website: kaburo kobia
Visit: Growing and protecting church forests in Ethiopia
With deep thanks to Tewaney Seifesellassie of EOC-DICAC, Rev Dr Sam Kobia and OikoDiplomatique and Athena Peralta and the World Council of Churches for making this eye-opening journey possible.
“It has been an experience of a lifetime to visit Ethiopia as a guest of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church’s Development and Inter-Church Aid Commission, together with Nkatha Kobia and Susan Mwangi from Kenya.” Dr Alan Channer said of the visit
The delegation was received by four diverse churches, on a round trip of about 900km, to learn how and why over 35,000 Ethiopian Orthodox churches are conserving and managing forest on their land, and at the same time interacting in mutually beneficial ways with surrounding communities.
These Church Forests can be true sanctuaries. They are sustained by unbroken lines of theological reflection on humanity’s place in Creation, going back two millenia. At a time of impending global ecological crisis, the Church Forests of Ethiopia have a message and example to offer the world.
OikoDiplomatique’s visit aimed to explore how this model can be replicated in Kenya and beyond, ensuring that faith-based conservation continues to flourish across Africa and the world.
By Dr Alan Channer
February 2025
Early February 2025, a delegation from OikoDiplomatique visited Ethiopia as guests of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church’s Development and Inter-Church Aid Commission (EOC-DICAC). Dr Alan Channer, Nkatha Kobia and Susan Mwangi were privileged to witness firsthand how the Ethiopian Orthodox Church has cultivated a remarkable model of conservation with a vast network of 35,000 Church Forests.