DMD Themes
Sustainable Development
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Sustainable development promotes the God-given dignity of each person and enhances the capacity of persons and communities to be subjects in the shaping of their own future. The importance of sustainability of the churches is also recognized as a central issue for mission and development.
The LWF Guiding Principles for Sustainable Development (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader) 
, adopted in 2000, articulate a holistic approach in addressing general principles of sustainable development as well as specific dimensions of human rights, gender, environment and communication.
Capacity Building
Carpentry training. © LWF/S. Lim |
LWF/DMD understands that sustainable development is as much a process as a goal, leading to a life of dignity for people in relationship to the overall context of their community and the environment that sustains them.
Within the context of its project work, DMD organizes and supports workshops and seminars at regular intervals to strengthen the competence of the LWF member churches for sustainable development initiatives.
Participation and Empowerment
Empowerment: controling the use of their own natural resources and their own sustainable development. © LWF/J. Schep |
In many places, church-sponsored development strategies go against the dominant market-oriented development plans and activities of governments and global economic forces. Churches are working with poor villages and marginalized communities to empower them to help themselves, to control the use of their own natural resources (land, forests, water) and thereby to control their own sustainable development.
Advocacy
Development is a process of change by which the basic needs and human rights of individuals and communities in any given society are realized while, at the same time, protecting the basic needs and human rights of other communities and future generations,
Individual Lutheran communities may not have the political clout to influence their governments or to prevent the impact of globalization. The Lutheran communion through joint advocacy with the ecumenical network can stand together for the rights of the poor and marginalized, and can also strengthen local communities by promoting awareness of human rights and supporting local advocacy initiatives.
Sustainable Ministries of Word and Sacrament
Concern for sustainability reaches beyond particular projects or programs and points to the need for the whole communion to work together, interdependently, so that the ministry of Word and Sacrament may be lived out in the life of the churches in a sustainable way. It also calls for responsible stewardship among churches so as to create and develop sustainable structures that do not make church ministries vulnerable to financial crisis.
Regional consultations of member churches now include this important concern, sharing their experiences, critical reflections and strategies. Churches and related agencies are together addressing the issues of church structures, stewardship, income generation, resource sharing and mutual accountability.
For further information please contact:
DMD Director
Rev. Dr Kjell Nordstokke
E-mail: kno@lutheranworld.org
Administrative Assistant
Stefan Niederberger
E-mail: sni@lutheranworld.org
