6th June 2026

The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) said in a statement on Thursday that Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Colombia are the world's most neglected displacement crises. It noted that nationalism and rearmament campaigns were the focus of most wealthy countries rather than humanitarian crises.  Sudan has more than 9 million internally displaced people (equivalent to the population of Austria or Spain) with a further four million Sudanese having fled to neighbouring countries.  There are also around 19.5 million people in Sudan suffering from hunger.  NRC chief Jan Egeland said, "Just as needs in Sudan skyrocketed last year and famine kept spreading, the funding was cut." According to the NRC only 27.4% of the funding needed for DRC last year had been secured, leaving more than 21 million people in need. Egeland commented that wealthier European countries "have become much more inward-looking, more nationalist. Rearmament is now an absolute priority because we have to ensure our own security in Europe. There is Putin threatening us, and so on, but people then forget that there will be pandemics, migratory movements and enormous loss of human life if we don't invest in hope on other continents."  This week, UK Members of Parliament expressed their fury as Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper announced sweeping cuts to overseas aid in order to fund the biggest increase in defence spending since the Cold War.  Last week France's minister for international partnerships, Éléonore Caroit, made it clear that France's aid policy would be aimed at benefitting France.  She said, "the kinds of projects that get funded will increasingly be shaped by European [or French] commercial interests and competitiveness priorities, rather than by development needs or partner-country preference."  

You can read the NRC's The world’s most neglected displacement crises report here.

Loving God, forgive us that we have neglected and forgotten people with some of the most basic needs.  Forgive us that we have created situations of conflict where people go hungry, have no access to medical care, and are even forced from their homes.  Forgive us when we fail to love and care for our neighbour in need. Loving God be alongside all who are displaced from homes and livelihood's, dependant upon the mercy of others. Lead them to places of safety, acceptance, welcome and care. We thank you for aid agencies and their staff who work, often at risk to themselves, to feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, and heal the sick. May those who benefit most from the way we have organised the world economy have compassion upon those who have benefited least, knowing that what we do for the least of people we do for Christ himself.    In Christ's name we pray.  Amen.

For decades coastal mangrove swamps had been rapidly declining as they were cleared for fish farms and housing. From the 1980s to 2010, over 12,000 sq km (4,600 sq miles) of mangroves were cleared or destroyed across Asia, Africa and the Americas - an area the size of Jamaica. Mangroves are an important carbon sink soaking-up five times more carbon dioxide than land-based forests.  In addition, their tangled roots dissipate the power of waves protecting coastal communities from storm surges and tsunamis.  However, a new study shows that since 2010 the world has been gaining more mangroves than it has been losing. Improved legal protections and increased public awareness of their importance, has been major factors in their recovery. They also have a remarkable capacity to regenerate naturally once people stop chopping them down. Restoration efforts over decades have helped degraded forests to recover, but the big change has come from the natural expansion of mangroves in many parts of the world following drops in deforestation.  The study also found that many existing forests were actually becoming healthier. Since the 1980s, the proportion of closed canopy mangroves, the richest and most carbon-dense, has grown by nearly 20%. 

You can read the research here.

Loving God, you are worthy of praise

from every creature.

You have created the world

with its complexity of inter-related ecosystems,

the movement of the oceans and the seasons.

How wonderful and marvellous you are.

You are the giver of all good things

for you have provided for all that sustains life

in this world and even when earthly life is over.

Praise and glory be to you O Lord. 

We thank you for the gift of life.

We thank you for food and homes.

We thank you for good families and good friends.

We thank you for challenges

and all that gives us as sense of achievement and fulfilment.

We thank you for all that gives us joy.

Above all we thank you for your Son, Jesus Christ 

and for the living presence of the Holy Spirit.

All praise and glory be to you heavenly Father.  Amen