| Keeping faith in climate justice |
|
|
|
Dear Faith for the Climate network,
Yesterday was special. As a founding member and national affiliate of GreenFaith International, we launched our upcoming global action, Faiths 4 Climate Justice. I was personally heartened to welcome so many people of all backgrounds from different parts of the world - including some lovely familiar faces from the UK.
On 17 and 18 October, people of faith all around the world will be acting together, calling for:
- An immediate end to new fossil fuel projects, deforestation, and related financing,
- A massive commitment to green jobs to reduce climate pollution and end poverty for millions, and
- Climate reparations from wealthy countries to equip vulnerable nations for a better future.
This is also what UK faith groups are calling for through the Make COP Count collective that we chair.
|
|
Also, stay tuned for more UK-specific updates from us.
And while many of us might be taking a much-needed break at this time of the year, I hope you'll find inspiration in this edition of our e-news with actions, announcements and resources for the weeks ahead. |
|
|
Here's something exciting coming straight after the Faiths 4 Climate Justice global action!
Operation Noah, Green Anglicans, the World Council of Churches, the Laudato Si' Movement and GreenFaith invite your church to join the next global divestment announcement on 25 October.
The announcement, which will take place shortly before the UN climate summit (COP26) in Glasgow in November, offers churches and other faith organisations an opportunity to emphasise the urgent moral imperative to divest from fossil fuels, given their destructive impacts on climate, biodiversity and human rights.
Please get in touch with Bokani Tshidzu before 18 October for more information or to register your interest.
|
|
"What about September?" I hear you ask.
Well, it's still not too late to sign up for the Great Big Green Week - the UK's biggest call for action on climate change running from 18 to 26 September.
And, leading up to that, Climate Sunday will be presenting collective action and commitments from local churches across Great Britain and Ireland to the UK government at a Nations' Climate Sunday Service in Glasgow on Sunday 5 September. Register for this service here.
If you're looking for something to do right now, then tell the government to reject plans for oil extraction in the Cambo Field.
Energy company Siccar Point and oil giant Shell have plans to open a huge new oil field in the Cambo Field, West of Shetland. This clearly contradicts the International Energy Agency’s advice that there should be no new fossil fuel development if we’re to avoid a catastrophic 1.5°C rise in global temperature. But as the UK government is trying to demonstrate its green credentials before it hosts the COP26 talks in November, now's the perfect time to convince it to reject this climate-wrecking plan. |
|
To round off, here are some resources to keep you going. If you look really (really) hard at the photo above, you might be able to spot our Chair, Canon Giles Goddard and me, in this 23 July action in front of Parliament Square marking 100 days to COP26. There was some great coverage in the media, with Giles getting quoted in the Evening Standard. And here's a more in-depth report in The Guardian.
Elsewhere, do read this powerful article by the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, on our moral duty to fight for climate justice.
Finally, The Burning House: A Buddhist Response to the Climate and Ecological Emergency, by Shantigarbha, is now available for pre-order. |
|
|
I hope many of you will get some time for rest and rejuvenation in the coming weeks - we're in this for the long haul. The interconnected crises of climate change, Covid-19, poverty and social injustice are not about to end overnight. As ever, thank you in solidarity for all your amazing work for the climate.
Please let me know if you'd like us to include anything in our regular updates.
Warm good wishes to you all,
|
|
Shanon Shah, Director
|
|
About Faith for the Climate's monthly e-news
Faith for the Climate exists to encourage, inspire and equip faith communities in their work on climate change. If you have any items you would like to be included in upcoming editions of our newsletter, please contact Shanon, connect with us on Twitter @fftcnetwork or find us on Facebook. Subscribe to our e-news here. For details our work on the UN Conference on Climate Change (COP26), go to Make COP Count.
|
|
|
|
|
