ADRA International

By By Paulo Lopes, President, ADRA International “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” — Joshua 1:9 (NIV) Some of the most important work in the world never gets photographed. It doesn’t rush into a burning building or hold a line under fire. It moves slower than that, in rooms most of us will never enter, and it takes more to sustain than it does to begin.

World Day Against Trafficking in Persons Every child deserves the freedom to grow up safe, learn without fear, and dream about the future. Yet millions of children around the world remain vulnerable to exploitation because of poverty, inequality, violence, displacement, and a lack of opportunity. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, children account for 38% of all detected trafficking victims worldwide, with girls disproportionately affected.

There’s a reason people give to charity, and it’s rarely complicated when you get down to it. You see something—a family who lost everything in a flood, children without enough food, a community trying to rebuild after a crisis—and something in you responds. You want to help. You want your resources to reach someone who actually needs them, to bring some measure of hope into a situation that feels hopeless from the outside. That desire is real and it’s good.

By ADRA Venezuela with ADRA International On June 24, 2026, twin earthquakes measuring 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude struck central Venezuela just 39 seconds apart, becoming the strongest earthquake to hit the country in more than a century. The shallow quakes caused widespread destruction, damaging more than 850 buildings, including nearly 190 collapses, and forcing thousands of families from their homes.

By Paulo Lopes, President of ADRA International Around the world, headlines tend to follow a familiar pattern, focusing on conflict, crisis, and the occasional act of heroism that breaks through the noise. But I have spent much of my life in the spaces that headlines rarely reach. What I have found there is a different kind of story.

The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is on the ground in Venezuela assessing humanitarian needs after a powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the country on June 24 at 6:05 p.m. local time. The earthquake, centered near Morón in Carabobo state, affected some of the country’s most populated areas, including Carabobo and Yaracuy, with millions of people experiencing strong to severe shaking.

“He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.” — Micah 6:8 The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is launching Justice Begins at Childhood, a global advocacy campaign dedicated to protecting children’s dignity, rights, and futures around the world.

This Father’s Day, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) celebrates fathers around the world who demonstrate love not only through their words, but through the decisions they make every day to protect and care for their children. A father’s influence can shape a child’s future in countless ways, including ensuring they have access to essential healthcare.

Each year on June 20, the world observes World Refugee Day, recognizing the courage and resilience of millions of people who have been forced to flee their homes because of conflict, violence, and persecution. In 2026, more than 41 million people around the world are living as refugees. More than 19 million of them are children. Behind every number is a person who has been forced to leave their homes.

Malnutrition costs developing countries billions every year in lost productivity. That’s not metaphorical. A World Food Programme estimates that malnutrition costs the global economy roughly $3.5 trillion a year, with huge costs on individuals through the form of impacts to brain development, educational achievement, and long-term health.