Faith Leaders Prepare For Upcoming Climate Summit In South Africa

With forty days left till the latest climate conference held in Durban, South Africa, faith leaders are preparing to fight for the environment

I think we can all agree that Copenhagen was a bit of disaster but rather than giving up on international climate conferences, faith leaders are insisting that we need to double our efforts. The latest conference on climate change will start November 28 in Durban and faith leaders plan to be out in force with an estimated 30,000 delegates attending.

Faith leader will be supported by campaigners in South Africa who will join the ‘We have Faith – Act Now for Climate Justice’ campaign which organisers hope will be a multimillion signature petition which will push worlds leaders to take serious action on climate change. The petition will be handed to the world leaders by Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Putting Your Faith In Climate Justice

To mark the forty day countdown, leaders from the World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY) publically signed the petition and planted a tree in Durban. Ahead of the conference, environmental faith activists are planning to plant a million trees internationally. “This is the opportunity for the faith community to speak with one voice, so that 20 years from now we can all be proud,” said Tahiri Matthee, representing the Baha’i constituency and the Western Cape Religious Leaders Forum.

Green activists of faith have really been making their mark this year. Green Christians took to the streets of the UK to ask for climate justice and in Jerusalem, Muslim, Christians and Jewish leaders met to talk about climate change.

Arabs Talk About Sustainable Development

Arab scientists and engineers also gathered this week in Cairo to discuss sustainable development strategies to build on the 1992 Rio Earth Summit. Many of those attending pointed out the need for better regional co-operation on the issue. Nazar Hassan, senior program specialist at the UNESCO Cairo Regional Bureau for Science and Technology in the Arab States, told SciDev.Net that better knowledge management in economic sectors and stronger links between the scientists and the scientific institutions were important to encourage environmentally friendly policies.

The Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development will be held in June 2012 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

:: The New Age and Bikya Masr.

:: Image via Skoll World Forum/flickr.

For more information on climate change summits see:

The Middle Eastern View of Copenhagen

Cancun Ends On Slightly Better Note Than Copenhagen

Bonn: The Latest Climate Talks And The Middle East

Cancun Ends On A Better Note Than Copenhagen

Author: Arwa Aburawa

Arwa is a Muslim freelance writer who is interested in everything climate change related and how Islam can inspire more people to care for their planet and take active steps to save it while we can. She is endlessly suspicious of all politicians and their ceaseless meetings, especially as they make normal people believe that they are not part of the solution when they are the ONLY solution. Her Indian auntie is her model eco-warrier, and when Arwa is not busy helping out in the neighborhood alleyway garden, swap shopping or attempting fusion vegetarian dishes- with mixed success, she’d like to add- she can be found sipping on foraged nettle tea.

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