Global Integration Updates
Common Ground for the Common Good
Be the people we need--Build the world we need
Special News--August 2020
Keep Persevering
Stories and strategies in the pandemic
Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being
and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
Principle 1, Preamble of the WHO Constitution (1948)
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In this Update we continue to share resources to encourage us all in our lives and work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Corona fatigue is very real. Keep persevering. Many of the resources we feature present positive examples of people persevering and taking action to help others during the coronavirus pandemic as well as perspectives and guidance for coping.
We also continue in solidarity in the world community's efforts, locally through globally, to address the many challenges of COVID-19. We note that the many overlapping problems in our world continue unabated even as this pandemic dominates the center stage globally: multi-dimensional poverty, protracted violence, human rights violations, gross inequalities, racism, mental ill health, environmental degradation, etc. This is the ongoing, cascading context which challenges us daily as we seek to practically support the wellbeing of all persons/peoples and the planet. Keep persevering.
See also:
--Managing Stress and COVID-Distress: Faith-Inclusive Resources
Global Integration Update (June 2020)
Warm greetings,
Kelly and Michèle
 
The enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health
is one of the fundamental rights of every human being without distinction
of race, religion, political belief, economic or social condition.
Principle 2, Preamble of the WHO Constitution (1948)
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1. Stories and Interviews
--Stories of Hope, Resilience, and Inspiration during the Coronavirus Pandemic, (July 2020). Global Insights, Office of International Affairs, American Psychological Association. "Individuals from around the world share their personal stories of hope, resilience, and inspiration during this time." (nine stories, one-two paragraphs each)
--Altruistic Stories and the 2020 Pandemic. Center for Peace and Conflict Studies, Ball State University (April 2020-current). This is a compilation of 50+ short accounts of how people are helping others, making a difference during COVID-19 as well as countering racism.
--Hope and Resilience Blog, Psychology Today, Jamie Aten. This blog features brief interviews, short articles, and personal accounts related primarily to trauma, disasters, and mental health. Many entries deal with coping during the coronavirus pandemic, such as Moral Injury Among COVID-19 Health Care Professionals (25 July 2020).
2. Humanitarian Work
--World Humanitarian Day, 19 August 2020. This day pays tribute "to aid workers who risk their lives in humanitarian service, and to rally support for people affected by crises around the world." The theme this year is #RealLifeHeroes "providing life-saving support during the pandemic." See also the 24 short stories about 24 women humanitarians from around the world HERE.
--Engaging in Humanity Care: Stress, Trauma, and Humanitarian Work (May 2020). Kelly O'Donnell, Heidi Pidcoke, and Michele Lewis O'Donnell. Christian Psychology Around the World–Special Focus: Coping with Stress in Theory and Practice (Issue 14). “In this article we focus on the wellbeing and effectiveness (WE) of staff in the humanitarian sector. More specifically, in Part One we highlight stress and trauma for humanitarian workers and in Part Two we share perspectives and resources to support humanitarian workers.”
3. Telecare Guidance
--How Well is Telepsychology Working? (July 2020). Zara Greenbaum, Monitor on Psychology, American Psychological Association. "...research to date shows mental health care delivered remotely—also known as telepsychology or teletherapy—is effective. Psychologists—along with psychiatrists, social workers and others—have built a substantial literature base on telehealth interventions that work for a variety of problems and populations. But experts say the COVID-19 crisis has revealed areas where the literature can be strengthened. More important, the attempt to rapidly roll out remote care has exposed the field’s lack of readiness to broadly transition to the new modality."
--Special Issue on the COVID-19 Pandemic (June 2020). Monitor on Psychology, American Psychological Association. Articles are oriented for mental health professionals and include topics on telepsychology, grief, inequality in access to care, online learning, working from home, etc.
4. Perspectives on Pandemics
--The Role of Cognitive Dissonance in the Pandemic (12 July 2020). Eliot Aaronson and Carol Tavris, The Atlantic. “The minute we make any decision—I think COVID-19 is serious; no, I’m sure it is a hoax—we begin to justify the wisdom of our choice and find reasons to dismiss the alternative.”
--A Visual History of Pandemics, (March 2020). Visual Capitalist and World Economic Forum. “As humans have spread across the world, so have infectious diseases. Even in this modern era, outbreaks are nearly constant, though not every outbreak reaches pandemic level as the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) has.Today’s visualization outlines some of history’s most deadly pandemics, from the Antonine Plague [165-180 AD] to the current COVID-19 event.”
The health of all peoples is fundamental to the attainment of peace
and security and is dependent upon the fullest co-operation of individuals and States.
Principle 3, Preamble of the WHO Constitution (1948)
Keep persevering.
Member Care Associates Inc. (MCA) is a non-profit, Christian organization working internationally from Geneva and the USA. MCA's involvement in Global Integration focuses on the wellbeing and effectiveness of personnel and their organizations in the mission, humanitarian, and development sectors as well as global mental health, all with a view towards supporting sustainable development for all people and the planet. Our services include consultation, training, research, developing resources, and publications.
Global Integration (GI) is a framework for actively and responsibly engaging in our world--locally to globally. It emphasizes connecting relationally and contributing relevantly on behalf of human wellbeing and the issues facing humanity, in light of our integrity, commitments, and core values (e.g., ethical, humanitarian, human rights, faith-based). GI encourages a variety of people to be at the “global tables” and in the "global trenches"--and everything in-between--in order to help research, shape, and monitor agendas, policies, and action for all people and the planet. It intentionally links building the world we need with being the people we need.
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Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability;
it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be coworkers with God,
and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation.
Martin Luther King, Jr., Letter from a Birmingham Jail (April 1963)
Global Integration Updates and Special News
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