Action by Churches Together (ACT) International
Ecumenical Centre
150 route de Ferney
P.O. Box 2100
1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland
1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland
ACT International...
...is a global alliance of churches and related agencies working to save lives and support communities in emergencies.
The ACT alliance is made up of Protestant and Orthodox churches and their related agencies from the membership of the World Council of Churches and The Lutheran World Federation.
ACT offers assistance to people caught in natural and environmental disasters as well as in emergencies caused by war or civil conflict. ACT strives to reach people in need across front lines, national borders and other ethnic, political or religious divides. ACT provides assistance irrespective of race, gender, belief, nationality, ethnic origin or political persuasion. ACT and its members are signatories to the Code of Conduct in Disaster Relief and aim to uphold the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response, known as the Sphere standards.
ACT has strong local roots within populations affected by humanitarian crises and is therefore able to provide locally-based knowledge, analysis and understanding of the emergencies. ACT members have experience and expertise in a range of humanitarian emergency sectors: camp management, shelter, food and non-food distribution, health care and trauma counselling, water and sanitation, disaster preparedness, demining, protection, and transition from relief to development, conflict resolution, and peace and reconciliation initiatives.
There is a growing understanding among humanitarian agencies that as vital as the mapping of vulnerabilities and providing for people’s immediate needs are, these are only two links in a much longer chain. With its strong local roots, members of ACT are equipped and well-placed to lift up local communities’ own priorities and coping mechanisms. Strengthening capacity is at the heart of our responses to emergencies.
The ACT Coordinating Office facilitates the ACT alliance’s response to emergencies, provides quality control of appeals (including evaluations of larger programs), oversees funding flows, and distributes policies, standards and guidelines in humanitarian assistance. The Coordinating Office distributes news related to its members’ responses to emergencies, supports their advocacy initiatives, as well as shares program and financial information about ongoing emergency and post-crisis operations with its members and partners. The director of the ACT Coordinating Office reports to the ACT Executive Committee.
The running cost of the ACT Coordinating Office in 2004 was US$ 1,67 million and was entirely funded through member contributions.
The ACT Coordinating Office is based in the Ecumenical Centre, Geneva, Switzerland.
ACT is governed by a General Assembly/Emergency Committee of 30 elected members who meet annually to shape ACT policy. An Executive Committee comprising eight of those members meets several times a year to oversee the implementation of policies and mandates of the ACT Coordinating Office. ACT International is registered as a legal entity in
Switzerland.
ACT's founders, the World Council of Churches and The Lutheran World Federation, are members of the Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response. The emergency network of the Catholic Church, Caritas Internationalis, is an observer on the ACT Emergency Committee. In a number of emergencies, ACT members work in partnership with United Nations agencies such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), World Food Program and UNICEF.
ACT emergency funding is based on actions and information from its members, from which ACT issues alerts and appeals to assist people
caught in humanitarian emergencies. ACT can also respond through its Rapid Response Fund to meet urgent humanitarian needs.
News
Alerts
Appeals & updates
Links
For more information please visit the website.
...is a global alliance of churches and related agencies working to save lives and support communities in emergencies.
The ACT alliance is made up of Protestant and Orthodox churches and their related agencies from the membership of the World Council of Churches and The Lutheran World Federation.
ACT offers assistance to people caught in natural and environmental disasters as well as in emergencies caused by war or civil conflict. ACT strives to reach people in need across front lines, national borders and other ethnic, political or religious divides. ACT provides assistance irrespective of race, gender, belief, nationality, ethnic origin or political persuasion. ACT and its members are signatories to the Code of Conduct in Disaster Relief and aim to uphold the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response, known as the Sphere standards.
ACT has strong local roots within populations affected by humanitarian crises and is therefore able to provide locally-based knowledge, analysis and understanding of the emergencies. ACT members have experience and expertise in a range of humanitarian emergency sectors: camp management, shelter, food and non-food distribution, health care and trauma counselling, water and sanitation, disaster preparedness, demining, protection, and transition from relief to development, conflict resolution, and peace and reconciliation initiatives.
There is a growing understanding among humanitarian agencies that as vital as the mapping of vulnerabilities and providing for people’s immediate needs are, these are only two links in a much longer chain. With its strong local roots, members of ACT are equipped and well-placed to lift up local communities’ own priorities and coping mechanisms. Strengthening capacity is at the heart of our responses to emergencies.
The ACT Coordinating Office facilitates the ACT alliance’s response to emergencies, provides quality control of appeals (including evaluations of larger programs), oversees funding flows, and distributes policies, standards and guidelines in humanitarian assistance. The Coordinating Office distributes news related to its members’ responses to emergencies, supports their advocacy initiatives, as well as shares program and financial information about ongoing emergency and post-crisis operations with its members and partners. The director of the ACT Coordinating Office reports to the ACT Executive Committee.
The running cost of the ACT Coordinating Office in 2004 was US$ 1,67 million and was entirely funded through member contributions.
The ACT Coordinating Office is based in the Ecumenical Centre, Geneva, Switzerland.
ACT is governed by a General Assembly/Emergency Committee of 30 elected members who meet annually to shape ACT policy. An Executive Committee comprising eight of those members meets several times a year to oversee the implementation of policies and mandates of the ACT Coordinating Office. ACT International is registered as a legal entity in
Switzerland.
ACT's founders, the World Council of Churches and The Lutheran World Federation, are members of the Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response. The emergency network of the Catholic Church, Caritas Internationalis, is an observer on the ACT Emergency Committee. In a number of emergencies, ACT members work in partnership with United Nations agencies such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), World Food Program and UNICEF.
ACT emergency funding is based on actions and information from its members, from which ACT issues alerts and appeals to assist people
caught in humanitarian emergencies. ACT can also respond through its Rapid Response Fund to meet urgent humanitarian needs.
News
Alerts
Appeals & updates
Links
For more information please visit the website.
Anglican Church of Canada