Stories from around the globe show how a united world is already in motion. This platform highlights experiences, initiatives, and projects from people and communities working for unity and peace. Explore what’s happening and get inspired.
<p><em>More than a billion people around the world will celebrate Earth Day on April 22, 2014—the 44th anniversary of the annual day of action.</em></p> <p><strong>Earth Day began in 1970</strong>, when 20 million people across the United States—that's one in ten—rallied for increased protection of the environment.</p> <p><strong>"It was really an eye-opening experience for me</strong>," Gina McCarthy, the U.S. Environmenta Protection Agency administrator, who was a self-described self-centered teenager during the first Earth Day rallies, told National Geographic.
<p><em>Co-ordinated by Slovenia with 14 countries of AI Macro-Region</em></p> <p><strong>Fishermen can be environmental guardians of the sea.</strong> This is the aim of the DeFishGear European project, Derelict Fishing Gear Management System in the Adriatic Region, coordinated by the National Institute of Chemistry in Ljubljana, Slovenia , together with 14 partner countries which take part in the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative.</p> <p><strong>The purpose of DeFishGear, which involves,</strong> in Italy, the Ispra-Institute for Protection and Environmental Research, Ca' Foscari University of Venice, ARPA (Environmental Protection agency) of Emilia Romagna region, the Mediterranean Consortium, technical and scientific branch of Lega Pesca (Fishing League), is to reduce the impacts caused by the marine debris in the Adriatic Sea, by involving fishing companies, researchers, NGOs, industries, local authorities.
<p><em>The Holy Father will meet twice the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, hold an ecumenical meeting in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre, and sign a joint declaration.</em></p> <p><strong>Pope Francis will pray side-by-side</strong> with Orthodox Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew in Jerusalem in a powerful sign of Christian unity during his May visit to Holy Land, the Vatican said on Thursday.</p> <p><strong>The prayer will take place</strong> in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built over the spots widely believed to be the sites of the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
<p><em>The Holy Father will meet twice the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, hold an ecumenical meeting in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre, and sign a joint declaration.</em></p> <p><strong>Pope Francis will pray side-by-side</strong> with Orthodox Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew in Jerusalem in a powerful sign of Christian unity during his May visit to Holy Land, the Vatican said on Thursday.</p> <p><strong>The prayer will take place</strong> in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built over the spots widely believed to be the sites of the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
<p><em>It is the village of Pyla with more than 1,400 Greek and Turkish residents and the only place on the island where the two live together. Pyla is seen as a symbol of unity.</em></p> <p><strong>It is 40 years since the buffer zone</strong> was established by the United Nations between the Greek and Turkish communities on the island of Cyprus.</p> <p><strong>Much of what is there – like the airport</strong> has been trapped in time as peace initiatives over the four decades have come and gone, evidence of the deep split on the Mediterranean island.</p> <p><strong>It is an area seen only by UN</strong> peacekeepers who have not witnessed a serious incident since 1996. Over the years some corridors have been opened but border controls remain.
<p><em>From assistance at the food pantry to friendship: an important step</em></p> <p><strong>"I volunteer at an emergency food pantry.</strong> Besides distributing food, the sisters there also help people who are about to be evicted from their homes, as well as new immigrants.</p> <p><strong>One day, while I was working in the pantry,</strong> a sister asked if I could drive a woman and her children to their new apartment. I wasn’t familiar with the area and am horrible with directions, so I asked if someone else could do it. She just smiled and pulled me to the other side of the building.
<p><em>From 25th April to 5th May 2014 “Sharing with Africa Madagascar”, the worksite on reciprocity and integral part of the United World Project based on the spirit of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubuntu" target="_blank">"Ubuntu"</a></em></p> <p><strong>From 25th April to 5th May 2014</strong> we will be having the worksite on reciprocity “Sharing with Africa Madagascar”, an integral part of the United World Project – a global project that aims at highlighting and spreading a culture of brotherhood among all.</p> <p><strong>The United World Project was first launched during</strong> the Genfest (Budapest, 1st September 2012) along with the slogan “Let’s Bridge”. From there we moved to the Middle East for the second important step entitled “Be the Bridge”. This event was held last May in the Holy Land, coinciding with 2013 United World Week reaching its climax during a worldwide link-up from Jerusalem.</p>
<p><em>Thursday urged his 1.2 billion strong Cathlic flock to outwardly show the inner joy stemming from their religious faith.</em></p> <p><strong>"I cannot imagine a Christian who does not</strong> know how to smile. May we joyfully witness to our faith," Francis wrote in a Tweet. Over nine million people follow the the Argentinian pontiff's messages on the microblogging website Twitter, which are published in nine languages.</p> <p><strong>During a visit to the Umbrian hilltown</strong> of Assisi last October Francis told enclosed nuns there not to be "joyless".
Economy & Work
Thirty-five years ago a dream was born: the Economy of Communion. In late May Argentina will host an extraordinary celebration where people of all ages will come together to breathe new life into this project and write the future for a different kind of economy.
Lorna Gold, Executive Director of Laudato Si’ Movement, reflects on ten years of the encyclical, analysing how integral ecology is an essential path to global unity and tackling the climate crisis.
Operation Mato Grosso is working on over 100 missions across Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia, all rooted in education, hard work, and solidarity. Jacopo Manara, who has been a volunteer for years, tells us their story.
An interview on communication with Michele Zanzucchi, journalist and writer, former director of Città Nuova, professor of communication at Sophia University Institute and at the Pontifical Gregorian University, and author of around forty books.
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