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| Hillside garden where once there was rainforest. |
If you think that poverty is an issue we must do something
about, then you need to read the book “Tending to Eden” by Scott Sabin. It presents how poverty is inextricably
linked to environmental degradation and that if we are to care for the poor, we
must also take care of the environment. This
became apparent to me after several visits to Haiti. In US we are shielded by government
infrastructure from the effects of environmental degradation, while in Haiti most
people live directly off the land, obtaining water, food, and fuel directly
from the source (streams and wells, the land, and trees). Helping the poor is a mandate common to most
religious beliefs. And to do this, we
must also protect the environment. Another
great source of information mentioned in “Tending to Eden” is the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment which assessed the consequences of ecosystem change for
human well-being.
Bottom line – if you care about the poor, you must take care
of the environment. If your church or
other organization is challenging you to help the poor, challenge your church to
include the environment in that calling.
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| Spring from which people obtain drinking water. |
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| Woman washing clothes at drinking water source (and where livestock are on the banks with access to the water!). |
