The third was Colin Smith who devoted six decades to recording and describing the butterflies of this Himalayan country.

Arriving from Britain in 1964 to work with United Mission to Nepal, Colin was motivated by his Christian faith from the beginning until his death on 4 November 2023. He began by teaching maths, but quickly became fascinated by the spectacular butterflies of the Himalayas, drawing on an interest sparked by his uncle in England and spurred by a request from his mission agency to create a butterfly collection for Nepal. In 1974, he seized an opportunity to work on butterflies fulltime through a Nepali university, and over the next decades increased the number of butterfly species recorded in Nepal from less than 400 to about 650. He recorded his work in over 30 books, one becoming a best-seller in Kathmandu. Colin has inspired many people through his work and life, training many young Nepalis as lepidopterists and becoming known locally as Putali Bajey (“Butterfly Grandpa” in Nepali). He will be remembered for drawing many people to appreciate God’s creation in a place of remarkable biodiversity.

This picture was taken in Kathmandu, 2002. Taken from Invertebrates in the Himalaya (Photo copyright © by Kaj Halberg)

Hello, friends! We invite you to join us in pollinating creation care happenings across different directions: not only global event, news, and announcements, but also stories from the grassroots! So, if you’ve a project, story or news about Creation Care that would be of interest to others around the world, please tell us! It’s helpful if you can send a summary (50-200 words) with a photo or two and a link to a webpage if possible. Please send this to creationcare@lausanne.org.

This month we’ve heard back from members of LWCCN involved in…

• Turkana County, Kenya, assessing how Faith Groups (Churches) can be involved in tackling the impacts of extreme drought. The droughts are leading to cattle and other animals dying and to increasing malnutrition and starvation. LWCCN member, Nshizirungu Hubert is working to help Church and Faith Groups access Loss and Damage funds from within Kenya and internationally.
• Pakistan about using natural methods to recycle Waste-Water for economic, environmental and social benefits. Riaz Yousaf, known as ‘The Waterman’, has recently published a book ‘The Responsibility Ignored’ looking at the water and waste-water economy of Pakistan.
• Nepal where a ministry dedicated to working with single women, ‘Rise and Shine’ is dedicated to building strength in unity, including providing agricultural advice and training.
• Arizona, USA researching how evangelical Christian views on environment and creation are changing, linked to views on end-times theology (eschatology).