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Micro to Macro

The A Rocha story is big, colourful and complicated, spanning over forty years, six continents, a whole host of humans and other species and more work than seems possible for the dedicated but relatively few staff and volunteers who carry it out. So each year we try and tell it through a different lens, weaving the same threads together in a new way. We’d like to introduce you to our theme for 2025: Micro to macro. 

All conservation – no matter the scale – plays its role in creation care. Great or tiny, every living thing matters to the Lord. From learning about the little mushrooms in the Czech Republic to restoring and protecting West Bugwe forest in Uganda, from influencing the global church to nursing birds with broken wings, A Rocha is involved in projects of all sizes, minuscule, small, large, vast and global. 

We envision a future where life on Earth – from the tiniest insect to the largest mammal – is valued, protected, and sustained for generations to come. 

Through this year, we’ll be bringing you stories from across the scale. In the meantime, do look at our campaign page here.  

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Join our virtual Lent book club!

Wednesdays from 5 March to 9 April from 8pm to 9pm GMT. 

What does the cross have to do with how we live in Creation now and our expectations of eternity? How does it transform our relationship with God, each other, and the wider world?  You are warmly invited to be part of a six-week Lent group exploring what the Bible has to say about the whole story of the cross, based on “The Whole Easter Story” by Jo Swinney (BRF’s Lent Book for 2025). Join others from around the world for honest conversation, prayer and encouragement to go deeper in your life with God in the lead up to Easter.   This study will be hosted by Jo Swinney and Jo Herbert-James (A Rocha UK), with guest contributors from others in the A Rocha family and beyond.  Book your free place 
Week 1 (5 March) The Whole Story  Guest contributor: Rev Dr Dave Bookless UK 
Week 2 (12 March) God & people  Guest contributor: Sylvia Muia, Kenya 
Week 3 (19 March) God & creation  Guest contributor: Mico Salas, Philippines 
Week 4 (26 March) Human relationships  Guest contributor: Dr Rod Wilson, Canada 
Week 5 (2 April) People & creation  Kuki Rokhum, India 
Week 6 (9 April) Now & what is to come  Jocabed Solano, Panama 
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Monitoring Tatalu’s water quality

When you imagine a river, what do you see? Perhaps you hear the sound of water crashing over rocks or notice the clarity of the stream, revealing fish swimming along its current. Rivers like the Little Campbell River hold a quiet kind of power by offering a peaceful escape, a break from the digital chaos of modern life. 

Known as Tatalu to the Semiahmoo First Nation, the Little Campbell River’s watershed is home to diverse wildlife, including some endangered species. Maintaining the health of this river is crucial, not only for its ecosystem but also for activities like shellfish harvesting in the bay. 

A Rocha Canada’s Conservation Science team at the Brooksdale Environmental Centre has been monitoring the river’s water quality for many years. They gather data on key factors like pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, conductivity, depth, turbidity, and bacterial and chemical contamination. This data, collected from many sites, helps assess water quality changes over time, including seasonal and daily fluctuations. The data then directly informs environmental management decisions that will protect and improve the river’s health.  

Discover more about A Rocha’s work in the Tatalu 

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A new A Rocha book launches!

Still have some Christmas gifts to find for friends and family? How about getting them a copy of The Whole Easter Story: Why the Cross is Good News for All Creation by A Rocha International’s Jo Swinney?  

This 40-day Lent Devotional includes a six-week small group discussion guide and explores how the cross transforms not just our own individual connection with Jesus, but also our relationships with each other and our world.  

All royalties go to A Rocha’s conservation work around the world. 

BUY NOW

*For those outside Europe, please use a local supplier. 

 Narrated with honesty, warmth and the insightful perspective of a storyteller – and accompanied by Jo’s warmly sensitive sketches of particular species – the Whole Easter Story helps us see afresh the immense power and wisdom of the cross for the salvation of the whole world. Thoroughly recommended!  

Professor Paul S Williams – Chief Executive, Bible Society 

This is a truly enjoyable devotional book, providing an excellent guide as we journey through our relationship with God, others and God’s wider creation, as well as God’s own relationship with his creation. Refreshingly honest, laugh out loud, attentive to all of God’s creation – your heart and soul will be fed.  

Jo Herbert-James – Head of Engagement, A Rocha UK 

Lent book club

You are warmly invited to join a six-week virtual book club hosted by Jo Swinney and Jo Herbert-James on Wednesdays from 5 March to 9 April from 8 to 9pm GMT.  

Find out more and book your place HERE. 

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Biodiversity loss and climate change – why should we care? A conversation with Dr Rodel Lasco

If you missed our virtual event on 11 November, no need to fret as we recorded the whole thing!  

Our planetary life support systems are starting to fray under the weight of human activities. Rodel Lasco is the author of several reports by the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), and as part of the IPCC, a co-winner of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.  Hear his appraisal of the current state of biodiversity globally, how we can respond with hopeful action and the exciting plans for A Rocha’s growing presence in South East Asia.

You can also watch past virtual events on The A Rocha Resource Hub 

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Restoring balance to the crow population in Kenya’s ecosystem

The word ‘invasive’ has often been used to signify species not in their native environment. They are often introduced to new habitats through human activities, either intentionally or unintentionally. 

In the 1890s, the House Crow Corvus splendens was introduced in Zanzibar to control garbage. The solution soon became a problem of its own as the population rapidly increased over 15 years, becoming labeled an invasive species and spreading along the East African coast. 

A Rocha Kenya’s Eric Kinoti notes that the introduction of an invasive species disrupts and destabilizes ecosystems by causing competition between species. The House Crow population grew to over 700,000 birds along the coast of Kenya, which majorly affected tourism as the birds invaded hotels, destroyed crops and placed a strain on the marine ecosystem with their feeding on marine life. It is not the crows’ fault for existing, but human intervention created a problem.  

A Rocha Kenya, in partnership with Kenya Wildlife Service, has set out to restore balance to the ecosystem by making a first attempt to control the population using a poison called starlicide. Crows are, however, very intelligent creatures with reasoning as good as a seven-year-old human and with the ability to adapt quickly to any traps set to catch them. Starlicide is the preferred poison because it breaks down fast in the crow’s body and does not cause secondary poisoning to other animals that come into contact with it. Not an easy decision, but, ‘The goal is to manage the population in a year before they surpass the one million population mark,’ Eric explained. 

In July this year, A Rocha Kenya received the first batch of starlicide in hopes that it will significantly reduce the number of crows, without affecting other species. So far, the results are promising and starlicide is said to have an 80% success rate within four months. 

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Building homes on the water: a rescue mission for breeding birds

Breeding birds were in trouble on the Schellerwade, a beautiful arm of the IJssel River just west of Zwolle, Netherlands. The area has traditionally been a popular breeding destination for birds like the Black tern Chlidonias niger and the Mallard Anas platyrhynchos. However, the populations of both species have been declining, with the disappearance of grasses like crabgrass, used by Black terns as natural nesting habitat, and low chick survival rates for Mallards.

The A Rocha local group in Zwolle decided to take action. Each year, they prepare a series of floating nest rafts and lay them out in the Schellerwade, targeting the Black terns. The rafts were visible from the dike and were eagerly monitored to see if they would be used. In 2022 and 2023: no success. Disappointing, but this can happen with an opportunistic species like the Black tern. But in 2024, at least six of the nest rafts were occupied with young Black terns!  

This year, the team also placed five breeding baskets along the IJssel River, a new project focused on Mallards. The baskets stand on a framework of willow branches, protecting any eggs or chicks laid in the basket from predators. Last Saturday the team collected three of the baskets and determined that none had been used by nesting ducks. The remaining two are deeper in the reed bank, amidst dense vegetation, and will be collected later this year. The team will now consider why the nests weren’t used and what could be done differently – one hypothesis is that perhaps the baskets need to be placed further into the water. Next year, they’ll try again and hope for success!  

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Raising our voices for creation care: Global Creation Care Forum in South Korea

A Rocha was at the heart of the recent Global Creation Care Forum (GCCF) held in South Korea 28 September – 2 October, immediately after the 4th Lausanne Congress. The GCCF was the first in-person global gathering of the Lausanne / World Evangelical Alliance Creation Care Network (LWCCN) since its launch in Jamaica in 2012. And what a gathering: 100+ people from 40+ countries across six continents, with more online.

Over the week, we reviewed the global creation care movement, listened to global voices and discerned next steps. There were striking differences to the 2012 Jamaica gathering: the GCCF was more diverse in terms of gender, age and nationality. It seems the global creation care movement has found its voice, and that voice is largely younger, from the global south, with insights drawn from many sources including indigenous wisdom and academic science but united around a passion for God’s word and God’s world. 

This global movement is wider than A Rocha, but we’re right at its heart. GCCF leaders included Dave Bookless from ARI and Jasmine Kwong, on the board of A Rocha’s Associated Project in the Philippines. A Rocha folk from Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Croatia, Ghana, India, Netherlands, Philippines, Portugal, Singapore, South Africa, Uganda, UK and others hoping to join the Friends of A Rocha attended. Together we all drafted and will be launching a practical and biblical ‘Invitation’ to the global church to commit to caring for God’s good earth – watch this space! 

LWCCN, co-led by Dave Bookless with Lausanne and WEA colleagues, has held 12 regional conferences on ‘Creation Care and the Gospel’ covering every region, and now has a network of 1,700 leaders from 100 countries with a monthly enews, The Pollinator, sharing news and resources from around the world. 

BG website banner - Dry forest restoration, Peru (c) Xavier Saer

Double your impact for conservation this Christmas

Double my donation

We’re excited to let you know that A Rocha International will be participating again in the Big Give Christmas Challenge this December … and it’s our biggest ever!

With your support, we will protect threatened species and critical landscapes, from the forests of Africa to the mangroves of South East Asia. At the heart of A Rocha’s efforts are churches rising to the challenge alongside our local experts on the ground, working in and with communities to sustain all forms of life on earth.

The Christmas Challenge kicks off at noon (GMT) on #GivingTuesday, 3 December and continues until noon on 10 December. During that time, every contribution made through our campaign page on the Christmas Challenge website* will be DOUBLED.

Our target is ambitious, but the scale of challenges facing our planet is also immense! We want to raise £100,000 to help initiate five new conservation projects, equip churches and seminaries to care for their local landscape, and build capacity within A Rocha teams for taking care of threatened species and habitats. Already in 2024, we’ve started new projects to tackle microplastic pollution on marine sponges in India, preserve remnant forest in Peru, support forest communities to coexist with wildlife in Uganda and protect an endangered butterfly in France! Please join us this December to support innovative projects in communities and habitats of the highest need.

One donation, twice the impact.

* Please note only donations made through our campaign page on the Big Give website between 3-10 December are eligible to be doubled (while match funds last). 

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ARI team time

Once a year the A Rocha International team steps out from behind our screens to enjoy some quality in-person time together. With three of us in the USA and a fourth with a Stateside conference to attend, this year we met in the beautiful Texas Hill Country – home to the Nine-banded Armadillo Dasypus novemcinctus,  Whitetailed Deer Odocoileus virginianus and Western Diamondback Rattlesnake Crotalus atrox as well as some slightly random zebras!  

We arrived at our scenic location in time to witness several established oaks being brutally ripped from the ground. For the entire week, morning to night, heavy machinery belched out noise and fumes as a new building took shape at impressive speed. It was an apt reminder of the complex context of A Rocha’s work, in a world where often nature is forced to make way for human endeavour but in which God’s design is for us to all to flourish, living equitably together.  

Later, we were much more encouraged by a visit to A Rocha USA’s habitat restoration site in the Bull Creek watershed. Texas Conservation Director Verónica Godoy led us on a pleasant hike along the creek and through meadows and forests where we observed invasive privet that had been painstakingly girdled by A Rocha USA partners, staff and volunteers as well as meadows being converted from a monoculture of invasive King Ranch Blue Stem to a myriad of native wildflowers and grasses.  

Spread across eight countries, the A Rocha International team has responsibility for supporting and representing A Rocha organizations worldwide, for ensuring everyone maintains high standards and for initiating new work. While we were together, we worked on strategy, thought about how to know whether our conservation efforts are effective, prayed and studied the Bible, and tried to get the hang of the two-step! Now back into the swing of being a virtual community, we are grateful for meaningful work caring for God’s world, and a strong, unified and multi-cultural team.