“Solutions to the International Debt Crisis: Winning a True Global Biblical Jubilee” – Eric LeCompte

Summary: Eric LeCompte is hosted on campus by the Washington Community Scholars’ Center. The global economy has become interconnected and increasingly faces global crisis. Which fast must we seek now? We must renew our call to Jubilee, work towards equity between local and global communities, cancel unjust debt, and create mechanisms and guidelines to cultivate right relationships. One way to do this is to continue to work in the global Jubilee movement – with past successes in unjust debt cancellation for the world’s most impoverished, and winning reforms to the international financial system, the Jubilee USA network is working for solutions to the international debt crisis and a real jubilee. Learn about the global jubilee movement and current efforts to enact transformed lending practices, tax justice, and an implementation of what an international bankruptcy court could do to pave the way towards eradication of poverty. Engage with these complex issues and be ready to join the Jubilee movement for global economic justice! ——- Eric LeCompte is the Executive Director of Jubilee USA Network and represents a civil society coalition of 75 US member organizations, 200 faith communities and 50 Jubilee global partners. Jubilee USA Network has won critical global financial reforms and more than 100 billion dollars in debt relief for the world’s poorest countries so the money could be reinvested in social infrastructure. Following the tragic 2010 Haiti earthquake, Jubilee USA Network worked with The Administration, US Treasury and a bipartisan coalition in Congress to cancel the 1.2 billion dollars of Haitian debt. Eric leads a network that includes relief, environmental, human rights and religious organizations and he currently focuses on development in relationship to the international debt crisis. The 75 member groups include The AFL-CIO, American Jewish World Service, The New Evangelical Partnership for the Common Good, The leadership of Catholic Religious Orders and The Episcopal, Presbyterian, Methodist, Lutheran, Unitarian Universalist and United Church of Christ Churches. He serves on expert working groups to the United Nations Committee on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and The United Nations High Commission on Human Rights. Eric has 15 years of experience working with faith based organizations to impact global policy on poverty, conflict and human rights. Eric is a graduate of the College of St. Benedict and St. John’s University, where he received degrees in Peace Studies and Sociology. He was named a Pax Christi Ambassador and he is the former National Council Chair of Pax Christi USA.