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Conservation up the food chain

The Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus is a small, agile bird of prey which can be seen ‘praying’ in the air. While searching for its next meal, it hovers silently, head bowed over a field, then suddenly blitzes downward to catch a field mouse or vole. Once emblematic of the Dutch landscape, kestrels are now in steady decline. This is largely due to intensive agriculture, which makes the land unsuitable for kestrels and their main sources of prey. Ironically, kestrels can actually help farmers by eating ‘pests’ like large insects, rodents and small fruit-eating birds. To help this iconic species, A Rocha Netherlands is taking the wider ecosystem into account.

In Zwolle, the beautifully flowering hay meadows at the bottom of the Schellerdijk River are mowed in mid-June. Some of the clippings are left lying on the ground, which, year after year, the local A Rocha Netherlands group use to build ‘hooiruiters’ or hay drying racks.

This clever structure is made of three long sticks placed together in a pyramid shape with grass piled up between them. In the past, this was a common practice to dry the grass so that it could be stored as hay until winter. These days, conservationists do this in nature reserves to create a place for mice to gather in the grass and hay. These mice provide welcome food for kestrels in the area, as well as Little Owls Athene noctua and Barn Owls Tyto alba. 

A Rocha Netherlands is also hanging nest boxes for breeding pairs of kestrels, with one in Zwolle and another in Utrecht. In Zwolle, the box is still empty, but in Utrecht, chicks were ringed this summer! Conserving these raptors, who are top predators, will have a positive ripple effect on the wider ecosystem.  

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The river, our neighbour

Who is my neighbour? A Rocha Costa Rica asked this biblical question when they established their intentional community, Casa Adobe, just a short train ride away from the capital city, San Jose. From the community’s beginning over a decade ago, the founding members recognized that neighbours are human and non-human, and a neighbourhood isn’t just the street we live on but also our watershed and ecosystem.

One of A Rocha Costa Rica’s most neglected neighbours is the nearby Virilla River. Locals remember swimming and fishing in the Virilla, but today they ‘live with their backs to the river’. Urbanization has hidden the river from view, leading to pollution, neglect and a degraded riverine forest. A Rocha Costa Rica is restoring this connection, inviting neighbours young and old to clean up the river and advocate for the river’s recovery.

Neighbourliness goes both ways: the community at Casa Adobe cares for the river, and the river provides beauty and belonging. It is a place where nature resists being crushed by urbanization, and plants, trees and birds find refuge. But it’s also painful to see the degree to which humans have polluted the river with rubbish and sewage.

To care for the Virilla River, A Rocha Costa Rica hosts picnics along its banks, plants trees, cleans rubbish and addresses the root causes of its pollution. Simple projects like A Rocha’s community composting workshops reduce the amount of waste created in the first place. A water-wise grey water system at Casa Adobe recycles clean water into their vegetable garden. They are also encouraging the intervention of local governments to create alternative systems for water treatment instead of allowing wastewater to flow into the river.

This vision of neighbourly love extends to the entire watershed through A Rocha’s conservation activities at their other centre, Casa Nube, which is located upriver in the heart of the cloud forest. Their dream is to one day reach the wetlands where these waters meet the ocean. Stay tuned for more stories from A Rocha Costa Rica’s journey! 

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 A Rocha Australia – A season of change and growth

This August, A Rocha Australia gathered as a Board and community, reflecting together on their journey so far and looking ahead with hope. It was a time marked by honesty, gratitude, and a sense that God is preparing for a new season of change and growth. 

What stood out most was the deep faith and perseverance of those around the table. Many Board members have carried heavy responsibilities for years, often balancing both governance and hands-on tasks, yet their commitment to creation care has never wavered. Today, the team is changing with some of the members stepping down and new coming in with fresh energy and vision for the future. 

One of the most exciting developments is in church engagement. A Rocha Australia is preparing to pilot a project with five churches as a first step towards a uniquely Australian version of Eco Church. As Sally Shaw beautifully put it: “I feel the church in Australia (especially evangelicals) is just starting to remove its ‘blind fold’ and as a result is ready to embrace an Australian version of the eco church.” 

This vision is already finding a wider audience. At the Baptist World Congress in Brisbane, A Rocha Australia hosted a stall, and Julia led two workshops, sharing stories of A Rocha locally and globally, and connecting with delegates from around the world. 

It is clear that God is at work, opening doors and building momentum. With prayer and support, the seeds planted over the past decade are ready to bear fruit for A Rocha Australia.