The January 2009 first-of-its-kind delegation to Nicaragua is part of the ELCA’s ongoing efforts to promote environmental awareness and stewardship among congregations and members. To learn firsthand how people in poverty grapple with their changing climate, the delegation met with church leaders, nongovernmental organizations and government officials, as well as rural communities on Nicaragua’s Pacific and Atlantic coasts.
With a grant from the ELCA World Hunger Appeal, the trip was sponsored by the ELCA Washington Office, which advocates for legislation that includes financial and technical assistance to help impoverished nations adapt to climate change.
Learn more about the delegation at the ELCA Washington Office Web site.
At first glance nothing about the small vegetable plot seems remarkable. Drip irrigation hoses line neat rows of staked tomatoes. Corn stands tall and full under a hot sun. Beans and cucumbers lay heavy on vines, and the fragrance of a late summer garden fills the air. Only it’s not summer, it’s late January — the height of the dry season in western Nicaragua. And unlike this oasis, all of the other fields the ELCA delegation passed along miles of crater-pocked roads lay fallow.
We were in Nicaragua to study how climate change affects people living in poverty. We traveled to the community of El Bonete to listen to people’s stories and hear about their struggles to adapt to a changing climate.
Luisa Hermanda (left), a community leader in El Bonete, stands with an unidentified woman during a break from conversation with the ELCA delegation to Nicaragua. She shared a map (below) of the community’s natural resources with the ELCA delegation. 
The rest of this article is only available to subscribers.
© 2013 Augsburg Fortress, Publishers
