Weekly Action - 15 June 2024 - Growing Pressure on Climate
Growing pressure on climate
It has been a week of growing pressure for urgent action on climate change. The world’s governments have been meeting in Bonn, Germany from 3 – 13 June for the annual mid-year talks in the UN climate change negotiations. Significantly increased momentum is needed from the talks ahead of the main COP 29 climate negotiations in Baku, Azerbaijan in November, both on radically reducing greenhouse gas emissions and on substantial new climate finance to help developing countries respond to the impacts of climate change. Accelerating action on climate change has also been one of the main issues discussed at the G7 leaders’ summit in Italy this week from 13 – 15 June. Closer to home, climate change is, or should be, one of the main issues in the current UK election. And this week has also seen community events on the importance of climate change up and down the country as part of Great Big Green Week, an annual celebration of community action to tackle climate change organised by The Climate Coalition (the leading coalition of organisations campaigning on climate change in the UK).
Urgent action needed on climate change
Urgent action by governments on climate change is certainly needed. In recent years the impacts of climate change around the world have included heatwaves, droughts, floods, cyclones, wildfires, landslides, massive polar melting, the melting of the world’s glaciers, sea-level rise, the devastation of coral systems, mass food and fresh water shortages, ill health, huge negative economic impacts, conflicts over scarce resources, the creation of huge numbers of climate refugees, and much more. The last eighteen months have seen a massive and tragic food crisis in Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya, heatwaves across Europe, the US and the northern hemisphere, devastating floods in Pakistan, New Zealand, the UK, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, record temperatures and much more, all as a result of global climate change. This is impacting millions of ordinary people, like Paul, a friend of Arise from Zimbabwe. He has farmed the same land outside of Harare for 30 years with his children, and now grandchildren. He has kept records of rainfall for all that time, and seen it reduce more and more. “We used to have four distinct seasons, now we only have two. We used to know when the rains would come and when to plant our crops, now we wait and wait and no rain comes, we plant, and then the rain comes all at once and washes them out, then it is dry again” he says. It is people like Paul, living in developing countries like Zimbabwe, DR Congo, Rwanda, Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Pakistan, whose greenhouse gas emissions are a fraction of those of more developed nations, who have done the least to cause climate change, but are being hit the hardest by it.
As Christians what should we do about it?
As Christians we are called to look after and care for God’s amazing creation, it belongs to him, not us, as he says in the Psalms, “the world is mine, and all that is in it” (Psalm 50: 12). We therefore need to urgently get out of fossil fuels which are driving global climate change, and instead shift to 100% clean renewable energy, which does not lead to climate change, and is cheaper as well. Arise’s 4 Shifts Campaign calls for a rewiring of our global economy to be green and fair, so it still creates the jobs and wealth that lift people out of poverty, but does so without relying on fossil fuels and the overconsumption which is wrecking our planet.
Will you take action as part of Arise’s 4 Shifts campaign this week and add your voice to growing pressure for urgent action on climate change?
Take Action
Speak out in advocacy
We need to raise further pressure for action on climate change in the media. It’s vital that all news outlets hear how important this is for their readers and viewers, and thus through their coverage raise further pressure on governments for action. Write to a local or national newspaper, a TV news channel, radio station or news website that you follow. Express your concern about climate change and the need for more media coverage and more urgent action. Call for a rapid shift to zero emissions and 100% clean renewable energy, and the banning of the use of fossil fuels by 2030. Urge whoever is in government after the election to pass national legislation to bring this into effect in the UK, and implement it in every sector (energy, transport, buildings, industry etc.).
Pray
Pray for people around the world who are being impacted by climate change. Pray for housing and shelter, food, medical care, new jobs, and livelihoods that are resilient to climate change. Pray for mounting pressure from the media for urgent action to rapidly shift the economy out of fossil fuels and into 100% clean renewable energy by 2030.
Give
Give to Christian organisations like Cafod, Christian Aid, Tearfund or World Vision who are supporting the poorest communities impacted by climate change around the world.
Ethical Consumption
Reduce the huge negative impact that ever expanding human agriculture has on climate change and God’s creation, by switching to a healthy diet that is based upon mainly fruit and vegetables (at least a third), and cereal and carbohydrates (at least a third), with a small amount of meat (less than a sixth) and dairy (less than a sixth), and eating white meat and fish rather than red meat wherever possible. Buy organic food, meat and other animal products that are free-range, as much as possible.
Practical Action
Conduct a mini audit of where you use fossil fuel energy in your life (at home, in travel etc.). Reduce your use as much as possible. When you have eliminated all you can, offset the rest through an organisation like Climate Stewards, a Christian offsetting charity, that can plant trees or take other actions to absorb the equivalent amount of emissions you have made.
Encourage us and others by letting us know what actions you have taken – message us at info@ariseuk.org, or via Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.
Find out more
It’s great to take this action as individual Christians, but even better to come together with others to pray, discuss, worship, learn, have fun and take action together. Contact Arise if you are interested in joining or starting a local Arise group in your church or area. If you are already in an Arise group, take this action to your wider church, and get them all to do it too.
Find out more about why the world needs 4 Shifts to transition to a green and fair global economy in Arise’s 4 Shifts Report, and how this forms part of God’s bigger vision for our world in the Arise Manifesto.
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