Chris Herlinger

With searing memories, new arrivals to Poland from Ukraine find solace and strength in part at church, where they experience the rhythms of prayer, Communion and the recitation of the Divine Liturgy in a common language.

The celebration of the Loretto Earth Network came as U.N. Commission on the Status of Women focused on empowering women and girls in the context of climate change and environmental and disaster risk reduction policies.

The Dominican sisters say "we can stay as long as we need to," said Svitlana Kruchynska, who left Melitopol, Ukraine, with her daughter amid escalating bombing. "But we so want to be home, and for this war to be over."

While refugee transit centers in border cities have provided respite, those who fled the Russian invasion of Ukraine have many challenges, including decisions of whether to stay in Poland, or travel to another country.

Though communications with those in a war zone are difficult, Global Sisters Report has received updates from some women religious ministering in Ukraine. The sisters endure amid a mass exodus of people.

Catholic sisters in U.S. and abroad react to Russia's invasion of Ukraine with fear, resolve and prayers for peace everywhere.

Monday Starter: A new logo for the UISG aims at combining tradition and modernity, past and present, unity and internationality, so that all member congregations can feel the sense of belonging.

Last year, Haiti endured another major earthquake, the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, a worsening security situation, and the pandemic. Catholic sisters and humanitarian workers describe Haiti's current challenges as daunting.

"Our partnership with men and women of color has taught us that those on the margins are the first to lose this access when our democracy fails," the Dominican Sisters of Springfield said in a statement.

Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph, Kentucky, are asking people to write a note, a card or share a children's drawing "to inspire hope and joy" to survivors of recent tornadoes.

Monday Starter: A virtual seminar Jan. 12 will examine how consecrated religious are called to participate in the synodal process, what they are invited to offer to the synod and what they may receive.

To save precious natural resources like the Hudson River Valley, humans must stop claiming dominance over all of creation. "We can’t keep putting man at the top," Sister of Charity Carol De Angelo said during a fall boat tour. "We're very much part of an ecosystem, and it's hard to restructure what is entrenched."

Few years have felt as connected to the previous one as 2021 — largely because the global pandemic of 2020 continued this year. Amid COVID-19 and other challenges, sisters served with commitment and care. Here is a rundown of 2021 as chronicled in Global Sisters Report.

As executive director of New Mexico Interfaith Power & Light, Franciscan Sr. Joan Brown's work focuses on the need to both end environmental damage and find solutions for sustainable energy and employment.

Catholic sisters in the U.S. are working to assist displaced Afghans resettle. Some sisters work directly with refugees. Others are readying places for them to stay. Some are packing toiletries and other needed goods.

Maryknoll Sr. Patricia Ryan's nearly five decades of ministry defending human rights was recently recognized by Peru's National Coordinating Committee for Human Rights. She spoke to GSR about the rights of Indigenous people and exploitation of their land.

Sisters' community-supported agriculture farms allow congregations to live out their values. They also model a just transition toward a more eco-friendly approach to producing and sharing food and providing alternative to mass-produced, profit-driven corporations.

Sisters agree the recent COP26 summit did not go as far as they would have liked, but they plan to keep working toward climate action. "The church has a voice. And it should use that voice," a speaker said during a webinar on the summit. "It's an act of care."

Seven Catholic sister congregations last week announced that they are divesting from fossil fuels as part of what faith-based groups said is the largest single divestment declaration. "We can only uphold the dignity of all when we uphold the dignity of the earth where we live," said Erie Benedictine Sr. Anne McCarthy.