Conflict, violence, and instability continue to be a fact of life for the millions of people who live in Eastern Congo. I witnessed this violence first-hand while I was in Congo in 2006 and again in 2008.

Much of the fighting is for control of natural resources. Billions of dollars of diamonds, copper, gold, and other minerals are illegally exported from Congo each year, and rebel soldiers fight for control of this resource-rich land.

Over the past years, much of the conflict has been fueled by a mineral called Coltan. Coltan is used in cell phones, laptops, and other small electronic devices. Some estimate that 85% of the world’s coltan reserves are in Congo. And with the demand for electronics skyrocketing, Coltan mining has become a lucrative business for many rebel groups in Congo. ‘Conflict coltan’ is coltan that is illegally mined and exported - funding violence and keeping the people of Congo from using the sale and export of natural resources to improve their lives.

An Australian reporter recently traveled to Congo to tell the story of conflict coltan. It’s a compelling piece, which you can find here.

A bill was introduced in the US Congress last year that prohibits companies from importing conflict coltan, but this bill never became law. Please write to your representatives, and ask them to re-introduce the conflict coltan bill. It’s a simple way that we can advocate on behalf of those whose lives are being devastated by circumstances beyond their control.

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I recently discovered a new app for the iPhone that’s pretty sweet. For those of us who want to make better choices about what we buy and don’t want to buy from companies that cause injustice, you can now use Better World Shopper. Most of the time, we don’t know what products, stores, and brands are good. With this little app, you can get a quick grade on everything from coffee to clothes - you can see what companies and brands get an ‘A’ and which get an ‘F’ - based on how they treat workers, wages they pay, how they care for the environment, as well as other factors.

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I just finished reading a new book by Julie Clawson, called ‘Everyday Justice’. This book touches on many of the same ideas and subjects that I have been thinking and writing about over the past year. I highly recommend this book - it helps us understand how the daily choices we make impact people around the world and gives practical ideas and steps that enable us to live more justly. In a consumer culture focused on finding the lowest prices and consuming more and more, we rarely stop to think about how our choices keep people trapped in poverty. The church can and should lead the way with efforts like Fair Trade, sustainable agriculture, and encouraging economic development in poor countries. This book shows us how.

There is also a website, where you can find more information and links.

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I had the privilege of contributing to a new Bible that is being released this week. It’s called ‘Holy Bible: Mosaic’. What makes this Bible unique is that it contains incredible artwork from the 3rd to 21st centuries from every continent across the globe and has thought-provoking writings from the 1st to 21st centuries from every continent and branch of the Church around the world. The artwork and writings follow the Church calendar throughout the year starting with Advent.

It’s really a beautiful Bible and I am proud to be a contributing writer. If you want more information, you can find it at Amazon.

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