UN Forum, Leadership Gathering, Rostered Ministers Gathering

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Dear friends, In July, I had the chance travel to New York City with the Rev. Everdith (Evie) Landrau, ELCA program director for hunger networking, and four leaders from across the ELCA to attend the United Nations High-Level Political Forum on the Sustainable Development Goals. We spent an exhausting and amazing week learning together by attending sessions, talking with ambassadors and other advocates, and thinking about how we could take our learnings back to our communities. Being together in this space was a powerful reminder of how far we have to go in ending hunger, but it was also a powerful reminder that we are not alone. Thank you for being part of this journey with us and a living reminder that we are called to do this work together with God, who strengthens us. We are already actively planning new activities for the coming year. To read reflections on the event's impact, visit the ELCA World Hunger blog. May God continue to bless us so that we may be blessings to one another and our neighbors. In Christ, Ryan P. Cumming, Ph.D. Director, Education and Networks

REFLECTING ON THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH-LEVEL POLITICAL FORUM Rev. Brianna Lloyd, currently serving as pastor of Ka Hana O Ke Akua United Church of Christ on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, graduated from Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary's Center for Climate Justice and Faith, which is supported in part by ELCA World Hunger. Read her reflection from the UN Forum on the ELCA World Hunger Blog.

SAVE THE DATE FOR THE ELCA WORLD HUNGER LEADERSHIP GATHERING Synod hunger team chairs and other key ELCA World Hunger leaders in your synod are invited to the ELCA World Hunger Leadership Gathering, Feb. 1-4, 2024, at the Hyatt Regency Houston Intercontinental Airport hotel. Registration will open this month! The theme is "Embracing Hope — Taking Action — Moving Forward, 50 Years of Faithfulness: Working Toward a Future Without Hunger." For questions about the event and who can attend, reach out to hunger@elca.org.

ELCA WORLD HUNGER EDUCATION AND NETWORKING GRANTS We are excited to announce that the 2023 ELCA World Hunger Education and Networking Grant application cycle is now open! For more information, including the full request for proposals, and an application form, visit blogs.elca.org/worldhunger/edandnet.

ELCA WORLD HUNGER AT THE ROSTERED MINISTERS GATHERING Despite the intense heat this July, over 700 ELCA leaders gathered in Phoenix, Ariz., for the Rostered Ministers Gathering. The Rev. Everdith (Evie) Landrau, program director for hunger networking, conducted a workshop on the work and service of ELCA World Hunger where leaders shared stories about lifting up our common work. Namely, Bishop Amy Current of the Southeastern Iowa Synod highlighted the 50th RAGBRAI (Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa) Bishops Against Hunger Ride. All three ELCA bishops in Iowa participated in the event, which raised $50,000 for ELCA World Hunger and showcased 50 local antihunger ministries along the way. Solveig Muus, director of the Lutheran Advocacy Ministry Arizona and co-chair of the Grand Canyon Synod hunger team, related how both groups partner with ELCA World Hunger and shared tips for strengthening synod hunger teams. Reach out to Evie Landrau at hunger@elca.org to learn more about these ideas or to bring the work of ELCA World Hunger to your congregation!

Understanding hunger — and working to end it — means seeing the many ways hunger and poverty intersect with other issues, including climate change, food production, access to housing, racial justice and gender justice. Check out "Hunger at the Crossroads," a webinar series hosted by ELCA World Hunger, to explore these intersections and the ways we fulfill God's promise of a just world where all are fed.

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT: CULLY NEIGHBORHOOD OUTREACH Cully Neighborhood Outreach, a synod-authorized worshiping community (SAWC) of the Oregon Synod and an ELCA World Hunger partner, brings together English speakers and primary-Spanish speakers in the Cully neighborhood of Portland to advocate for policy change that prevents displacement of BIPOC and immigrant families and imagines community-controlled space and affordable housing. Doña Bertha, a soft-spoken older adult, lives in a trailer park in the Cully area. She and Jazmin Velez, a neighbor and a leader of the outreach group, began talking about the unjust treatment they experienced: no garbage pickup, sudden rent hikes, shouted threats, racist treatment from the park owner, etc. When Bertha learned that multiple residents were interested in gathering to talk about these pressures, she offered her mobile home as a meeting place. Now a neighborhood leader, she hosts meetings in her home and has been elected to the new-resident committee. Kym, another Cully resident, expressed gratitude toward those who called and texted her with an invitation to participate in Cully Neighborhood Outreach: "I felt like my voice mattered." Share your ministry's news by emailing hunger@elca.org!

Share images of your community in action! Email pictures and videos of your ELCA World Hunger activities to hunger@elca.org or tag @ELCAWorldHunger on social media.

Featured Resources "God's New Creation" Vacation Bible School Download or order ELCA World Hunger's newest VBS program and supplemental materials › "LIFELINES," SPRING 2023 Read stories of ELCA World Hunger's impact around the world › VIRTUAL TOUR OF MINISTRIES IN MALAWI Learn more about the Malawi ministries supported by ELCA World Hunger and Lutheran Disaster Response › HOUSING GUIDE Download our new guide, "Housing: A Practical Guide for Learning, Advocating and Building" ›

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