There are many groups both national and regional that are working to educate people and encourage political leaders to take global warming seriously. One of the most interesting of these is the Climate Connection, a program of the North Carolina Council of Churches (NCCC).
According to Alice Loyd, Chair of the program, “Climate Connection works to educate faith communities about the scientific and spiritual elements in the environmental situation we face with a special emphasis on climate change.”
The NCCC has chosen to focus on climate change, according to Loyd, because everything th group works for depends on a stable climate. “We believe we are helping with all of the environmental issues.”
The goal of the group is to make the faith community an active force for positive change in relation to global warming through both education and advocacy of policy solutions. In their efforts to educate the faith community, Loyd says, “We try to give people solid science and put it in a spiritual context, as well as offer solutions that individuals and congregations can embrace.”
Climate Connection is working with other organization to put on three conferences in North Carolina around Earth Day, including events in Raleigh, Winston-Salem, and Asheville. The purpose is to reach out to new faith communities that have never been involved in climate issues before by asking congregations of all faiths to send delegates to the conferences.
Participants in the conferences will learn about the impacts of climate change in North Carolina, hear from religious leaders about appropriate responses from the faith community, and learn about actions that both individuals and congregations can take. The idea is that participants will then return to their congregations with the knowledge and resources they need to teach others in their faith community about climate change and solutions that are available to stop it or slow it down
While the conferences are not open to the general public, due to capacity limitations, a number of congregations will be invited to send two delegates each.
Loyd believes that “care of creation” belongs in the worship services, education programs and even the energy budgets of congregations of all faiths.
Climate Connection works with allies in the scientific and environmental fields and strives to build coalitions strong enough to affect public policy. One of their main partners is Environmental Defense, a national environmental organization that is a leading voice for action to stop global warming. According to Michael Shore, Director of Environmental Defense’s air quality initiative in the Southeast, North Carolina has an important role to play in curbing global warming.
“There are solutions to global warming,” says Shore, “and North Carolina needs to put the same ingenuity toward solving this problem as it put into solving air quality problems in passing the Clean Smokestacks Act.”
“Governor Easley needs to take leadership in bringing parties together to prepare our citizens and economy for the consequences of global warming,” adds Shore.
More information on initiatives to curb global warming in NC is available at:
https://ncconservationnetwork1.org/
campaign/globalwarmingnclead
Those not living in North Carolina, an get involved by going to Environmental Defense’s national campaign on global warming at
https://www.undoit.org/
To learn more about the work of Climate Connection, visit:
https://nccouncilofchurches.org/
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