Photo by Jeff Ackley
Many Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) issues are complex and OFS members may hold differing opinions on them. The organizations listed below are not to be considered as necessarily speaking for FVC on each particular issue nor are the organizations necessarily endorsed by FVC; FVC remains silent in this regard as a matter of policy. The organizations are included so that individuals may have access to a wide range of sources to advocate for the causes with which they as individuals agree and believe to be supportive of Gospel & Franciscan values.

Great News: GCCM Canada is up and running!

December 2, 2019 - Faith and the Common Good
As Christians worldwide celebrate the Season of Creation, and pray for care and renewal of our natural environment, the Catholic community in Canada is mobilizing to protect the planet by establishing a Canadian chapter of the Global Catholic Climate Movement (GCCM Canada).
The newly formed Canadian chapter will connect Canadian Catholics to a vibrant Global Catholic Climate Movement of 650+ Catholic member organizations, ranging from large international networks to local religious orders, plus parishes, grassroots leaders and thousands of lay Catholics, dedicated to responding to Pope Francis’ “Laudato Si’” call to take urgent action against the injustice of climate destabilization. 
“The launch of GCCM Canada is a big deal that we are proud to support,” said Lucy Cummings, Executive Director of Faith & the Common Good. “Roman Catholics are the largest religious denomination in Canada.  We need strong Canadian Catholic voices to be part of the climate conversation. We must link our faith communities together to care for and protect our common home.”
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The Apparent Project advocates passionately for the adoption of true orphans. They also believe that preventing child abandonment by economically empowering Haitian families is the best way to rescue children. This is why they have created opportunities for impoverished parents to earn an income through their artisan program. They train each parent in a specialized skill, such as jewelry making, bookbinding, sewing, or another craft, building relationships along the way. Through addressing educational needs, homelessness, joblessness, nutritional problems, medical needs, and building emotionally and spiritually enriching relationships, they are trying to bring dignity and wholeness to the whole person, strengthening each to be a support and encouragement to others.
Chalice is a Catholic Sponsorship Programme. Our mission is to “bring Christ to the poor and the poor to Christ”. Inspired by Christ’s love and compassion, Chalice works with local groups to create, support and increase awareness to education, health and family livelihood. 
Click here to read the latest
​Chalice Impact Report.
CATHII's work can be divided into three main categories:
    1) Research: the reality of trafficking; Canadian and international laws related to trafficking; the creation of guides on legislation; lobbying and the clients for prostitution.
    2) Education: the creation of training sessions for action; raising awareness sessions and lobbying.
    3) Victims: Hosting and supporting them.
CATHII, Comité d’action contre la traite humaine interne et internationale aims to work in solidarity to put an end to human trafficking at home and abroad because of their fundamental beliefs in dignity and respect of the individual and everyone's right to a quality life. CATHII consists of eight religious communities, members of UNANIMA International including Franciscans International and the Association for the religious rights of women.
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives is an independent, non-partisan research institute concerned with issues of social, economic and environmental justice. Founded in 1980, the CCPA is one of Canada’s leading progressive voices in public policy debates.
The Canadian Council for Refugees is a national non-profit umbrella organization committed to the rights and protection of refugees and other vulnerable migrants in Canada and around the world and to the settlement of refugees and immigrants in Canada.
You can take action here.
Caritas Internationalis reflects the social mission and core values of the Catholic Church to serve the poor and to promote charity and justice throughout the world. They believe in dignity, solidarity and stewardship on behalf of the world’s most vulnerable people. Development and Peace is the organisation in Canada.
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Change.org is a global petition platform, empowering people everywhere to create the change they want to see.
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Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) is a Christian organisation working for religious freedom through advocacy and human rights, in the pursuit of justice, lasting culturual, social and political change. CSW also aims to mobilise the general public to pray, protest and provide on behalf of persecuted Christians. By doing so, they provide solidarity and support to those in need.

Their advocacy work is used to influence the legislation, policies, attitudes and behaviours which reinforce religious discrimination and persecution. CSW's evidence-based reports are widely used and cited by the Foreign Office, US State Department, US Commission on International Religious Freedom, UN and others on a regular basis. They regularly brief officials from the European Council, the European Commission, current and future EU presidencies, MEPs, and NGOs on the situations in all of their key countries of focus.
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Fair Trade is a a global organization working to secure a better deal for farmers and workers. It's about making principles of fairness and decency mean something in the marketplace.
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Fair Trade Vancouver is a non-profit organization that seeks to increase awareness, availability, and sales of Fair Trade products in Metro Vancouver.
Forest Peoples Programme (FPP) advocates an alternative vision of how forests should be managed and controlled, based on respect for the rights of the peoples who know them best. They work with forest peoples in South America, Africa, and Asia, to help them secure their rights, build up their own organisations and negotiate with governments and companies as to how economic development and conservation are best achieved on their lands.
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Free the Slaves is dedicated to ending slavery worldwide. Slavery flourishes when people cannot meet their basic needs, and lack economic opportunity, education, healthcare and honest government.  A holistic approach is required to eradicate slavery forever. See the work they do.
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Grist has been providing environmental news and commentary with a wry twist since 1999 — which, to be frank, was way before most people cared about such things. Now that green is in every headline and on every store shelf (bamboo hair gel, anyone?), Grist aims to be the one site you can count on to help you make sense of it all.
Island Catholic News is published as an independent Catholic newspaper, dedicated to news coverage of progressive developments in the universal Catholic church, embracing a philosophy of Catholicism likened to James Joyce's Here Comes Everyone - inclusive, democratic and prophetic in spirituality.
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Just Coffee® is a volunteer-run project of the British Columbia & Yukon Regional Council of the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace. The project was initiated by Development and Peace in the Vancouver Archdiocese in 1998. In promoting or selling Fair Trade products, Just Coffee promotes and exercises key principles of Catholic Social Teaching.
PictureA Canadian Foundation
The KAMI Foundation was founded in 2009. Located in Ontario, it operates exclusively in Haiti. Its goal is to foster the use of alternative cooking fuels and support the technology and agriculture this requires. In so doing KAMI aims to foster small business development, improve the quality of life, especially for women, and help protect the environment.
Pace e Bene helps transform lives by promoting a world with dignity, justice and peace for all. Their programming offers tools to envision nonviolent alternatives and to put them into practice. For Pace e Bene, nonviolence a way of life. Since its founding in 1989, they work with individuals, organizations and movements to strengthen their efforts to end war, protect human rights, challenge injustice, and to meet today’s profound spiritual task: to build a more just and peaceful world.
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RESULTS Canada is a national network of volunteers committed to creating the political will to end global poverty and needless suffering, and to demonstrate that individuals make a difference when they exercise their political influence.
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SumOfUs is a movement of consumers, workers and shareholders speaking with one voice to counterbalance the growing power of large corporations. Join them on their journey as they seek to make the world a better place for themselves, our children and all who share our planet.
Under The Same Sun (UTSS), a Canadian Christian charity exists to promote, via advocacy and education, the wellbeing of persons often marginalized and misunderstood. They specifically focus on those who are often disadvantaged by disability and/or poverty. UTSS is driven by the belief that all persons have intrinsic value as they are created in the image of God and accordingly, that all persons are worthy of love, support and, above all, dignity. Current efforts are focused on the crisis of persons with albinism in Tanzania.
As the principal United Nations office mandated to promote and protect human rights for all, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) helps empower people to realize their rights and and assists those responsible for upholding such rights in ensuring that they are implemented.
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    We aim to keep this list regularly updated with your help. We invite you to let us know of any organizations you feel we might add or remove and why.

    Pax et Bonum,

    FVC Team.