In many countries social security has been dismantled. In terms of climate change, the point of no return has come very close. Some say, it has passed already. The concept of Europe as an actor for peace and reconciliation, for prosperity and social security has become weak. Self-interests of EU members supersede the care for the common good for all. Analysis like these make many people lament that in the past many things were better.
And then, on top of it, came the Corona Pandemic, which seems to have increased the crisis. But is this really true? For some people it is true. Many people lost their jobs. And globally injustice has increased. In the western world, most people have access to vaccination. In the global south, people do not. Reaching the sustainable development goals suffered a set-back. But, all in all, is it really true that the Covid19 Pandemic exacerbated the problems. In some cases yes, but in many cases it just revealed the anyhow existing (systemic) problems in our societies.
There is no time to lament about the past. The challenge is not restauration, it is renewal. Just as the apostle Paul says in the letter to the Romans: “Besides this, you know what now it is, how it is high time now for you have to wake up from sleep.” (Rom 13:11)
To a certain extend, one can also hear laments in Oikosnet Europe: In the past, there were many more members, its financial basis was more solid. There was more participation and more interaction between centers. The importance of adult education and the education towards responsible citizens was more recognized. But again, no time for laments! It is high time for drawing the right conclusions from the crisis and for discerning the signs of the time.
Oikosnet has set some measures to this effect since its last General Assembly. It has listened to its members, especially those from central and eastern Europe, in order to increase active participation. It has set priority themes to address injustices and crisis in our societies. These priorities are: the Green Deal, digitalization and education/formation. On these priorities we want to concentrate in the near future in order to contribute to the public discourse from a European and Christian perspective and to have an impact in our societies, as modest as it might be. As Sven Giegold, Member of the European Parliament has said in our last virtual General Assembly with regard to the Green Deal: Now is the time after the Corona crisis to ensure that the restart is not just an economic restauration. The re-start has to change the system for the planet to survive. On all three priotity issues, we are looking for our specific role and we are looking more intensively for partners in this work. First contacts have been made.
These first steps towards renewal and our further development will be on the agenda of the forthcoming General Assembly in Sigtuna, 6 to 10 October this year. The Oikosnet Board is looking forward to the insights and contributions of its members.
