Global Action Lived Locally: A Case Study from Ireland

In 2002 the Sisters of Mercy in the Nigerian Region, in collaboration with the Catholic Diocese of Yola, built a house in the village of Kofari, 8 kms from the city of Yola, where they offer a model of compassionate, earth-friendly and hospitable living, grounded in the bio-region. The centre is called Sabon Rayuwa (New Life) and is a place where:

Sabon Raywa

• Earth ways and Earth wisdom are lived and celebrated
• The Earth story is learned and studied as a source of inspiration and motivation for all being and acting
• Guidance and help is discerning one's way of life within the context of the whole planet is offered
• Food is sacred and special attention is given to the choices we make in light of eco-justice
• There is an open door for all who wish to live with courtesy, respect and reverence before all of life.

This initiative is grounded in a theology of right relationships with God, self, others and the cosmos and a growing awareness of the inter-connectedness of the whole community of life and our place in it. It is a compassionate response to our impoverished planet earth and her people who cry for mercy. It is based on our belief that:

• It is poor people who suffer most from the environmental crisis, their land is being stripped, their towns are being made into toxic dumps, their health is endangered, their jobs are effected, their subsistence from the land is threatened etc
• Earth's resources are finite and no species has the right to endanger future generations by claiming these resources as their own
• The Preferential option for the poor and the poor earth is the Great Work of our time

Maire McGann, Director of Sabon Rayuwa (New Life) Centre

The Centre works in collaboration with the local communities in some of the villages and in the small Christian communities in Yola city in developing an organic farm which serves as a model for ecological agricultural production in the area. It is now linked to a UNDP programme Songhai International in the Benin Republic. Staff of the centre have been trained at Songhai International and the Director Fr. N Nzamujo is a Consultant/Adviser to Sabon Rayuwa.