The city of Foz do Iguaçu, in Paraná, Brazil, hosted the regional meeting “Transforming Journeys,” promoted by Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) in South America. Leaders from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay met August 18-20 to agree on strategies and streamline the agency humanitarian planning for 2025.
The regional plan reinforces the commitment to actions capable of generating measurable, sustainable, and profoundly human results, and was structured around four pillars: Faith, Funds, People, and Programs, regional ADRA leaders said.
A Commitment to a Global Mission
During three days of programming, participants reviewed local strategies, shared common challenges, and celebrated regional achievements. Paulo Lopes, president of ADRA International, presented an updated vision of the agency on the world stage and highlighted the value of regional integration.
“We need to build solutions that combine compassion and competence, innovation and sensitivity. ADRA is a living network, present in more than 130 countries but strengthened by local connections. That’s where the mission really happens,” Lopes said.
According to him, local action is the space where the mission ceases to be an abstract concept and becomes a practical response to community needs, “being present in those places of enduring pain, responding where there is silence, and providing justice where there is neglect.”
A Shared Vision
The meeting was also marked by testimonies from the national directors. For Plinio Vergara Serrano, director of ADRA Peru, the gathering meant an opportunity to strengthen a joint vision. “Thanks to ADRA we can help people improve their quality of life with faith and hope, so that they can live as God intended,” he said. “This meeting was a valuable opportunity to strengthen concrete strategies, align visions, and renew our commitment to a purpose greater than ourselves: to fulfill the command of Jesus. ADRA is more than projects. It is action with compassion, faith translated into service, a living presence in the communities that need it most.”
Vergara pointed out that the agency is not limited to implementing projects—that it also acts in a practical way across the communities it serves.
Planning With Purpose
Rodrigo Cárcamo, director of ADRA South America, highlighted the collective commitment to keep the agency’s core mission as a reference. “We confirm our commitment to keep serving humanity so that everyone can live according to God’s plan,” he said.
According to Cárcamo, the gathering reinforced that “ADRA is not just an NGO [nongovernmental organization]. It is the Adventist Church in action, the faith that expresses itself through willing hands. ADRA is a network that works, not for recognition, but out of conviction.”
The original version of this story was posted on the South American Division Portuguese-language news site.
