Climate and Faith Resources

Get Informed, Get Inspired, Take Action

Suggestions and good practices for Sunday schools,church-run schools and summer camps to implementthe “Churches’ Commitments to Children”

When it comes to the treatment of children and their involvement in issues that affect their future, the Churches’ Commitments to Children (co-developed by the WCC and UNICEF) serves as guide and a framework for all World Council of Churches (WCC) member churches. As underlined in the third commitment, “children are more exposed than adults to the impacts of climate change . . . [and] its consequences will be even greater in the lives of future generations, representing a threat to their very survival.”

In 2015, world leaders gathered in Paris to show a strong commitment to reducing the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions that fuel global warming. Yet, despite commitments by many, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Emissions Gap Report, delivered in November 2019, concluded that even if countries meet commitments made in Paris in 2015, a 3.2 degree temperature rise over pre-industrial levels is all but inevitable. Lasting systems changes are therefore urgent to address global warming.

Climate change affects every aspect of child rights. Only joint efforts at every level will enable us to bend the CO2 emissions curve and protect our planet for future generations.

This toolkit provides resources for churches, church-run schools, and summer camps to support intergenerational climate and environmental justice and promote care for children by stopping further global warming. All churches are encouraged to promote education and action to address climate change, reduce CO2 emissions, and protect the environment in their activities for and with children and youth.

The resource has three main sections:

• GET INFORMED. This section includes resources available to educate children of various age groups about climate change and environmental challenges.
• GET INSPIRED. This part presents inspiring initiatives happening around the world, from global movements to church communities and small groups of individuals.
• TAKE ACTION. This section illustrates that, from small acts to major movements, everyone can do their part to address environmental challenges and promote behaviours and choices that respect creation. Anyone can help to stop global warming

View on the World Council of Churches website

2020 G20 Interfaith Forum

May 27, 2020

The COVID-19 crisis highlights the urgent need for G20 leaders to support and protect tropical rainforests. Destruction of these forests poses an existential threat to the future global climate: deforestation results in emission of billions of tons of carbon dioxide each year, exacerbates the effects of global climate change, threatens the livelihoods of indigenous communities, and contributes to the spread of animal-borne infectious diseases such as COVID-19.

G20 members and religious authorities have the potential to enhance awareness and spur action on tropical rainforests. Faith-linked initiatives such as the Interfaith Rainforest Initiative (IRI) play pivotal roles in directing global attention to the challenges facing the world’s rainforests and in empowering local communities to pursue sustainable solutions. The key recommendations of the 2020 G20 Interfaith Forum Policy Brief on Rainforests are summarized in the resource.

Click here for the G20 Interfaith Forum supporting documents

COVID-19 has lowered global carbon emissions; but it hasn’t slowed climate change. Our response to COVID-19 has precipitated the discovery of a vaccine; but it has left the world with a staggering number of deaths.

The pandemic of Covid-19 has permanently affected our planet and altered our lives. The world has wrestled to survive and learned to live with the coronavirus. But what are the lessons that we have learned? What has been the impact on nature and the environment? What have been the implications for healthcare? And what have we understood about the relevance and importance of science?

View the Halki Summit IV Webinars on:

1.Impact on Nature

2. Importance of Science

3. Implications for Health

Click here for information on the speakers and organizers

Working paper 591

The world is facing multiple challenges with huge impacts on humanity, requiring action from citizens, policy-makers and activists. The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets demonstrate the scale and ambition of the current global agenda. Many of these issues are interconnected, as global challenges can be mutually reinforcing. However, this also means that they can be solved synergistically, with actions in one area contributing to positive results in others.

This working paper focuses on two of these critical global challenges: violence against children and climate change. The links between the two are not always obvious, but they exist and are significant in terms of both causes and solutions.

The Key messages include:

• The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) include the mitigation of both climate change and violence against children. Given the links between these two problems, actions that address both will be more effective in achieving these goals.
• Disaster risk reduction planning that considers the risks of violence against children arising from climate-related shocks will enable more responsive mechanisms to mitigate impacts on children.
• Children and adolescents are crucial agents of change in the global fight against climate change.They are also aware of the climate-related risks they face, so involving them in solutions will generate positive results.

Churches’ Commitments to Children – Caring for children by addressing global warming

A Research Report funded by the Keeling Curve Prize

This document was developed as a result of the World Council of Churches (WCC)’s Churches’ Commitments to Children initiative winning the Keeling Curve Prize in 2019. It was commissioned by the WCC’s Child Rights programme in response to requests by children and youth who are marching in the streets, urging adults to find solutions in response to the climate crisis.

The research examines the impact of financial choices on global warming and reviews related solutions which can bend the CO2 emissions curve (also called the “Keeling Curve”).

The purpose of this research is to share information, good practices, and suggestions on the efficiency of financial measures to address global warming. It aims to support discussions and discernment among working groups and decision makers. It does not reflect any institutional view.

The materials are shared for examination by all those who may want to consider influential strategies to address climate change.

While the decisions related to these financial measures have a decisive impact on children, the measures and opportunities presented in this document cannot be undertaken by children. In light of the many initiatives driven and promoted by children and youth to protect the planet and the climate, these financial measures are critical for intergenerational justice and to counteract the discouragement and eco-anxiety faced by children and youth who are engaged for the planet.

Today, many leaders encourage children and youth to be responsible eco-citizens (see examples shared in the WCC Toolkit on climate justice for and with children/youth.) The initiatives and efforts by children and youth can only have an impact on global warming if, in par-allel, the right choices are made in the domain of finance – the most decisive domain for climate solutions – over which young people have limited influence.

The research is intended to be used as a resources document for

• WCC working group consultations, to work toward a statement from governing bodies on the topic;
• the development of organizational policies;
• WCC member churches and partners who are willing to further adjust their investment strategies and relations with influential contractors to fight global warming; and
• joint efforts with the United Nations and other partners who col-laborate to accelerate green finance and environmental sustainability measures.

The document can also be used for discussions related to discernment on returns and benefits of financial placements.

If, for example, an organization is exclusively or primarily looking at the financial returns of a pension fund, the following question could emerge: Will employees be able to enjoy their pension and time with grandchildren if, by the time they retire, temperatures continue to increase as a result of global warming?

View the Cooler Earth poster that was developed to make accessible to all the findings of this report.

View on the World Council of Churches website

Children Front and Centre of Climate Action

“Talk less and act more, the world needs help’ (Emmanuel, aged 16, Brazil). Climate change is happening now, and is threatening the realisation of children’s rights and their ability to achieve their full potential. Children and young people across the planet have expressed their desire to fully participate in the debate on the climate change crisis and support in the development of solutions. Children and young people are concerned about the negative impact of greenhouse gas emissions, and seek to hold governments and multilateral organisations accountable to their duty to protect the planet from global warming. However, to date, their calls have only received intermittent attention. The world has seen a surge in activism and participation on climate change from children at a grassroots level but this is not always reflected in policy decisions. This research aims to give policy-makers further evidence of children and young people’s views on climate change and their desire for action.

World Vision sees children and young people as rights-holders and agents of change who are capable of expressing their views and proposing strategies to make a change in their communities and countries. In order to explore how children and young people associated with World Vision programmes understand and perceive climate change, World Vision conducted a research study to capture children and young people’s ideas on how they wanted to engage in climate action. We spoke to 121 children and young people (74 girls and 47 boys) between the ages of 10 and 17 years from 12 countries: Albania, Bangladesh, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Chile, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ghana, Kenya, Mongolia, Nicaragua and Romania.

Their responses showed that children and young people are well aware of climate change, and are able to articulate this concept and describe the impact of climate change on their communities. Most of the respondents noted that climate change is affecting their communities and is therefore not an alien problem. Most children and young people also self-reported a high level of acceptance of scientific facts, such as global warming being due to greenhouse gas emissions, and demonstrated a recognition that climate change is a human-driven phenomenon. The perception of risk associated with climate change was high across all respondents, who viewed extreme weather changes as proof of the damage it is inflicting on the environment, demonstrated through increased temperatures, floods, droughts, wildfires and erosion, amongst others.

This is about how Islamic Relief is working with the people most affected to respond to the climate crisis. We show how in empowering communities, families and individuals to emerge out of poverty and suffering, they are better able to adapt to the challenges they face now and in the future. In the climate emergency, locally-led community based adaptation brings justice to those who have the least. ‘Adapting for Climate Justice’ shows how Islamic Relief is making this a reality.

In January, join the Religions Humanitarianism and Development reading group with the Ajaz Ahmad Khan.

This book was first published at the beginning of the twenty-first century. A joint project of the United Nations Environment Programme and the Interfaith Partnership for the Environment, it was titled Earth and Faith: A Book of Reflection for Action. The partners printed tens of thousands of copies and gave them to schools, congregations, and communities throughout the world. The book described the growing threats to our planet’s life support systems, the reverence all faiths share for life on Earth, and the responsibility that people have to future generations.

Teachers, students, leaders of religious congregations, and community organizers used the book to introduce and talk about critical environmental issues and how faith communities were addressing these issues. Intended primarily as an educational resource, it has also been used as a reference and inspiration for practice.

During the twenty years that have passed since the book’s publication, the planet has undergone profound and rapid changes. The impact of our actions and choices continues to escalate, causing the ever-worsening global climate emergency, altering natural global processes and major ecosystems, accelerating extinctions of countless forms of life, and deepening human suffering on an unprecedented scale.

Scientific evidence documenting the crisis is undeniable and grows with every passing day. At the same time, there has been a surge of faith-based action and advocacy on behalf of the environment from religious groups everywhere. The response is coming from every corner of the world, reflecting both the diversity of the ways we define our relationship with nature and the essential unity of values at the core of all our hope.

As we begin this century’s third decade, the new edition — produced through a partnership between the United Nations Environment Programme and the Parliament of the World’s Religions Climate Action — offers an introduction to the magnitude of the task we now face and to the faith communities that are becoming a force for the global environmental future. Also, in keeping with the urgency of the work that must be done to heal our planet, we have changed the book’s title. It is time, as never before, to call on our faith, our values, our religious teachings and traditions – on Faith for Earth. And it is time for action.

Suggestions and good practices for Sunday schools, church-run schools and summer camps to implement the “Churches’ Commitments to Children”

This toolkit provides resources for churches, church-run schools, and summer camps to support intergenerational climate and environmental justice and promote care for children by stopping further global warming. All churches are encouraged to promote education and action to address climate change, reduce CO2 emissions, and protect the environment in their activities for and with children and youth.

The resource has three main sections:

1. GET INFORMED. This section includes resources available to educate children of various age groups about climate change and environmental challenges.
2. GET INSPIRED. This part presents inspiring initiatives happening around the world, from global movements to church communities and small groups of individuals.
3. TAKE ACTION. This section illustrates that, from small acts to major movements, everyone can do their part to address environmental challenges and promote behaviours and choices that respect creation. Anyone can help to stop global warming

It becomes ever clearer that climate change is the greatest challenge that we and future generations face; a true horseman of the apocalypse. This book comes at a crucial time. Without swift, decisive action, the consequences of climate change will be devastating.

On a trip to Fiji last year, I was told by my hosts,‘For you Europeans climate change is a problem for the future; for us, it is a problem of everyday survival’. The contributions of our Polynesian friends in this book illustrate how, for many, climate change is already climate crisis. And, Polynesia is just one example of the repercussions of climate change we are seeing worldwide. In Nigeria, desertification has caused conflict amongst tribes competing for dwindling resources. In Bangladesh, monsoons have killed thousands. There are many many more examples.

As a Christian, I believe in the words of Psalm 24,‘The earth is the Lord’s, and all that is in it’. We are the stewards of God’s creation and it is our sacred duty to protect the natural world,which we have so generously been given. Responding to climate change is an essential part of this responsibility. But it is not only that. When we look at Jesus we see one who instinctively stood alongside the most vulnerable in society. It is absolutely clear that following Jesus today must include standing alongside those who are on the front line of this unfolding catastrophe.

Council on Foreign Relations Webinar, May 14, 2020

Mary Evelyn Tucker, senior lecturer, senior research scholar, and codirector of the Forum of Religion and Ecology at Yale University, discusses religion and climate change.

You can access the webinar and transcript here.

This Resource Guide is part of a series of briefs meant to inform and inspire faith communities to action to help safeguard tropical forests and their inhabitants. Through facts, graphics, analysis, photos, and faith-inspired perspectives, this Resource Guide presents the moral case for conserving and restoring rainforest ecosystems, supported by the latest science and policy insights. It brings together the research and practical tools that faith communities and religious leaders need to better understand the importance of tropical forests, to advocate for their protection, and to raise awareness about the ethical responsibility that exists across faiths to take action to end tropical deforestation. Our hope is that this Resource Guide inspires and helps equip faith leaders and communities to take their seat at the table alongside the broader partnership of forest advocates, bringing fresh wisdom, insights and influence to this urgent issue.

Click here for more information.

This book by a mastermind of integrating theology and ecology surveys the pressing global and local environmental issues and seeks to provide biblical and theological insights for Christians concerned with the ecological and environmental challenges being confronted today. Breaking away from academic or spiritual perspectives, the author seeks integrated solutions for sustainability of God’s creation. Stewardship is considered as the wisest option to engage in conserving creation for future generations.

The Faith for Earth initiative from UN Environment is uniting religions around the world to focus on environmental issues. At the environment assembly 135 faith leaders from 12 different religions came together to talk about using the influence of faith to better our natural environment.

Monitoring the objectives of the project indicated in the message addressed by His Majesty King Mohammed VI to the Islamic Conference of Environment Ministers to “consider the possibility of setting up an Islamic academy for environment and sustainable Development to enrich research, share experiences and consolidate capacities….”, a project which ISESCO has, on the basis of a mandate from the Conference, followed up the progress of the creation of the Academy with the competent authorities at the Government of the Kingdom of Morocco.

Faith-based organisations (FBO) have been active in promoting climate action, campaigning and diffusing information about climate change and innovating for sustainable consumption and production. They also possess great potential in mobilising more members of civil society and government bodies to take action and improve their commitments to sustainable living. FBOs are perfectly positioned to assume a more primary role in governing the relationship between mankind and the environment. Faith literature and principles are embedded with the concepts of morality, ethics and reciprocity that can be channelled to mandate environmental protection and climate action. The structures of faiths allow for the integration of considerations for climate action and its various elements such as the water ecosystems, animals, flora and our consumption that contribute to the degradation of the aforementioned. In addition, faith spaces have a high standing in society and are well trusted, often holding very close relationships with factions of society. They therefore are able to take up the large responsibility of guiding humankind in a direction of sustainable living.

“The way we Christians talk about our responsibility for creation and to our neighbors should not be entirely controlled by the scientific and ideological arguments coming either from the right or from the left. The great biblical narrative of creation, fall, redemption, and final restoration provides the larger story within which we should deliberate. There are also particular texts and themes in the Bible that provide crucial components of a biblically informed humane environmental ethic, such as the way in which Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were historically famous for digging wells, or the way in which the ancient Israelites talked about developments in agricultural technology. And biblically informed Christians will never want to forget the development mandate given to Adam and Eve or the way in which God has long been active in his world as both Creator and Redeemer. Johnson and Schirrmacher have teamed up to present essays which attempt to articulate and address selected themes in environmental ethics that unite a proper concern for creation care with loving our neighbors. Read, and then try to think farther along the paths they suggest.”

From 16 to 19 June 2019, 52 participants from 22 countries and from different confessional and faith traditions gathered in Wuppertal, Germany for a conference entitled “Together towards ecotheologies, ethics of sustainability and eco-friendly churches”.1 1 In Wuppertal we were reminded of the courageous confession of faith articulated in the Barmen Declaration (1934) against the totalitarian, inhuman and racist ideology of the time. Barmen continues to encourage us today for “a joyful liberation from the godless ties of this world for free grateful service to his creatures” (Barmen 2). We shared stories from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America, and Oceania. We heard the cries of the earth, the cries of people vulnerable to the effects of climate change, especially children and the elderly, the cries of youth demanding intergenerational justice and the concerns of experts over current trends. We recognize the urgency of the years that lie ahead, nevertheless express the courage to hope and are compelled to call the global ecumenical movement towards a comprehensive ecological transformation of society

Climate change is a complex subject that many of us struggle to get to grips with. For some, the issue seems so big it’s hard to imagine we can do anything to help. Others might assume the issue is being dealt with already by the UN, governments and aid agencies. So what is the role of mission and the church in all of this? We believe we can all do something to help combat climate change, whether by making changes in our personal lives or by acting collectively as a church or community – and we hope this resource will help us to get involved.

The JLI convenes policymakers, academics and professionals to build and communicate evidence of religions’ and faith-based organizations’ roles in development work. Because of growing interest in environment related topics, JLI created a webinar series to discuss faith and climate work, highlighting faith-based programs, interfaith programs, applied research and advocacy.

Local communities globally are increasingly impacted by climate change. Local faith communities are involved not only in building awareness of the impact of climate change but also bringing religious and spiritual understandings of stewardship and care for our planet to the discussion. Additionally, faith-based NGOs are working in climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation support in communities and mobilizing faith communities to advocate for change. These organizations are developing climate-sensitive ways of operating in their humanitarian and development movements.

All webinar episodes are recorded and available on JLI’s YouTube channel and additional climate and faith resources can be found on JLI’s website.

Written Statement from the Anglican Consultative Council, July 2019

The global Anglican Communion is playing a significant role in pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals and “leaving no one behind”. Globally, Anglicans and Anglican agencies are delivering health and education services, supporting access to birth registration, welcoming refugees and internally displaced people into their communities, reducing child and maternal mortality, and helping turn the tide on HIV/AIDS and other diseases. In places of instability and conflict, churches are often among the only institutions left providing hope and relief to those in need…

Click here to read the Commitments from the Anglican Consultative Council

This book contains a series of group studies to help you live justly in six key areas of life: advocacy, prayer, consumption, generosity, relationships and creation care. They are designed to help you and those in your community in your pursuit of biblical justice – whether that’s at church, in work or elsewhere.

Read in French

Read in Spanish

Read in Portuguese

There has been great success in the alleviation of global poverty over the last 25 years. However, due to the current model of economic growth, these successes in economic development have been at a grave cost to the environment. As more and more people have been lifted out of poverty, so the strain placed on finite resources and the environmental systems that are essential for sustaining life has increased. And the environmental damage, rampant inequality and unjust economic systems in our world today threaten to push many people back into poverty.

We need to continue – and step up – the fight against poverty, but to do so in a different way. A way that is both economically and environmentally sustainable. A way that protects and restores God’s creation, brings an end to unjust inequality and builds just and sustainable economic systems.

Tearfund’s Advocacy toolkit is easy to understand and easy to use. It is an introductory and comprehensive guide to the theory and practice of advocacy. It is set out in a logical order, providing a clear overview and guidance about advocacy, based on the key questions: What? Where? Who? Why? and How?

Each section is in three parts:

• Teaching notes covering the most important points in question and answer format
• Tools that are designed to be freestanding but also to double up as handouts in a training workshop
• Training exercises for applying the teaching and using the tools in a training workshop, with clear instructions about how to facilitate them

The NEW second edition includes 80 case studies sharing the learning and experience of Tearfund partners over the past 12 years. There is a new section on the challenge of doing advocacy in a difficult political context, an expanded section on monitoring and evaluating advocacy and new material offering a Christian perspective on human rights.

Dealing with climate change is vital for Islamic Relief to fulfil its mission of addressing the root causes of poverty. Climate change is a threat to us all but it is already having a devastating impact on the poorest and most vulnerable, those who are least responsible for global warming.

This review describes Islamic Relief’s most recent interventions and highlights how communities are working with us to adapt to climate change and build resilience, including efforts to reduce the risk from future shocks. It also captures why Islamic Relief is vocal on climate change and climate justice issues, and how we are campaigning to reduce emissions, promote sustainable living and protect the most vulnerable.

We use the term ‘climate change’ throughout this report, but recognise that what we are witnessing is something entirely different from what occurred throughout the earth’s history. This is climate breakdown, where the actions of humans are causing changes within decades that have previously taken millennia. To deal with this means questioning not only current environmental and economic policies, but entire political and economic systems.

This publication sets out Islamic Relief’s policy on climate change. It builds on the foundation of Islamic perspectives and scientific evidence described in the Islamic Relief Climate Change Policy of December 2014. Outlining policy messages for Islamic Relief programmes, partners and external audiences, the policy takes account of new events and adds Islamic Relief’s recent experience in adaptation, resilience, human development and poverty reduction.

The policy aims to:

• support Islamic Relief in delivering its global strategy goals, and to inform strategy implementation.
• inform political forums and external audiences, and to provide a basis for much-needed advocacy and influence.

From 16 to 19 June 2019, 52 participants from 22 countries and from different confessional and faith traditions gathered in Wuppertal, Germany for a conference entitled “Together towards eco-theologies, ethics of sustainability and eco-friendly churches”. In Wuppertal we were reminded of the courageous confession of faith articulated in the Barmen Declaration (1934) against the totalitarian, inhuman and racist ideology of the time. Barmen continues to encourage us today for “a joyful liberation from the godless ties of this world for free grateful service to his creatures” (Barmen 2).
We shared stories from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America, and Oceania. We heard the cries of the earth, the cries of people vulnerable to the effects of climate change, especially children and the elderly, the cries of youth demanding intergenerational justice and the concerns of experts over current trends.
We recognize the urgency of the years that lie ahead, nevertheless express the courage to hope and are compelled to call the global ecumenical movement towards a comprehensive ecological transformation of society.

Kairos: A decisive turn in the pilgrimage of justice and peace
The ecumenical movement has long committed itself to a pilgrimage towards justice, peace and the integrity of creation. These goals will require urgent steps on the road ahead. The urgency of the crisis calls us to read the signs of the time, to hear God’s call, to follow the way of Christ, to discern the movement of the Spirit and, in response, to recognize the positive initiatives of churches all around the world.

Read the resource in deutsch

World Council of Churches invites congregations, communities, and churches to discuss the following five-step programme to change the way we deal with the economy and our ecological surroundings.

The following steps are a kind of roadmap relating to a variety of issues. It is not necessary to agree on all points. Discussing them is already an important part of the pilgrimage. Our goal is to strive for conscious, just, and sustainable ways of living for the wellbeing of our communities and our only planetary home.

Episcopal Relief and Development with their partners use Six Climate Resilience Participatory Learning & Action Tools with communities:

1. Transect Walk – Resource attached

The Transect Walk is a group exercise that entails walking between two points to intentionally cross or transect a community. The group explores environmental and social resources, conditions and systems by observing, asking, listening, looking and producing a transect diagram. Specific information may be collected to reveal land use practices, hazards, vulnerabilities and capacities to inform disaster mitigation and preparation plans and longer term climate resilience plans

2. Seasonal Calendar

The Seasonal Calendar is a group exercise that helps people explore and understand how ecological, social, and economic aspects of their lives and wellbeing change throughout the year. Specific variables can be used to help people explore agro-ecological and climatic variations that may better inform their own planning, decision-making and risk mitigation and disaster preparedness initiatives.

3. Power Walk

The Power Walk is a group exercise that facilitates participants to “walk” in someone else’s shoes and experience what it feels like to be powerless or powerful based on gender, occupation, education level, disability, age, health etc. and in the face of different obstacles or shocks.

4. Wellbeing Map

The Wellbeing Map is a group exercise that reveals people’s perceptions of what constitutes or depicts wellbeing. Specific wellbeing characteristics can be explored to categorize resilient households or disaster-prepared households and communities.

5. Historical Timeline

The Historical Timeline is a group exercise that chronologically lists people’s recollection of key events and changes in the history of their community.

6. People’s Map

The People’s Map is a group exercise that guides people through a pictorial recognition of the physical, natural, social, livelihood, economic and spiritual assets within their community.

The Forum on Religion and Ecology at Yale is an international multi-religious project. With its conferences, publications, and website, it is engaged in exploring religious worldviews, texts, and ethics in order to broaden understanding of the complex nature of current environmental concerns. The Forum recognizes that religions need to be in dialogue with other disciplines (e.g., science, economics, policy, gender studies) in seeking comprehensive solutions to both global and local environmental problems.

Yale Faith and Climate Webinar Series

The Security and Sustainability Forum will hold a Faith and Climate Webinar Series in partnership with the Parliament of the World’s Religions (PWR).

The forum held two webinars in the series will address (1) The youth climate lawsuit, Juliana vs. the U.S. and (2) The Pope’s second encyclical on care for the planet.

Webinar 1: Juliana vs the United States
(The Youth Climate Suit)
June 4, 2019

The first webinar in the Faith and Climate Webinar Series with the Parliament of the World’s Religions will begin with faith-based perspectives supporting the plaintiffs in Juliana v. United States, the youth climate suit. The webinar will be moderated by David Hales, President Emeritus of College of the Atlantic and Chair of Climate Action for the Parliament. It will feature the Parliament’s lead counsel in its amicus curiae filing, Howard Learner of the Environmental Law and Policy Center.

Webinar 2: The Ten Green Commandments of Laudato Si’
June 14, 2019

The second webinar in the Faith and Climate Webinar Series will be a discussion with Fr. Joshtrom Isaac Kureethadam, author of The Ten Green Commandments of Laudato Si’. This is about Pope Frances’ second encyclical, “On Care for Our Common Home,” which asks “every person living on this planet” to begin a dialogue about the future of our world. Watch on Vimeo

Click on the link for the Forum’s Books and Website

Click on the link for the Forum’s Articles

THE OPPORTUNITIES AND LIMITATIONS OF CLIMATE RISK INSURANCE FOR THE PROTECTION OF VULNERABLE POPULATIONS

In autumn 2015, the international community drew up 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These were followed by National Action Plans established at the national level to ensure the goals could be achieved by 2030. However, climate change now stands in the path of achieving the SDGs and will specifically affect the poorest populations in the countries that are most at risk from climate change. Although extreme weather events such as tropical storms, droughts and floods threaten these people’s harvests, income and livelihoods, climate risk insurance can help to reduce their vulnerability. In the event of a disaster, insurance can quickly provide funds to help the injured parties deal with their situation as well as to bolster emergency responses and strengthen social protection systems.

Analysis 86

The world is at crossroads. Awareness is growing rapidly that overshooting the aspirational goal of the Paris Agreement (PA) to limit global warming to 1.5°C would severely jeopardise the achievement of the SDGs, making the poor poorer, and causing increasing inequalities, conflicts and humanitarian catastrophes.

Climate action and sustainable development are in-separable. The IPCC Special Report Global Warming of 1.5°C (SR15) was the first to systematically examine the links between different scenarios of global warming and sustainable development. It was the first to identify climate risks that can only be avoided by ambitious climate action, and the tremendous socio-economic opportunities ‒ or co-benefits of sustainable development ‒ that can be realised by taking ambitious climate action. The IPCC also discusses possible trade-offs between mitigation and adaptation on the one hand, and SDGs on the other. Minimising these trade-offs requires knowledge gaps to be closed, particularly with regard to the foot-print associated with land-use change caused by following 1.5°C-consistent pathways. Finally, in the report the IPCC stresses the importance of design triple-win solutions based on mitigation, adaptation and sustainable development.

Our report summarises the main facts and trends identified by the IPCC’s special report and other leading scientific literature. We focus on showing the key risks and the possible differences between a 1.5°C and a 2°C world. Moreover, we show where these differences would be felt the most, and how they may have an impact on the achievement of the SDGs and human rights, and translate into humanitarian challenges and concerns for justice. We identify Small Island Developing States (SIDS), Least Developed Countries (LDCs), South Asia, Southern Africa, the Horn of Africa, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, Central America and Northeast Brazil as hot spots. Agriculture, water, health, (coastal) communities and cities, and tropical marine (coral) ecosystems are the areas most at risk if average global temperatures rise above 1.5°C

With Case Examples from Tanzania, Ethiopia, El Salvador and Bangladesh

Discussion Paper

This discussion paper demonstrates that climate-induced non-economic loss and damage (NELD) includes forms of damage that cannot be measured or compensated financially. It includes loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services, land, territories, artefacts, life, health, knowledge, social cohesion, identity, and sovereignty, and it ultimately causes migration and displacement.

NELD is a relatively new concept and very little academic research has been conducted on it until now. Thus, there are still many questions that need to be answered, not to mention a lack of knowledge and gaps in the data. This paper introduce the concept of NELD and discusses its main aspects as well as the key challenges related to it. These include the incommensurability and context-dependency of value, measurements that go beyond market prices, the difficulty of attributing loss to climate change, preventability, the multi-causality of NELD, and the interdependency of various types of loss.

Towards climate resilient agriculture and food systems

A critical assessment and alternatives to climate-smart agriculture

This briefing sets out the ACT Alliance EU position on what we believe are the best solutions to build climate resilient agriculture systems and meet the right to food for all in developed and developing countries. This position is based on our comparative analysis of the currently in vogue ‘climate-smart agriculture’ framework (CSA) versus the alternative frameworks of food sovereignty and agroecology.

The ACT Alliance climate change advocacy framework position paper is designed as a broad outline of the policy areas and approaches that the alliance is working on. It serves as the general vision and guide for ACT Alliance’s climate change advocacy, campaigning, and messaging by providing a political and strategic framing of the thematic areas. It is expected that this document will be used by ACT forums and members in their own advocacy at the national and regional level.

Nation Unies

Conference Sur les Changements Climatiques 2015

COP21/CMP11

The Paris Agreement on Climate Change is an important milestone in climate change policy and diplomacy. It demonstrates the success of a multilateral process that lasted several years and that was beset by myriads of challenges. Finally, the 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change showed that the world community is committed to finding a global solution to a global problem. Our mission as protestant development and humanitarian agencies, with our partners and networks, is to advocate for the rights of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people. They are increasingly exposed to climate risks that threaten their lives and livelihoods in many climate vulnerable countries where we and our partners work.

ACT Alliance has launched a Toolkit, Towards the Ambitious Implementation of the Paris Agreement.  The purpose of the Toolkit is to support the climate change advocacy actions of ACT members, forums and partners at the national level. The Toolkit guides FBOs to develop successful approaches for meaningful climate advocacy to stay at 1.5°C and to operationalise our common vision of shaping our future in ways that take up the call for a strong moral and religious imperative in overcoming the climate crisis.

Read the Spanish version here

The UN Environment Foresight Briefs are published by UN Environment to, among others, highlight a hotspot of environmental change, feature an emerging science topic, or discuss a contemporary environmental issue.

This is an opportunity to find out what is happening to their changing environment and the consequences of everyday choices, and to think about future directions for policy.

A Discussion Note prepared for the Second International Seminar on Environment,
Culture and Religion – Promoting Intercultural Dialogue for Sustainable Development
(23 – 24 April 2016, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran)

This guide is intended to provide practical guidance for climate communicators, both inside and outside faith communities, about what language works well and – crucially – what language might pose an obstacle for communicating with any specific faith group.
In April 2015, GreenFaith asked Climate Outreach to develop and test language around climate change that could mobilise activity across five main faith groups (in alphabetical order: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism) in the run-up to the 2015 world climate conference in Paris.
This research may be the first of its kind: not only does it seek language that works with each of the faiths, it seeks language that works across all of them.

Watch the webinar which shares and discusses the key findings from this guide.

Published in 2000 by UNEP, Earth and Faith is a basic introduction to critical environmental issues and the role religious communities can play in engaging the environmental crisis.

UN Environment held its fourth Environment Assembly during 11-15 March 2019, with the themes of sustainable consumption and production, and innovative approaches to solving environmental issues. The Faith for Earth Initiative held its thematic dialogue in the Faith and SDG Tent, and convened bilateral and multilateral meetings with faith-based organisations’ (FBOs) representatives on issues of sustainable development and the environment.

The overall aim of the Faith for Earth Dialogue was to provide faith leaders and faith-based organisations an opportunity to present their positions, experiences and interfaith engagement as related to the main theme of the UN Environment Assembly – “Innovative solutions for environmental challenges and sustainable consumption and production”. Furthermore, the dialogue has provided the participants with an opportunity to reflect on UN system activities and on how it can integrate the initiative into its programme of work and partner with FBOs. Discussions also included ways of coordinating current and future efforts. Holding the dialogue during UNEA-4 was a golden opportunity for accredited FBOs to engage in policy dialogue with major groups and stakeholders, as well as with representatives of member states.

JAKARTA, INDONESIA, March 5 2014. The Indonesian Council of Ulama (MUI) has issued a fatwa, or edict, requiring the country’s 200 million Muslims to take an active role in protecting threatened species including tigers, rhinos, elephants and orangutans.

The fatwa, which has been widely acclaimed in the world’s media this week, is one of the first of its kind in the world and it will be accompanied by an education programme to help communities put it into practice.

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More Educational Resources – Indonesian Fatwas on Biodiversity and Forest Protection

Alliance of Religions and Conservation and The Centre for Islamic Studies, National University (UNAS) in Jakarta

Fatwa on Threatened Species:

• An updated Islam and conservation training package created by UNAS & IFEES (Islamic Foundation for Ecology and Environmental Science)
• An Islam and conservation guidebook  “Pelestarian Satwa Langka untuk Keseimbangan Ekosistem” (The Conservation of Endangered Species for the Ecosystem Balance). This reference book is designed as a complete guide to the fatwa for clerics. It explains basic conservation concepts and issues and relevant laws and regulations, and includes sustainable resource use guidelines and wildlife lists, with pictures of tigers, rhinos and other key threatened species. It describes the theological basis in Islam for conservation, and explains why MUI issued the fatwa
• Jum’ah (Friday) Prayer Text for Conservation Preachers  (Dai Konservasi), entitled “Khutbah Jum’at Pelestarian Satwa Langka untuk Keseimbangan Ekosistem” (Friday Sermon: The Conservation of Endangered Species for the Ecosystem Balance). This tool supports clerics to design sermons, ceremonies and festivals that highlight conservation messages in ways that embody the key tenets of Islam, and which can be easily communicated to local rural communities. At almost 100 pages it includes sermon guidance on 12 themes, including Islamic ethics concerning animals, and Islamic perspectives on wildlife conservation and the prohibition of illegal wildlife trade and hunting
• High resolution poster
• Pocket-sized booklet on the fatwa

Fatwa on Forest and Peatland Fires:

• Guidebook on forest and peatland fire fatwa
• Sermon handbook  on forest and peatland fires fatwa

In India, the issues of energy access and climate change are inextricably linked. If the 200 million people in India without access to electricity receive their energy from clean renewable sources, India will make a vital and positive contribution to the struggle against climate change. This report represents a first step in exploring how the country’s large and diverse religious sector can play an important role in addressing these two interconnected challenges.

Indian religious and spiritual institutions command significant moral authority and have a large civil society presence. If engaged and equipped properly, they could play a transformative role in ending energy poverty in India. Their potential impact, however, has received very little sustained attention from regional and national governments, the renewable energy, energy access and social entrepreneur sectors, and funders.

Following a 2017 consultation in Mumbai between religious leaders and social entrepreneurs in the field of energy access, in 2018, the Bhumi Project and GreenFaith engaged EPG Economic and Strategy Consulting to conduct a modest, initial survey of the renewable energy efforts of Indian religious and spiritual institutions. The aim was to identify renewable energy efforts and trends in the Indian religious sector, to identify any involvement by Indian religious institutions in the area of energy access, and to determine further research and action steps in these areas.

Over a six month period we researched 30 Indian religious and spiritual institutions, distributed across the country, which had initiated some form of renewable energy and/or sustainability initiative. These institutions were from the Hindu, Islamic, Jain, Sikh and Christian communities, along with a number of non-denominational spiritual organisations. The stories we gathered offer insights on how one of Indian society’s most culturally influential sectors can make a far greater contribution to closing India’s energy access gap.

Read the Rise to Shine Full Report here

Following ETC Group’s 2010 “Geopiracy” report, this report exposes the context, goals, actors and rapid developments underway to advance climate manipulation, or geoengineering. The new framing from geoengineers is that we must accept these dangerous technofixes because they cannot see any other alternative to stall or prevent climate havoc.

Since “Geopiracy,” the narrative has evolved to play on growing public alarm about the climate crisis and the technologies have advanced, but the actors and their goals remain the same. From adjusting the Earth’s thermostat to changing the chemistry of the oceans, geoengineering proposals pose unacceptable threats to people and the environment.

This publication sets out Islamic Relief’s policy on climate change. It builds on the foundation of Islamic perspectives and scientific evidence described in the Islamic Relief Climate Change Policy of December 2014. Outlining policy messages for Islamic Relief programmes, partners and external audiences, the policy takes account of new events and adds Islamic Relief’s recent experience in adaptation, resilience, human development and poverty reduction.

The policy aims to:
• support Islamic Relief in delivering its global strategy goals, and to inform strategy implementation.
• inform political forums and external audiences, and to provide a basis for much-needed advocacy and influence.

This guide is intended to provide practical guidance for climate communicators, both inside and outside faith communities, about what language works well and – crucially – what language might pose an obstacle for communicating with any specific faith group.
In April 2015, GreenFaith asked Climate Outreach to develop and test language around climate change that could mobilise activity across five main faith groups (in alphabetical order: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism) in the run-up to the 2015 world climate conference in Paris.
This research may be the first of its kind: not only does it seek language that works with each of the faiths, it seeks language that works across all of them.

A workshop and webinar hosted by the Parliament of the World’s Religions on January 23, 2019, featuring presentations from Dr. Edward Maibach, Director of George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication and Dr. Iyad Abu Moghli, Principal Advisor of the Faith for Earth Initiative of UN Environment. Attendees from faith-based organizations working on climate action were invited to this workshop moderated by PWR Climate Action Director Joshua Basofin.

2019 Young Champion of the Earth for North America Molly Burhans founded GoodLands, where they work to bring Catholic conservation to the scale and impact of Catholic healthcare and education, as the largest global network of its kind. Molly is bringing the most powerful technology for large-scale property planning and sustainability – Geographic Information Systems – to the Catholic Church – the global organization with the most land and the most people.

Jan 2018

Understanding the key role that faith-based organizations play at the global, regional and local levels, UN Environment supports the UN-wide task force on Religion and Development. UN Environment is taking the lead in establishing an innovative strategy to engage and partner with faith-based organizations to deliver on Agenda 2030. The strategy builds on the 5 principles (People living on a healthy Planet, enjoying Prosperity and Partnerships in Peaceful societies), with three overarching goals: 1) Leadership for policy impact; 2) Financing to support SDGs; and 3) Knowledge-based decision support system. The three goals will largely depend on mobilizing local communities; co-ordinating communications and advocacy; fostering south-south cooperation; engaging in faith-Environment thematic conversations and empowering UN Environment corporate engagement.

The aim of this annotated bibliography on ‘Religion and Development’ is to lend a hand to practitioners in humanitarian and development work:

‘Where can I read and learn about how to take religion, religious communities and religious actors seriously in programme dialogue, planning and implementation?’

‘Where can one find accounts of good practices, learnings, tools and relevant methods in this regard?’ Therefore, this bibliography is not meant to be an overview of the theoretical aspect of religion and development in new political science and development literature, but rather to deliberately focus on the practical consequences and positive effects of the emerging new insights.

SDG 1: No Poverty                                                                                  pg  5
SDG 2: Zero Hunger                                                                              pg  7
SDG 3: Good Health and Well-Being                                                 pg 10
SDG 5: Gender – Gender Equality                                                      pg 14
SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth                                    pg 20
SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities                                                              pg 22
SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities                                   pg 24
SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production                       pg 27
SDG 13: Climate Action                                                                         pg 30
SDG 16: Resilient societies – Peace and Justice                                pg 32
SDG 17: Sustainable Development – Partnership for the Goals   pg 35
UN Guidelines for engaging with Faith-Based organisations        pg 44
Positions of governmental donors                                                       pg 46
Alphabetical bibliography                                                                     pg 47

Climate change experts from the ACT Alliance network have published a report assessing the threats posed by climate change on the sustainable development goals (SDG) and disaster risk reduction. The report finds that warming of 1.5°C will severely impact climate-vulnerable developing countries, and urges more ambitious climate action. The report also identifies policy recommendations to maintain the possibility of staying at 1.5°C global warming.

[PRESS RELEASE] Even a small increase in global warming will have profound impacts on communities, new ACT report finds.

21st-23rd March 2018

United Nations Strategic Learning Exchange on Religion, Development and Humanitarian Work under the patronage of HRH Prince El Hassan bin Talal, in Amman, Jordan

The Strategic Learning Exchange (SLE) is a partnership effort stewarded by the UN Interagency Task Force on Religion and Development, together with the International Partnership on Religion and Sustainable Development (PaRD), the Humanitarian Leadership Academy, the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organization (JHCO), the King Abdullah Center for Dialogue (KAICIID), World Vision International (WVI) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ Jordan). This SLE focused on the religion and role in addressing the SDGs with special focus on MENA region.

SLE Amman Agenda

SLE_Amman_Concept_Note (English)_

SLE_Amman_Concept_Note_(Arabic)

More information about the event from JLI Partner PaRD see here

To a large extent, governance capacity and community resilience explains the nature and structure of the response. In this report, three case studies – from Angola, Mali, and Honduras – of actual responses to climate change and conflict are presented.

Part one of this two-part report examined the overall links between climate change and conflict.1 It found how violent conflict worsens climate vulnerability. For example, violent conflicts lead to famine;
natural resources destruction is a deliberate tactic in waging war; conflict hampers macro-level responses to climate change; and the adoption of ‘green strategies’ can also be used to gain the upper
hand in conflicts.
Climate change hazards make it more difficult to tackle violence and build peace. Climate change can trigger food shortages, decrease water supplies or disrupt access to energy supplies – leading to economic and political turmoil, social unrest, riots, deadly battles and even all-out war. In response, the governments and militaries of 110 countries have already identified climate change as a threat to their national security.

Part two – climate justice policy brief here

The Enhancing Community Resilience Programme (ECRP) works to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, reduce vulnerability and strengthen the resilience of around 77,000 households. In total, it reaches 423,000 people across seven districts who are among the hardest hit by climate change.

Christian Aid and its fellow consortium members CARE International Malawi and ActionAid Malawi together manage 10 local organisations with long-standing local experience who deliver ECRP on the ground.

The programme is funded by UK aid, Irish Aid and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, receiving more than £15m over almost six years until 2017.

More information about the programme here

Lessons learned in report below or click download:

Climate finance is one of the thorniest issues on the UN climate change agenda. Developed countries claim to be complying with their financial commitments, while developing countries continue to ask where the money is. To overcome this recurring discussion, the parties must first hammer out and agree on some rules for the accounting of climate finance.

1) There should be an agreed definition of climate finance, accounting and reporting

2) There should be greater transparency and accuracy in the assessments

3) Climate finance should be balanced between mitigation and adaptation

4) Climate finance should be genuinely “new and additional”