Faith leaders raise eco spirits with no fly summit
13 January 2010 14:10
13 January, London. Leaders from around the globe take part in a ‘no fly summit’ on faith and climate change on Thursday, one month on from the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen.
The brainchild of Bible Society, the summit connects leaders logging in from London, Washington, Nairobi, Jerusalem, Geneva and the vulnerable Pacific Island of Palau, in live video talks about the practical role that faith, and in particular sacred texts, can take following the disappointment of COP15.
A poll released this week reveals that 47% of religious adherents want their leaders to set an environmental example and fly less. The international faith and climate change talks take place exclusively inside a cutting edge new social network, Faith Climate Connect (www.faithclimateconnect.com), and are open for the public to view live and submit questions and comments.The talks are set to save 17.6 tonnes of carbon emissions from not flying, more than the average 14 ton annual emissions of a UK individual.
Chaired by Mark Dowd, who is Director of interfaith climate organisation Operation Noah and reported on faith stories from Copenhagen, the talks involve some of the world’s leading figures in the field of faith and climate change. They include the Environmental Adviser to the Church of England, the African representative in the World Council of Churches Committee for Climate questions, the founder of the Jewish Climate Initiative, and one of the world’s leading experts on Islamic science and spirituality (full list below).
Faith Climate Connect has a scriptural search function, in which users can search and browse the Bible, Qur’an and Jewish scriptures for verses supporting climate care. The network seeks to brings together and raise the voices of all the major faith and climate change initiatives around the world. The network is offered as a resource for everyone to use the video conferencing and other technology to connect with people, ideas, events, organisations and news related to faith and the environment around the world - without having to fly.
The Rt. Rev. James Jones, Bishop of Liverpool, says ‘We have to connect all our networks around the globe and use every means at our disposal to secure a future for the planet. It belongs to God. We have it on trust. The question is: Will we merit God’s faith in us?’
Rachel Ward, spokesperson for the Bible Society, says ‘It’s inspiring that we can use modern technology to bring together Christians, Jews and Muslims from across the globe to talk about how their sacred texts inspire them to preserve God’s creation - without the need for flying. As it says in the Bible, “The land is mine; for you are strangers and sojourners with me.’ Hopefully, Faith Climate Connect can help us all take more responsibility as stewards of this beautiful planet.’
The first part of the summit takes place in ‘The Barn’ in London, and includes the formal launch of www.faithclimateconnect.com and presentations from leading figures including Tamsin Omond, Faith Coordinator at 1010, and Alison Hilliard, advisor for Prince Philip’s environmental charity, the Alliance of Religions and Conservation.
The Faithbook poll also revealed that 44% of the faithful spend over 16 hours a week online (the average for internet users is 13 hours), with 40% saying they believed video calls could be the future of interfaith dialogue.
Users can log on to www.faithclimateconnect.com to watch and interact with the live stream of the faith and climate talks at 1845 GMT, Thursday 14 January 2010. Users can also view videos of faith stories from Copenhagen, kindly provided by Odyssey Networks, who support Faith Climate Connect. <Ends>
All media and interview enquiries (and RSVP for London launch - see blue writing below)
• Simon Cohen, global tolerance, +44 (0)845 054 0064, +44 (0)751 538 7314, simon@globaltolerance.com
• Kate Shepherd, global tolerance, +44 (0)845 054 0064, +44 (0)7971 782 726, kate@globaltolerance.com
Photos, biogs and other press material is also available at http://www.faithclimateconnect.com/page/press-3
Notes to editors:
• www.faithclimateconnect.com, a free global resource and network for all people interested / engaged in the area of faith and climate change, and brings together - for the first time - all of the amazing, existing work taking place in this field around the world. It includes a wealth of information including an interactive forum of videos, photographs, blogs, faith and climate news, scriptural resources and discussions, video conferencing and instant messaging.
• Faith Climate Connect is supported by Odyssey Networks, the USA’s largest non-profit coalition of Christian, Jewish and Muslim faith groups dedicated to building bridges of understanding through media.
• Bible Society exists because millions lack the Bible in a language they can understand, in a form they can use or at a price they can afford. At the same time millions still have no understanding of the Bible’s value for them and their communities. The Bible Society hopes to raise public awareness about the Biblical references and support for caring for the environment. More information about the Bible Society can be found at www.biblesociety.org.uk.
• Press Association article on the Faithbook poll, http://latestnews.virginmedia.com/news/environment/2010/01/12/religious_leaders_urged_to_fly_less. Full results, with visual charts is http://www.faithclimateconnect.com/page/press-3. Faithbook is an interfaith social networking page on Facebook and has 3721 fans (as of 10 January 2010). It was set up in 2008 by Global Tolerance to improve interfaith relations and tackle extremism on the web. Faithbook on Facebook is the number one Google entry when searching ‘Faithbook’ and can also be accessed at http://www.facebook.com/pages/London-United-Kingdom/Faithbook/15455922917.
• Carbon savings were calculated based on return economy flights from the various speaker locations, using http://www.carbonify.com/carbon-calculator.htm. The average UK emissions can be found at http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/sep/01/how-to-reduce-emissions-10-10
• Speakers in the no fly summit:
*(Chair) Mark Dowd, formerly BBC (Newsnight, Panorama, feature length film God is Green), exclusively covered faith at COP15 in Copenhagen and is a director at Operation Noah, an interfaith climate organisation.
* Professor Jesse Mugambi in Nairobi, Kenya - represents Africa in the World Council of Churches Committee for Climate questions
* Rabbi Michael Kagan in Jerusalem, Israel is co-founder of the Jewish Climate Initiative
* Professor Seyyed Nasr in Washington DC, is a patron of REEP (Religious Education & Environment Programme), one of the world’s leading experts on Islamic science and spirituality
* Ms Bernie T Keldermans in the Pacific Island of Palau, is a front figure for a national campaign in the Pacific to preserve the islands
* David Shreeve in London is the Environmental Adviser to the Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England and Director of The Conservation Foundation.
* Rabbi Awraham Soetendorp in Geneva, Switzerland, is the Dutch leader for the Reformed Jewish Congregation in the Hague, Holland and is a champion of The Earth Charter
London launch of faithclimateconnect.com (1800GMT - 1930GMT, Thursday 14 January), ‘The Barn’, global tolerance, 24 Greencoat Place, London, SW1P 1RD
Please note, this is the first part of the summit and will NOT be broadcast online. Requests for attendance to climatechange@globaltolerance.com - admission with confirmation only
Speakers include:
* (Chair) Mark Dowd
* David Shreeve, Environmental Adviser to the Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England
* Alison Hilliard is an advisor for Prince Philip’s environmental charity, the Alliance of Religions and Conservation, former Head of Religion at the BBC World Service
* Tamsin Omond, Faith Coordinator at 1010, is an environmental activist who has campaigned for the UK government to take action to avoid man-made climate change
* Rachel Ward is the Senior Press Secretary at the Bible Society, formerly a political producer and correspondent for Channel 4 News, Sky and GMTV.
• Media opportunities include: photos and interviews with London and international speakers: a big screen for the virtual dialogue and ‘nature wall’ will provide powerful backdrops for filming, photo and video opportunities. A Luganda Bible, published at the end of the 19th century by the Bible Society and kept in a biscuit tin by a Ugandan family, will also be part of the shoot.
• The Rt. Rev. James Jones, Bishop of Liverpool is Adjunct Professor teaching an MA on theology and the environment, a Vice President of Tear Fund, WWF Ambassador, and called, together with the Bishop of London, for a carbon fast for Lent in February 2009.
• Martin Palmer, UN special advisor on Climate Change, the Environment and the Faiths, and Secretary General of Prince Philip’s conservation charity, the Alliance for Religions and Conservation, says, ‘With the failure of Copenhagen the role of civil society becomes paramount. Religion is the largest single force in civil society and has already begun taking action. Time now to stop waiting for governments. Time now for the faiths to take the lead in changing the world for the better.’
