Sacred People – Sacred Earth: climate action is crucial to economic prosperity


On March 11, all over the world – and in many places in Australia – people took action to proclaim our Earth is a Sacred Earth, and we must care for the Earth – as people of faith. If we fail to care for the Earth, then we fail ourselves, our community, our society, our nation, our Earth. To be people of faith in Ausrtralia is to be multifaith, and multifaith Australia cares for our Earth and proclaims: This is a Sacred Earth.

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Australia: Sacred People, Sacred Earth

Sacred People - Sacred EarthPeople of all faiths are speaking with one voice in Australia and joining in the International Day of Climate Justice with Greenfaith International. At 11:00 am in every state, people of faith will join in ringing of bells for the climate, prayer, meditation and peaceful messaging. This activity involves Christians, Buddhists, Muslims, Quakers and many other people of faith.

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Care for the Environment – Judaism

Menorah - symbol of JudaismAs part of the Interfaith Call to Action auspiced by United Nations Environment Program and other multifaith organisations, we will, each month, present the view of one religion on the Environment and Care for the Environment. Religions to be covered include Indigenous Traditions, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Zoroastrianism, the Bahá’í Faith, Hinduism, the Jain Religion, Buddhism, the Sikh Religion, Confucianism, Daoism, Shinto, and in summary, Environmental Ethics: Points of Agreement among the World’s Religions. This month, Care for the Environment features the teachings of Judaism.

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Care for the Environment – Indigenous Traditions

Alliance of GuardiansAs part of the Interfaith Call to Action auspice by United Nations Environment Program and other multifaith organisations, we will, each month, present the view of one religion on the Environment and care for the environment. Religions to be covered include Indigenous Traditions, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Zoroastrianism, the Bahá’í Faith, Hinduism, the Jain Religion, Buddhism, the Sikh Religion, Confucianism, Daoism, Shinto, and in summary, Environmental Ethics: Points of Agreement among the World’s Religions.

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Faiths for Earth – Religions and the Call for Action

Faith for Nature - A Call to ActionReligions for Peace first raised the call for Action with the Faiths for Earth program in 2015. Religions for Peace partners with the United Nations Environment Program and the Parliament of the World’s Religions Climate Action to deliver the program, Faiths for Earth – A Call to Action. In this series of articles, Religions for Peace Australia – each month – will present the approach of one of the world’s many religions and its responses to a Call for Action – living in harmony with the Earth.

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Religions for Peace – GreenFaith – Sacred People, Sacred Earth Statement and Global Day of Action

Greenfaith Logo - Religions for Peace Australia Logo

Across the world, more and more people are experiencing climate-fuelled disasters first-hand. Droughts, floods, fires and hurricanes are displacing and impoverishing millions. COVID is cruelly worsening these impacts on our most vulnerable communities.

At the heart of these dangers are destructive power structures – ineffective or immoral governments, extractive industries, and fundamentalist or extremist religions. This unholy alliance is wreaking climate devastation.

As we face conditions that tempt us to turn away in despair, faith institutions can and must do much more. The world is crying out for change. We invite individuals and Faith Communities to join in Sacred People, Sacred Earth and create a liveable Earth for the generations to come.

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Ecumenical Water Network

Ecumenical Water Network

The World Council of Churches launches the Ecumenical Water Network. The worst of the COVID-19 pandemic may be over soon as vaccines are being rolled out in many countries. Yet the global water, sanitation and hygiene crisis remains a considerable challenge. A newsletter “Together for Water” is launched.

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Researchers Name Top 10 Insights from Climate Science in 2020

Iceberg

The climate insights report is published each year through a partnership between Future Earth, the Earth League, and the World Climate Research Programme.

Emissions from thawing permafrost are likely to be worse than expected.

Other key findings from 2020 include that climate change can affect our mental health, tropical forests may have reached peak uptake of carbon, electrification in cities is pivotal for just sustainability transitions, and going to court to defend human rights can be an essential climate action.

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Living the Change event – Melbourne December 2020


Religions for Peace Victoria / Tasmania Branches in collaboration with Greenfaith and Australian Religious Response to Climate Change, Cultural Infusion and United Relikgions Initiative presented the Third Living the Change event online, on Sunday 6 December 2020m from 3 – 5:30pm.

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The new EU peace mediation strategy: A step in the right direction on climate issues

Drought and boot

With two new documents, the European Union (EU) has officially recognized the relevance of climate change to peace mediation. This is a welcome and timely development, but the language used still does not put enough emphasis on the human dimension of climate-related security risks.

The new Council Conclusions on EU Peace Mediation, published on 7 December, calls for EU peace mediation efforts to ‘take into account the effect of climate change on peace and security’, and for climate-related risks to be ‘consistently considered in conflict-prevention, peacekeeping and peacebuilding strategies.’

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Gesher 2020 – Religion & Ecology: Community in a Time of Crisis

Gesher 2020

Gesher is the official journal of The Council of Christians and Jews (Victoria) Inc. The Annual journal Gesher 2020, Issue 3, Religion & Ecology: Community in a Time of Crisis is now online, along with the other issues from earlier this year and previous editions.

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