View conference: Asia Pacific Consultation: Marginalised People - Our Christian Response

Plenary sessions will include:

• A Call to the Church to respond to Marginalised People, Rev Wong Kim Kong, Secretary-General of National Evangelical Christian Fellowship Malaysia
• Introduction to Integral mission, Steve Bradbury, Chair of Micah Network and National Director of TEAR Australia
• A Holistic approach to HIV & AIDS, Dr Peter Okaalet of MAP International Kenya, a physician and theologian who has been named one of Time Magazine’s global health heroes
• Gender, Ms Elnora Avarientos, Executive Director of World Vision Philippines
• Advocacy, Rev CB Samuel, India, member of Micah Network’s International Panel of Reference
• Reducing stigma, Dr Goh Chee Leong, Director and Senior Lecture of HELP Institute Centre for Psychology, Malaysia, together with individuals facing stigma in their Christian communities
  

Participants will interact together over the plenary sessions in the “World Café” – small group sessions designed to get the benefit of everyone’s experiences and perspectives.These will be collated by a drafting committee and a talented artist.

We will have 4 morning devotions, led by Dr Beulah Wood, Interserve and Rev Ebeneezer Joseph, President of Methodist Church, Sri Lanka.

The program will also include a broad range of case studies, designed to facilitate practical learning and sharing. Some of these will be on the topics of HIV & AIDS, gender, stigma and advocacy and others will be on the sub-themes, which include:

• Poor communities
• Youth and children at risk
• Commercial sex workers/ trafficking
• Indigenous people
• Drug Users
• Leprosy
• People in prison
• Migrant workers
• Displaced People
• Working with People of Other Faiths
• Micah Challenge – a global Christian campaign around the Millennium Development Goals
  

Case studies

Participants will be able to attend and interact with up to 4 case study presentations in smaller group contexts. Topics include:

• Stigma reduction – lessons learnt by American Leprosy Missions
• Drugs, Stigma & HIV & AIDs – Project Orchid, Emmanuel Hospital Association India
• Prison, Drugs and HIV & AIDS – Malaysian Care
• Working with youth and children at risk – Viva Network
• Community based care for people living with disabilities – Hagar Cambodia
• Micah Challenge – case studies from national campaigns
• Advocacy initiatives – IMCARES India
• Gender case study
  

Workshops

• Integral mission 1 and 2 – Rev CB Samuel
• Advocacy Skills – ISACC Philippines
• Mainstreaming disability – Christian Blind Mission International
• Gender – Dr Beulah Wood, Interserve
• Intellectual disabilities - effective strategies including a call for inclusion into mainstream society and a highly successful partnership with churches - Malaysian Care
• A recommended model of care for young girls from secually exploitative situations, Hagar Cambodia
• Working with indigenous people - Indonesia
• Micah Network Advocacy Forum – meeting of policy heads and advocacy practitioners from member agencies
• Micah Network – in-depth exploration – Jane Furniss, International Coordinator
• Micah Challenge – in-depth exploration - Michael Smitheram, International Coordinator
• How to run a world café – a new and innovative facilitation method – Nancy Ten Broek and Kohima Daring, CRWRC Bangladesh
  

Further workshop topics will be posted on our website when confirmed.

Program schedule

A copy of the draft program for the consultation can be downloaded from the Micah Network website and is available on request from Jane Furniss ic@micahnetwork.org.

Regional Groups

There will be time for participants to meet in regional groups to pray, reflect and plan regional initiatives for the future.

Simultaneous Translation

Sessions will be conducted in English and simultaneous translation for other language groups will be available to enable speakers of other languages to participate, depending on demand. Requests for translation must be received by 1 August 2007.

Start and finish times

Registration will be from 11am on Monday 1 October (with sessions starting at 4pm) and the Consultation will conclude after lunch on Friday 5 October.

Transportation

Prior to the consultation:

There will be buses from both the airport and Kuala Lumpur to take delegates to the Awana Genting resort on Sunday 30 September and Monday 1 October. Buses from Kuala Lumpur will collect delegates from Kuala Lumpur Sentral Train Station. Times for all buses will be given closer to the consultation.

After the consultation:

On Friday 5 October, buses will transport delegates from Awana Genting to either the airport or to Kuala Lumpur.

Delegates who are transported to Kuala Lumpur will need to arrange their own transportation from Kuala Lumpur to the airport on the day of their departure. Trains from Kuala Lumpur to the airport go regularly throughout the day. The trip takes approximately 38 minutes and costs RM35.

About Micah Network

The Micah Network is a global network of over 300 Christian relief, development and justice organisations and churches that aims to:

• Strengthen the capacity of participating agencies to make a Biblically-shaped response to the needs of the poor and oppressed.
• Speak strongly and effectively regarding the nature of the mission of the church to proclaim and demonstrate the love of Christ to a world in need.
• Prophetically call upon and influence the leaders and decision-makers of societies to “maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed and rescue the weak and needy”.
  

More information on Micah Network is available on our website www.micahnetwork.org.

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