project formed the basis to Dr. Waldron’s first book There’s Something in the Water: Environmental Racism in Indigenous and Black Communities, which received the 2020 Society for Socialist Studies Errol Sharpe Book Prize and the 2019 Atlantic Book Award for Scholarly Writing.

The 2020 Netflix documentary There’s Something in the Water is based on Dr. Waldron’s book and was co-produced by Waldron, actor Elliot Page, Ian Daniel, and Julia Sanderson. 

 The ENRICH Project also formed the basis to the creation of the provincial private members bill An Act to Address Environmental Racism (Bill 111), which was introduced in the Nova Scotia Legislature on April 29, 2015, and the federal private members bill a National Strategy to Redress Environmental Racism (Bill C-230), which was introduced in the House of Commons on February 26, 2020 and moved to second reading on December 8, 2020. 

 At the end of 2020, Dr. Waldron co-founded the National Anti-Environmental Racism Coalition with Naolo Charles from the Black Environmental Initiative. The Coalition has brought together organizations in the environmental and climate change sector across Canada to collaborate on projects and share expertise and resources to address environmental racism and climate change impacts in Indigenous, Black, and other marginalized communities across Canada.

 Find out more about The ENRICH Project.

 We are gradually building a list of resources related to racial justice issues in our UCC  eastern Regions.  You can find that list here: https://ucceast.ca/justice-mission-outreach-2/racial-justice/ 

You can reach us by email at [email protected] .

Remember you can always find more what’s happening with Justice, Mission, and Outreach by visiting the website, https://ucceast.ca/justice-mission-outreach-2/   and by joining the Facebook Group, Justice and Mission – UCC Atlantic.

Meet Adele Halliday, the Anti-Racism and Equity Officer, for the United Church of Canada.  Adele has served related positions at the national offices of UCC for 15 years.  In this conversation, Adele explains clearly the differences between racism, racial justice, anti-racism and what it means to hold an “intercultural vision” in the United Church context.  She offers concrete examples of areas of racial injustices that are happening in the church.  This conversation reflects how important it is for local communities of faith to be engaged in anti-racism work. Adele shares some of the spiritual grounding that keeps her going in this work: “It’s my calling.”  

This new position was created in response to the United Church’s commitment to becoming an anti-racist denomination. In this role Adele will help the church live into its commitment, which will take continuous effort, reaching out to all parts of the church, equipping leaders, engaging with anti-racist practices, building on past efforts, weaving together theology and concrete strategies.   

We are blessed to have Adele choosing to share her passion and her skills with us in these times!

Your portal to UCC anti-racism resources and actions is  https://united-church.ca/social-action/justice-initiatives/anti-racism.

In the conversation, Adele reads from  "A Vision for Becoming and Intercultural Church".  The full document can be found here:  https://united-church.ca/community-faith/being-community/intercultural-ministries/vision-becoming-intercultural-church 

We are gradually building a list of resources related to racial justice issues in our eastern Regions.  You can find that list here: https://ucceast.ca/justice-mission-outreach-2/racial-justice/ 

You can reach us by email at [email protected] .
Remember you can always find more what’s happening with Justice, Mission, and Outreach by visiting the website, https://ucceast.ca/justice-mission-outreach-2/   and by joining the Facebook Group, Justice and Mission – UCC Atlantic.

Senator Nancy Hartling has deep roots in frontline work for social change. In this conversation, we hear how even as a child she was seeking to understand the experiences of others and wanting fairness for all.  She offers us a short primer on the role and function of the Canadian Senate.  Then she and Laura discuss Guaranteed Livable Income and why this idea is an important conversation for Canada today.  Senator Hartling is a member of the United Church and is a living example of how faith, and hope, and political life can be well integrated. 

Nancy J. Hartling was appointed to the Senate as an independent Senator for New Brunswick in November 2016. With a career focused on families and social issues, she is well versed on mental health, poverty, violence against women, and affordable housing. She has advocated extensively for socio-economic issues facing families, particularly single parents and their children. Senator Hartling is a dedicated proponent of social justice and human rights and is an advocate for issues relating to mental health, diabetes, and Basic Income. 

 Get involved: 

 As the movement for a Guaranteed Livable Income continues to grow among the people of The United Church of Canada, an emerging Guaranteed Livable Income network is seeking individuals to come forward to help grow the effort further as they plan actions in 2021! The network's co-chairs area Barry Morris and former Moderator and retired Senator, the Very Reverend, the Honorable Dr. Lois Wilson.  In the eastern Regional Councils, this work of this network is supported by another former Moderator, the Very Reverend Dr. Marion Pardy.   Please contact Lori Neale at [email protected] for more details, and to join the network.

You can reach us by email at [email protected] .
Remember you can always find more what’s happening with Justice, Mission, and Outreach by visiting the website, https://ucceast.ca/justice-mission-outreach-2/   and by joining the Facebook Group, Justice and Mission – UCC Atlantic.

Contemplative practices and ways of living are complimentary practices to working for change.  In this episode Laura talks to Rev. Don MacDougall, a wise teacher, leader, and mentor of Spiritual Direction and contemplative living.  They dig into the differences between dedicated practice and spontaneous practice, why “mindfulness” might not be the best word to describe the practice, and how it is important for all of us to have ways that we attend to our hearts and minds while working for change in the world.  Don describes what was missing for him after 8 years of preparation for ministry and how a journey into contemplative ways of living and working helped.

Don MacDougall has served with several congregations around the Maritimes; at Dalhousie University in Halifax; in youth, young adult and outdoor recreational leadership through Camps Sherbrooke Lake and Kidston, and the NS Dept. of Recreation; he has given leadership in adult learning at Tatamagouche Centre; and most recently with education for contemplative living, spiritual direction, and spiritual leadership. He is a graduate of the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation, and a founder of the Atlantic Jubilee Program for Spiritual Deepening and Guidance (now Contemplative Pathways), with a special interest in the spiritual journeys of men.  He lives with his wife Lois in Fredericton, New Brunswick.

Don mentioned a book called The Original Vision: A study of the religious experience of childhood , by Edward Robinson. (1983, HarperCollins Publishers)

You will find this episode  and past episodes at Making Hope Visible.

Remember you can always find more what’s happening with Justice, Mission, and Outreach by visiting the website, https://ucceast.ca/justice-mission-outreach-2/   and by joining the Facebook Group, Justice and Mission – UCC Atlantic.

 Music

Morrisson's jig - Leslie's march by Aislinn is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License.

Reverend Michael Blair offers evocative images to describe how he will approach his new role as General Secretary of the United Church of Canada.   In this conversation you will learn about his early roots in ministry, his visions for “reconnecting with the commons” from a place of spiritual comfort and humility,   ….and about a couple of his “superpowers”.  But more than anything you will get a sense of the depth of experience and spiritual grounding he brings to his leadership. And that he is also a very cool human being!  

Remember you can always find more about what’s happening with Justice, Mission, and Outreach by  subscribing to receive our somewhat regular e-newsletter.  Simply visit the Justice and Mission pages on our UCC East website.  Also, we want you to have the chance to share ideas, questions, inspiration with this wider Justice and Mission network so come join the Facebook Group, Justice and Mission – UCC Atlantic.  

What does it mean to be an Affirming Church? Guests on this episode are from one of the first, and one of the most recent Communities of Faith in Atlantic Canada to be recognized as Affirming Ministries in the United Church of Canada.  Katelyn Vardy, from St. John’s, Newfoundland tells Laura about their involvement with St. James United Church, which recently completed the process, and about Affirm United/S’affirmer Ensemble – the organization supporting the network of primarily United Church ministries striving to be fully inclusive of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities.   Caden Hebb and April Hart met at Bedford United Church, in Bedford, NS, which was designated an Affirming Ministry in 2006.  Caden reflects on growing up in an Affirming congregation from his perspective as a transgender person and activist.  April Hart, points to the importance of continuing to be strong voices of welcome to the 2SLGBTQAI+ community, long after you start flying a rainbow flag.  

Learn more about Affirm United/S’Affirmer Ensemble 

Remember you can always find more what’s happening with Justice, Mission, and Outreach and subscribe to receive our somewhat regular e-newsletter by visiting our UCC East website,   and by joining the Facebook Group, Justice and Mission – UCC Atlantic.

In honour of Indigenous Peoples Day in Canada, host Laura Hunter, has a rich conversation with two Wolastoqey elders. Ron Tremblay is the Chief of the Wolatoqey Grand Council, and Alma Brooks is a Clan Mother, which is a distinct role within this traditional governance structure.  Ron and Alma have been steadfastly working on Indigenous rights and protection of lands and waters for many years locally, nationally, and internationally.   This conversation touches on some hard truths and challenges, but is also full of moving stories, fierce love, some surprising science talk, and mentions of a few inspiring projects they are involved in.  

It also features two poems read by Shalan Joudry, a Mi’kmaq poet, storyteller, and ecologist, living in L’sitkuk, Nova Scotia.  “Forest Tree” and “Unfolding of Blankets” will be coming out in a collection of her poetry to be published by Gaspereau Press this fall, 2020.  You can hear more from Shalan on her podcast called “Trails, Tales, and Spruce Tea”. 

Remember you can always find more what’s happening with Justice, Mission, and Outreach by visiting the website,  and by joining the Facebook Group, Justice and Mission – UCC Atlantic.



Music
Morrisson's jig - Leslie's march by Aislinn is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License.

Note that this episode also  features musical clips from Wood_Flute via Freesound.org.

COVID-19 has raised many social issues - economic inequality, care for seniors, food sovereignty, and more.  What roles can justice-seekers and communities of faith play as we move forward? This global pandemic has shown us how important good leadership is in times of challenge and uncertainty.  David Coon is a leader with heart, wisdom, integrity, and courage.   As a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) of New Brunswick, the first ever Green Party candidate elected to office in NB, and as an active member of the United Church, David offers us his unique perspectives on issues we face as a result of this pandemic.

Remember you can always find more what’s happening with Justice, Mission, and Outreach in the Atlantic Regions of the United Church of Canada by visiting ucceast.ca  and by joining the Facebook Group, Justice and Mission – UCC Atlantic.

Music

Morrisson's jig - Leslie's march by Aislinn is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License.

Working for a Just Peace for Palestine and Israel has become a passion for Patricia Mercer.  In Episode 7 of Making Hope Visible, host Laura Hunter talks with Pat about the roots of her passion. Commitment, compassion, tears, and love come through in this tender conversation.  Pat tells of experiences from her time serving with the Ecumenical Accompaniment Program in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI – a United Church global partner) and other visits to the “Holy Land” where she witnessed thoroughly unholy situations.  

Pat’s Bio:  Patricia Mercer spent 5 months as a Human Rights Observer with the World Council of Churches EAPPI, (Ecumenical Accompaniment Program in Palestine/Israel) program. EAs offer protective presence to vulnerable communities and monitor and report human rights abuses. 

Patricia has been a supporter of Kairos Canada since 2012 when she hosted and organized the St. John’s Program for the Kairos Women of Courage tour. She attends  Gower St United Church  and is a member of the Outreach, and  Pastoral Care Comittees.  She established Palestine Solidarity, a group of people who plan and work for justice in Palestine/Israel as well as Palestine Solidarity Facebook page. She organizes the procurement and sales of Fair Trade Zatoun olive oil, za’atar, and soap as well as Medjool dates through Gower St United Church.

 Patricia is available for workshops and speaking engagements for those who would like to know more about justice issues as well as United Churches’ work in Palestine/Israel.

Remember you can always find more what’s happening with Justice, Mission, and Outreach by visiting the website, https://ucceast.ca/justice-mission-outreach-2/   and by joining the Facebook Group, Justice and Mission – UCC Atlantic.

Recorded in St. John’s Newfoundland Oct 2019.  Released May 19, 2020

In this episode, host, Laura Hunter visits a lunch and activity program in Chipman, New Brunswick, called “LIFT”.  Talking with Faith Kennedy and Rev. Betty Jean Friedman, she hears how children, teens, and seniors are building relationships and lifting spirits in their rural village.   Chipman-Gaspereau Forks Pastoral Charge is a small congregation, but supports this important outreach project with the help from the United Church of Canada’s Mission and Service Fund. It’s a beautiful example of partnership and care in community.

To find out more about the work of the Justice and Mission network of the Atlantic Regions of the United Church of Canada go to ucceast.ca.  

Stay connected by joining the Facebook Group "Justice and Mission - UCC Atlantic".

Music
Morrisson's Jig - Leslie's March by Aislinn is licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License.