LONDON (RNS/ENI) Leaders of nine major faiths have presented 60 ideas for lessening carbon emissions to the United Nations after Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon singled out the religious community as key in fighting climate change.
Alliance of Religions and Conservation Secretary General Martin Palmer said a recently convened conference in England on religion and the environment had produced more results than expected.
“We knew that we were going to have 31 major commitments, such as the Church of England cutting back its energy use by 40 percent by 2015, or the Muslims `greening’ the Hajj or Jews cutting meat consumption in their community by 2015,” Palmer said. “Then, on the last day, there were 30 more commitments.”
Tarek Wafik, Secretary General of the Forum of Dialogue and Partnership for Development, said Islamic countries have accepted the plan, which will involve educating an estimated three million pilgrims who go to Mecca every year about the need to lighten their carbon footsteps.
“This,” said Wafik, “could be an intensely educational process that merges with a great spiritual experience.” The need to have religious leadership in a fight against global warming was underlined by the Rev. Sally Bingham, the San Francisco-based leader of the Interfaith Power and Light campaign.
“Up until recently,” Bingham said, “the religious community had abdicated its responsibility to care for creation.” Bingham said in London, “I believe that clergy talking abut environmental stewardship from the pulpit will have more influence than will scientists or a politician.”