History and Accomplishments

The Lutheran Office for World Community (LOWC) was formed in 1973 in response to the principles embodied in the UN Charter. Lutheran activity in international advocacy at the UN, however, can be traced to the world organization’s early days when Lutheran seminary professor Otto Frederick Nolde was a leader in the development of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in particular its article on freedom of religion and belief. The Lutheran World Federation has been in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) since 1952 and also is associated with and the Department of Public Information (DPI).

Since 1973, LOWC has participated in a variety of historic issues. The independence of Namibia was a major policy goal at a time when few others advocated for the people in that country. Among the other issues that LOWC monitored and brought to the attention of the churches was the international campaign to ban landmines, the effort to create the International Criminal Court, the development and implementation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and the negotiations concerning the Post-2015 Development Agenda.