Lord, thank you for 2021. I put my 2022 in your hands.
As we exit 2021 we intentionally pray with gratitude for good news from this year.
In 2021, The price of the batteries that power electric vehicles continued to fall, marking a roughly 90 percent decrease since 2010, a continuing trend that will soon make EVs less expensive than gasoline vehicles. The average price of lithium-ion battery packs fell to $132 per kilowatt-hour in 2021, down 6 percent from $140 per kilowatt-hour the previous year and should hit an average of $100 per kilowatt-hour as soon as 2024!
God, we give you thanks for technology that provides us a stepping stone to a brighter, greener future.
Australia - the world’s leader in greenhouse gas emissions by capita from coal - is likely to achieve their main electricity grid becoming coal-free by 2043 after a report from the Australian Energy Market Operator announced the country’s coal-fired power plants are likely to shut almost three times faster than expected. Across the ocean in Canada, Ontario’s northernmost First Nation has switched on a 300 kilowatt solar power station, which frees them from the burden of flying diesel by charter plane 500 miles up the Canadian coastline. The station will generate money, power, and jobs for the community of Fort Severn, and reduce their consumption of fuel for both electricity and fuel transportation by around 400,000 liters of diesel a year.
For conviction in transitioning to clean energy, and for communities near and far that adopt green solutions, we praise you, Lord.
An increase in government aid prompted by the coronavirus pandemic will cut poverty in the U.S. nearly in half this year from pre-pandemic levels and push the share of Americans in poverty to the lowest level on record. The number of poor Americans is expected to fall by nearly 20 million from 2018 levels, a decline of almost 45 percent.
God, we pray for the flourishing of your beloved around the globe, and that each of us might work diligently to reduce poverty in all its forms.
A Cuban couple and their daughter have resettled in a small Serbian town after fleeing Cuba five years ago, finding home in Lajkovac, a town about 80 kilometers (50 miles) southwest of the Serbian capital, Belgrade. They have managed to make friends and socialize despite long hours at work — and Gonzales also has taken accounting and Serbian language classes. “We have our friends and we enjoy each other’s company or birthday parties....We get along with everyone,” she said. In the U.S., Bilal and Humaira - two of nearly 1,000 Afghans who have resettled in San Antonio this fall following the United States troop withdrawal from Afghanistan that led to a humanitarian crisis - are discovering a new home in Texas. Bilal and Humaira say they didn’t anticipate the generosity that has helped put food on the table of their sparsely furnished apartment or get them to appointments and job interviews around town. But it keeps coming — including in the form of hospitality and friendship.
For refugees around the globe, we pray they might find home, and despite the challenges faced when uprooted, discover loving friends, meaningful work, and a community.
In Philadelphia, the Hunting Park neighborhood is facing multiple challenges caused by climate change and environmental injustice, including extreme summer heat, low levels of tree canopy cover and hazardous health conditions. Yet in the midst of this community’s struggles, people of faith have stepped forward to take hopeful action. We want to tell this story! Your help is vital! If you can make a donation of any amount it will help us pay for the production and development of this faith-based climate activism series.
As Canada’s 44th Parliament gets to work, take some time to welcome your MP, thank them for their work, and encourage them to support climate action, Indigenous justice, and refugee resettlement. Christians are called to be salt and light in the public sphere. Consider joining us in extending a welcoming hand to Members of Parliament, encouraging compassionate collaboration on justice issues.
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