This text is a platform for the clear, urgent and much-needed voices of Indigenous peoples to expose the climate catastrophe through which we are living. These voices can inspire and challenge a common witness to bring change and transformation.
The contributors are uniquely and all too painfully placed to speak to the realities of the onslaught of climate change; the systemic violence of land loss, racism, poverty, and human rights violations; and the continuing legacies of colonization. These issues continue to disproportionately affect Indigenous peoples amongst all peoples.
The messages shared in this volume continue the tradition of Indigenous peoples in the ecumenical movement. They remind churches of our vital role in bringing change, and also of our responsibilities for the sins and structures that our unity must dismantle if it is to be a credible witness against the legacies and practices of colonialism today.
Juan C. Chavez-Quispe is an Aymara theologian and anthropologist serving as a member of the Ecumenical Indigenous Peoples Reference Group. He has taught at Universidad Mayor de San Andrés and ISEAT Institute.
Rev. Shane Goldie is a Cree/Métis, 2-spirited ordained minister in the United Church of Canada (UCC). Rev. Goldie is located on Treaty 6 land and the homeland of the Métis in northern Alberta, Canada. He is originally from Treaty 4 in southern Saskatchewan.
Hana Kirreh is an Indigenous Palestinian freelance consultant, trainer, and peace-builder activist. She was born in Bethlehem and lives in Jerusalem with her family.
Rev. Vavauni Ljaljegean was born among the Paiwan People, one of Taiwan’s Indigenous nations, in Pingtung, South Taiwan. She currently serves an Indigenous church in South Taiwan.
Dr Atola Longkumer is a member of the Naga Indigenous peoples of the Indo-Myanmar region of northeast India. She is currently on the faculty of the United Theological College, Bangalore, India.
Prof. Dr Anne Pattel-Gray was formerly head of the School of Indigenous Studies at the University of Divinity, Melbourne Australia. Currently, she is a member of the Indigenous Advisory committee of the Institute of Indigenous Knowledge at Melbourne University and a Fellow of the Wesley Centre in Melbourne.
Lempang Phom is a young Phom Naga Indigenous theologian from Nagaland, India. He comes from the Council of Baptist Churches in Northeast India. He is currently preparing for his doctoral studies.
Jocabed Reina Solano Miselis is originally from the Gunadule nation and Panamanian. She is currently director of Indigenous Memory and a doctoral student in theological studies at the North American Institute of Indigenous Theological Studies.
The Rev. Prof. Dr Patricia StandTal Clarke is Sámi and Eastern Band Cherokee (Wolf Clan). She lives in Phoenix, Arizona, USA, and is a didanawisgi (medicine priest). She serves as Minister of Wholeness at Shadow Rock United Church of Christ (southwest conference). She has served as a priest with the United Nations, World Health Organization and the World Council of Churches.
Chief Edmund Wayne Stuurman, born in Bethelsdorp, Port Elizabeth, is the Senior Khoi Leader of the House of Klaas and Dawid Stuurman and the Gamtouer Ethnic Community. Chief Stuurman continues to fight for the preservation and recognition of Khoi heritage and the Gamtouer Ethnic Community in South Africa.
Dr Fransina Yoteni holds the first doctoral degree in educational philosophy within the Evangelical Christian Church in Papua. She teaches at STFT GKI Izaak Samuel Kijne in Jayapura and serves as a guest lecturer at several universities both domestically and internationally. Dr Yoteni aims to be an inspirational role model for women in Papua and Indonesia as she advocates for educational advancement and the development of quality, integrity-driven female leaders.
