Update

We are seeking a peaceful, equitable, and just world. We bring this vision into reality by working in coalition with like-minded organizations and friends to confront systemic racism in our communities.

FCNL is creating a cadre of grassroot racial justice changemakers through our work with Quaker Coalition to Uproot Racism (QCUR). This is a collaborative project that includes FCNL and five other national Quaker organizations – American Friends Service Committee, Friends Council on Education, Friends General Conference, Pendle Hill, and Quaker Voluntary Service.

I first ran into FCNL when I was head of the fundraising department at AFSC in Philadelphia, and a friend of mine was in the development department at FCNL. When I retired here in Salisbury, Maryland, I became interested in FCNL and started to donate money to support their lobbying efforts. That’s the way I got introduced to the notion of citizen lobbying. I was just so impressed with the thoroughness and the clarity of the work that the staff did at FCNL.

While technological innovation is key to countering the climate crisis, nature plays an equally important, yet often overlooked, role.  We should celebrate U.S. leadership in harnessing the power of nature here at home and in developing countries worldwide. We can be proud of our successes. However, let’s also reaffirm our commitment to international climate assistance funding, including support for critical nature-based solutions.

FCNL joined 17 coalition partners to send a letter to Sec. of State Antony Blinken expressing human rights concerns over the armed international intervention launched in Haiti in June. 

​Stepping into the professional world as a Program Assistant with FCNL this year has been a Spirit-led journey. It’s been an opportunity to embrace growth in unfamiliar territory and discover how interpersonal connections can drive social change. Like many people of faith, I’ve been learning that it isn’t always clear what following the Light will mean at the start of a journey.  

People who are new to FCNL often ask me how we decide where to focus. Amid concerns for a wide variety of issues for peace and justice, how does FCNL discern where to concentrate our efforts to impact federal policy?

I was first drawn to FCNL by how much members of Congress and their staff valued hearing from constituents like me and my then-students about the issues that mattered most to us. Now that I am on FCNL’s staff, one of the great joys of my work has been regularly bearing witness to the impact of citizen advocates.

With election day quickly approaching, our voice matters even more as we decide who is going to represent us in Congress in 2025.

Candidates impact our communities, and you can influence their priorities.

While Congress continues to consider federal legislation for Truth and Healing from the trauma of Indian boarding schools, the Department of the Interior, led by Secretary Deb Haaland, has continued its own investigation.

Throughout the debate over this issue, many members of Congress spoke about cluster munitions, with varying degrees of accuracy. Here, we will separate the myths from the facts about the use and transfer of cluster munitions.

Throughout the debate over this issue, many members of Congress spoke about cluster munitions, with varying degrees of accuracy. Here, we will separate the myths from the facts about the use and transfer of cluster munitions.