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October 30, 2023

We are supporting our partner, the Kiribati Uniting Church (KUC), to continue promotion of theological messaging on Gender Equality, through local media and through posters and Bible studies that can be distributed to outer island communities along with workshops. The KUC vision for Gender Equality will also be promoted through road shows in several locations, making the message well known and understood by all.

During 2023-2024, the next phase of this project will be designed through dialogue and consultations with stakeholders and local communities, including a new design to guide KUC’s gender equality and disaster resilience program. An important part of the project is safeguarding and inclusion to make it easy for all to participate, including women and girls, people and children with a disability and other vulnerable groups.

 

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October 30, 2023

In the first three days of March 2023, Vanuatu was hit by two Category 4 cyclones which tracked similar paths, most severely affecting Shefa and Tafea Provinces. The cyclones caused widespread damage affecting approximately 80% of the population. Many families either lost part or all their home, suffered damage to or total loss of gardens, and experienced flooding in low lying areas. A program supported by the Australian Humanitarian Partnership Program targeted cyclone-affected communities, schools and households to have access to appropriate support, services, and resources to stay healthy, informed and feel safer, and increased access to specialist health services in cyclone affected rural communities. 

As part of this recovery effort, our partner, Presbyterian Church of Vanuatu (PCV), and UnitingWorld decided to focus on two strengths of PCV: gender and protection, and health, including:

  • the next phase of PCV’s Plan blong God long laef blong Man mo Woman (God’s Vision for human relationship), Child Protection and Care, and Climate Resilience programs
  • additional focus and new activities relating to PCV having a church-wide policy on Gender Equality and Child Protection and Safeguarding
  • new focus on and activities engaging young people relating to women and children experiencing decreased violence and fear of violence in the home and community.  

These activities include participation of PCV and its Presbyterian Women’s Missionary Union (PWMU).

 

Part of this program includes working ecumenically through the Church Agencies Network-Disaster Operations consortium (CAN-DO) funded by the Australian Government as part of the Australian Humanitarian Partnership Program.

 

Banner photo by Seiji Seiji on Unsplash

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October 30, 2023

Our partner, Methodist Church in Fiji, has just commenced this new project phase to ensure MCIF churches and communities provide safe and inclusive environments for women, children and other vulnerable groups, and to support MCIF churches and communities to be prepared to respond to and recover from natural disasters.

The current project priorities are:

  • Setting up a working group to drafting a Disability and Social Inclusion policy.
  • Drafting a Disaster Risk Reduction and Disaster Risk Management (DRR/DRM) policy and a draft infrastructure assessment tool.
  • Building on the Disaster Recovery Chaplaincy Network (DRCN) that has been developed over the last 3 years, by providing DRCN/trauma healing training and supporting 10 trained chaplains to complete higher training in Pastoral Counselling.
  • Family Life Institutional Transformation (FLIT) is building on the work done over the last five years through Gender Equality Theology – Institutional Transformation (GET-IT), with the new name chosen to better reflect the focus on children and young people, and the MCIF approach of engaging men and boys along with women and girls.
  • Safeguarding and Protection policies and Bible Studies on God’s Vision for Human Relationships will be promoted to church leaders and communities, and be made available in several languages.
  • Organisational strengthening will be undertaken for improved project and financial management and project monitoring.

 

This project is supported by the Australian Government through the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP). Thanks to ANCP, we’re making a huge difference together.

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October 27, 2023

We have been working to support our partner, the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga, with recovery and resilience-building activities following the volcanic eruption of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai and related tsunami in 2022. Some of the work is funded by the Australian Government as part of the Australian Humanitarian Partnership Program (AHP), through the Church Agencies Network-Disaster Operations consortium (CAN-DO), and the remainder by UnitingWorld and our supporters.

The AHP funding has provided the affected communities access to psychosocial support, in a form of talanoa, a group conversation among the villages to help with the trauma. In addition, AHP funding is supporting women’s livelihoods by providing sewing machines and cookers, along with training courses so that the women can establish income-generating enterprises.

The UnitingWorld funding is providing tools and materials for rebuilding, gardening tools and seeds for planting new gardens, and boats, engines, lifejackets and fishing gear for transport and fishing, for eight affected islands. This will allow tsunami-affected people are able to get back on their feet and feel better about their futures.

Both projects have been supporting the communities most affected by the tsunami. Many of them had to relocate into new areas due to scale of the destruction. Providing them with livelihood options and materials to rebuild lives is essential. Many of the women who received training have reported improved income for the families in form of selling cakes and food or sewing dresses for others. Also, the communities who have received the boats already have reported several benefits, such as improved livelihoods by better access to fishing, as well as being able to transport children to school to the other islands or sick people to the hospital on the main island.

 

Part of this program includes working ecumenically through the Church Agencies Network-Disaster Operations consortium (CAN-DO) funded by the Australian Government as part of the Australian Humanitarian Partnership (AHP).

   

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October 27, 2023

Gender equality and climate resilience are cross-cutting issues that affect all aspects of life in Solomon Islands. Climate resilience project activities equip church leaders and communities to prepare for environmental disasters in practical, spiritual and pastoral ways. Gender equality project activities challenge churches and communities to value and empower women as equals and transform communities into places where they are safe from violence.

Our partner, United Church in Solomon Islands (UCSI), is developing this project to further previous work on both Gender Equality Theology (GET) and building resilience to climate-change impacts.

For gender equality, a priority is to spread the GET messaging to the grass-roots level in churches and communities.

Workshops and practical activities will help farmers learn innovative farming techniques to improve livelihoods and to become more resilient to climate-related hazards and natural disasters. Bible studies and topics on Climate Change Resilience will be developed by the Director of Theology.

A particular focus of this project is young people, both as recipients of the awareness messaging, and in training them to be active agents in implementing and promoting gender equality and climate resilience. It is planned to pilot youth-led community awareness campaigns in the areas of food security, water and sanitation with respect to reducing climate change impacts.

This project also supports organisational strengthening, including Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy Awareness in UCSI schools, and the development of feedback and complaints mechanisms for project participants.

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November 24, 2017

Bali is well known as a holiday destination, however, in rural areas away from the tourist spots there is considerable poverty. Local governments receive limited funding to assist poorer people with housing, electricity, water and other basic services, however, the voices of the poorest, especially women, are often not heard.

We support our Bali partners, MBM, with their goal to contribute to the development of healthy, economically secure and resilient communities by providing vulnerable community members with opportunities to increase their income; by advocating for access to health and wellbeing services; and by supporting villages to become more resilient to climate-related hazards and natural disasters.

Since March 2025, our Bali partners have also been collaborating with the church in neighbouring Sumba Island to help address root causes of poverty there, which contribute to Sumbanese people fleeing to Bali as economic and climate refugees.

In addition to the ongoing work in Bali, the joint project is now working across three villages in Sumba, bringing kitchen gardens, health education, water access, climate-resilient farming and sustained mentoring to communities there.

Find out the latest about this project and donate here.

And thanks to our partnership with the Australian Government, your donation can go up to six times as far (find out more).

This project is supported by the Australian Government through the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP). Thanks to ANCP, we’re making a huge difference together; lifting families out of poverty and helping people improve their lives.

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November 24, 2017

UnitingWorld and our partner, the the United Church in Papua New Guinea (UCPNG), have been part of the Church Partnership Program (CPP) since its beginning in 2004. It is now one of the longest ongoing projects of Australia’s aid program. The CPP supports churches in Papua New Guinea to improve their capacity to deliver crucial health and education services, especially in rural and remote areas, as well as a broad range of activities in support of gender equality and social inclusion, peace and prosperity, and disaster risk reduction.

The current work in this project has four pillars:

  1. Organisational strengthening of UCPNG’s Development Unit, including staff capacity building and strengthened governance and financial management systems and processes.
  2. Developing capacity for collaboration to solve local development problems, including working with government agencies and CPP partners to achieve change.
  3. Exploring and developing a unique UCPNG social accountability approach connected to theology, leading to increased participation of UCPNG leadership, communities and colleges in social actions, public campaigns, and advocacy to government.
  4. Integrating Gender Equality, Disability Inclusion and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) throughout the program, with the stated outcome that “Church leaders will actively promote gender equality, disability and social inclusion” through awareness, strengthened policy and procedures, increased social action, and increased participation by women in leadership and decision-making in UCPNG.

 

The Church Partnership Program is supported by the Australian Government through the Papua New Guinea–Australia Partnership.

 

 

Use our resources on gender equality theology in your church or Bible study group! Download them here.

Click to download

 

Bible Studies on Human Dignity and Equality

-Rev Dr Cliff Bird and UnitingWorld

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click to download

 

The Theology of Gender Equality

-Church Partnership Program

“The Theology of Gender Equality is built upon ten, theological principles that enable participation and inclusion of both men and women in creating and sustaining communities that reaffirm, respect, and celebrate that being female and male are divine gifts.”

 

 

 

 

 

Banner image: Photo by Vika Chartier on Unsplash

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November 24, 2017

Our local partner, the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe, is transforming rural schools into hubs of resilience. The program tackles hunger, water scarcity and climate change by installing solar-powered water systems, growing school gardens and training families in climate-smart agriculture.

Thirteen-year-old Tanaka Chiza is one of the students already experiencing the change.

“Before, it was hard to concentrate in class when I was hungry,” she said. “But now we have a garden and food at school. I’m learning how to grow vegetables and I want to teach my mother so we can eat better at home.”

The impact reaches far beyond school gates. Rev. Junior Paradza, a former lawyer turned minister, is helping lead the project.

“Water means everything in these villages. Now, families have enough to grow their own food. We’re seeing real change, and people are full of hope.”

(Stories gathered in 2025)

The current phase of the project builds on the success of previous work, which saw the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe mainstream gender justice, safeguarding and protection, and disability inclusion across the church. This phase focuses on climate resilience as a key approach to ensuring the safety and inclusion of vulnerable communities.

It will do this by incorporating climate resilience activities in schools and communities into the project.

It will also continue to co-fund the Building Resilience in Gokwe South Communities Project (primarily funded by Bread for the World), supporting drought-affected communities with the goal of improving livelihoods and fostering resilient, self-reliant communities through improving access to sanitation facilities, enhancing food security and increasing income generation.

Thanks to UnitingWorld’s partnership with the Australian Government, gifts can go up to six times further to support life-changing work in Zimbabwe and across the Pacific, Asia and Africa.

Visit unitingworld.org.au/eofy to learn more and make a tax-deductible donation.

This project is supported by the Australian Government through the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP). Thanks to ANCP, we’re making a huge difference together.

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November 9, 2017

In Oecusse region of Timor-Leste, where UnitingWorld has a robust partnership with the Protestant Church of Timor-Leste’s development agency FUSONA, the land is dry and rugged.

People here have always lived from what they’ve grown – carefully sowing and reaping, saving, and taking to market any surplus so they can buy essentials like oil, tea and rice. But in recent years, life has become far more difficult as unseasonal weather changes leave crops withered or washed away. Global conflict and other shocks drive food and fuel prices high.

The “hungry season”, once an accepted month or so of food shortages, has become chronic. Across Timor-Leste, 47 % of children are stunted due to malnutrition – one of the highest rates in the world.

Families are being affected by prolonged drought, unpredictable rainy and dry seasons, and soil erosion that occurs on agricultural land and housing on the banks of rivers. This leads to loss of income, damage to homes, conflicts within families and communities due to water scarcity and health problems, especially amongst mothers and children, caused by a lack of food and sanitation.

FUSONA is implementing a project that focuses on building climate resilient families in Timor Leste, aiming to improve the health of mothers and children, increase family incomes and restore nature so that communities can adapt better to the impact of climate change.

In the video below, Project Manager Julio Da Costa speaks about his faith motivating his work, and how people are chosen to take part in a project that could easily be expanded to every family and village in the region – if the resources were available.

Thanks to UnitingWorld’s partnership with the Australian Government, gifts can go up to six times further to support life-changing work in Timor-Leste and across the Pacific, Asia and Africa.

Visit unitingworld.org.au/eofy to learn more and make a tax-deductible donation.

This project is supported by the Australian Government through the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP). Thanks to ANCP, we’re making a huge difference together.

(Stories and video collected in 2025)

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November 9, 2017

Cyclones and droughts are increasing the frequency and intensity across the Pacific. We support our partners to prepare vulnerable communities and reduce the impacts of natural disasters. $1 spent in preparedness saves $15 in response later. This now includes pandemics like COVID-19.

Activities include community-based risk assessment and contingency planning, training networks of disaster response chaplains and resourcing our partner churches with Christian theology that gives hope and inspires faith-filled action.

Part of this program includes working ecumenically through the Church Agencies Network-Disaster Operations consortium (CAN-DO) funded by the Australian Government as part of the Australian Humanitarian Partnership Program.

   

Resources

UnitingWorld has taken the lead within CAN-DO on coordinating the writing and development of a ‘Theology of Disaster Resilience in a Changing Climate.’ This work, undertaken by Pasifika theologians following a participatory baseline survey across four Pacific countries, is a resource for communities and churches to explore the meaning of resilience, preparedness and suffering during disaster from a biblical point of view. These resources are available for download here.

   

 

Our Impact

We and our partners have been able to respond to COVID-19 and TC Harold in Tonga, Solomon Islands, PNG, Vanuatu, Fiji, Kiribati and Tuvalu.

Partners across Tonga, Kiribati, Tuvalu and Fiji participated in regional training of Disaster Recovery Chaplaincy Networks and are now running training workshops at the national level to build their teams of qualified and ready first responders to support communities in the wake of disaster.

In Tuvalu, a song about gender based violence has been written and released.

In Tonga and Solomon Islands, much needed water and sanitation facilities have been built.

In Tonga, 47 Ministers and theological students have now been trained in Disaster Recovery Chaplaincy, covering modules in trauma counselling, keeping people safe and the nature of disaster.

In Kiribati, 29 church leaders trained and qualified as Disaster Recovery Chaplains. This group will respond to disaster recovery needs in communities across 18 of the 23 inhabited islands.

In Solomon Islands, radio segments led by church leaders have reinforced positive messages about hygiene, preparedness and addressing gender based violence; reaching around 70 per cent of the population.

In Tuvalu, 14 church leaders qualified as Disaster Recovery Chaplains. This group will support communities in seven islands to help people deal with the stresses and impacts of COVID-19.

An estimated 75 per cent of the Tuvaluan population (7,984 people) have been reached through a nation-wide TV and radio campaign focusing on faith, gender equality and protection and COVID-19.

Twenty new water tanks were installed throughout Tonga. These have directly benefited more than 83 people (57 per cent women and 15 per cent people with disabilities) and helped another 124 indirectly.

In Vanuatu, COVID-19 related sermons were played on national television and livestreamed on Facebook (receiving 114 comments and 257 likes).

Support this project

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Media

News from the field

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  • Can theology prevent disasters?Can theology prevent disasters?
    Theology can’t prevent disasters, but can help people and communities prepare for them and lessen the impact. That’s why we’ve been supporting our Pacific partners to develop a theology of disaster resilience and share it across their churches and the wider Pacific. Our church partners work among communities who have been taught to believe that natural disasters are an unavoidable punishment for personal or societal wrongdoing. This understanding of the nature of disaster sometimes means people haven’t thought through the practical ...