Calvin College

CALVIN - Minds in the Making

Faith & International Development Conference

Conference

Breakout Session #2

Fri, Feb 6: 4.15-5.15pm

 

Ending Poverty Through Relationships

  • Bo White, Chief Messaging Officer and Senior Manager of Internships/College Initiatives, Food for the Hungry.

Global Poverty will not end unless we work together. And we will not understand how to work together without a deep understanding of God's grace. This session will address the need for gospel centered collaboration and cooperation with special emphasis given to applying this in the internship program and City Initiatives efforts at Food for the Hungry. You will hear how nearly 80 interns have wrestled with the gospel in the context of relationships while working in 12 countries and 4 North American cities. You will also hear how we are attacking the problem of child sex slavery in the United States through collaborative efforts with church leaders, law enforcement officials, and government leaders. Come prepared to wrestle with issues of forgiveness, cooperation, collaboration, and a vision for ending poverty through healthy relationships.


The State of Children Internationally

  • Aleida Guzman, Intern Coordinator, World Vision US

Did you know that every minute, 20 children under five years of age die mostly from preventable diseases, while a child under the ago of 15 becomes infected with HIV? Did you also know that while 21% of the world's population lives on less than $1 per day, a child dies every three seconds from hunger, malnutrition, or related diseases? Would you like to know who is addressing some of these issues? If so, I am looking forward to sharing with you how World Vision-A Christian Humanitarian Organization--- dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide is addressing some of these issues by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice nationally and internationally to help communities reach their full potential.

 

Partnering for Community Transformation

  • Andrew Ryskamp, US Director, Christian Reformed World Relief Committee

This workshop explores the principles that go into successfully transforming lives at the community level. The principles apply to communities both in the South, as well as the communities we worship in on Sunday in North America, and how they partner for reciprocal mission. The workshop also looks at how communities can partner nationally and internationally to address the systemic causes of poverty.

 

North/South Partnerships as a Way to Strengthen the North American Church

  • Wendy Hammond, Church Relations and 16:15 Church Missions Coach, Christian Reformed World Relief Committee

Development workers often see church partnerships as a way to increase funding. Missional and intentional partnerships, however, can go beyond financial transactions and unleash the church's potential for missions. This workshop will provide an overview of what the North American church should do to prepare BEFORE participating in partnerships

 

How to Choose Good Partnership Organizations that will Promote Mutual Transformation

  • Larry Groff, Former representative in Cambodia, Mennonite Central Committee

Larry and his family spent 10 years working with MCC in Cambodia. During the past several years MCC has placed an increased importance on how developing partnerships have potential for mutual transformation. Emphasis has been placed on how partnerships are initiated and carried out so that expectations are clear and attainable. Larry will share this process and give examples of how MCC works with a wide range of local organizations in Cambodia.

 

Can NGOs learn to learn? An FH Case Study in Organizational Culture Change

  • Michael Pucci, International Director of Academic Programs, Food for the Hungry

NGOs like to talk about doing good, but for many development practitioners, the culture they operate in doesn't provide much time and space for things like innovation, reflection, cross-fertilization and integrity. Food for the Hungry (FH) has attempted to break out of this mold by pursuing partnerships with the academic world. Plugging researchers into our persistent field problems in Christian development sounded like an ideal solution. We had real-world problems; they had ideas. What we found was a clash of organizational cultures. This case study of field-based research unpacks the tensions between these two very different worlds of development academics and practitioners that must merge if we are to bring new life to development in the form of a learning culture.


Short-term Missions: Threat or Opportunity for Sustainable Development?

  • Mary Dykstra, Service Learning Coordinator, Christian Reformed World Relief Committee
  • Ruth Ann Majawa, Service Learning Manager, Christian Reformed World Relief Committee

Many people say that short term missions are a threat to sustainable development and it's better for churches or individuals to just send the money to developing countries. How do you avoid the trap of "just another good mission trip" which doesn't make a sustainable difference in the volunteers or the communities served?

 

Advocacy as ONE: Lifting our Voices in the Fight against Extreme Global Poverty

  • Adam Phillips, Faith Relations Manager, ONE

ONE is a grassroots campaign and advocacy organization backed by more than 2 million people from around the world and every walk of life who are committed to the fight against extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa. In this workshop we will explore the role of faith in advocacy as well as look at ONE's "From Vision to Action," a briefing on realizing the potential for development in President Obama's administration.

 

Malaria and Faith

  • Katherine Marshall, Executive Director, World Faiths Development Dialogue and Senior Fellow at Georgetown University's Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs

Malaria is an ancient scourge with a modern face. Its devastation, especially among Africa's children, is one of those silent tragedies that can too easily be forgotten. An important new global alliance seeks to change that picture and religious institutions are emerging as important partners. Why is that? What is being done and what is still missing?

 

The Global Food Crisis and how I can make a difference

  • Stan Doerr, President, ECHO

This talk will be a review of the Global Food Crisis including some of the causes and impact this is having on the poor. The discussion will then open to what individuals can do about this crisis and ways in which university students can engage in both research and ministry options to improve the quality of life of the poor that have been most effected by this crisis.

 

The Challenge of Helping: Good Intentions aren't Good Enough

  • Chris Horst, Human Resources Specialist, HOPE International

In a world of brokenness, poverty, famine and war, the Church faces its biggest question: how will we respond? It is no secret that many well-intentioned churches and relief and development projects have caused significant long-term harm. This session will examine principles and examples of effective, holistic, long-term international development, with a focus on the transformative work of Christ-centered microfinance.

 

Partnerships: Sustainability and Hope

  • Paul Scholten, North American SAHAC Facilitator & South African Team Leader, Partners Worldwide & CMC

The premise of this breakout session is to recognize that the history of ÒpartnershipsÓ - from colonialism to nation building, including all forms of humanitarian and Christian compassion - have left the continent of Africa in an increasingly hopeless state of dependency and dysfunction. Re-thinking the concept of sustainability and role of hope are necessary to change our historically unsuccessful results. Experience from current HIV/AIDS prevention partnerships in South Africa will be shared. This breakout session will be and interactive exchange of thoughts and ideas around these thoughts. How can we as Christians set a new paradigm for Christian, secular and political partnerships?

 

What Does it Take to Become a Successful Partnership Manager?

  • Daniel Rickett, Executive Vice President, Sisters in Service

Now, more than ever, international development programs involve partnerships and alliances of one kind or another. Governments, corporations, foundations, and development agencies are connecting in a myriad of ways. It's hard to imagine any career in international development that is not directly affected by collaborative relationships. The challenge in this hyper-connected world is to learn and effectively practice international partnership. In this breakout session we'll discuss the skills and knowledge that will prepare you for the challenges of international partnerships.

 

The Unasked Questions in International Development: Promoting Peace through Development Partnerships

  • Rev. Joshua Amaezechi, President, Pax Africana
  • Prof. Virginia Beard, Secretary, Pax Africana and Hope College Political Science Professor

Billions of dollars in development aid have been spent on Africa and there is little on the ground to show for it. Why? Come and explore with us some of the unasked questions that could provide the needed foundation for sustainable development in Africa. What challenges do these pose to the Christian community?