Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Progress in Paris
As the second week of COP21 ensues, agreements are being reached concerning the text of what the final agreement will look like. One of the most recent drafts has been put up for public display and can be directly compared to one from last week to visualize the progress of recent negotiations. Most of the progress is well represented by the Paris Agreement website, which is a collaborative platform that displays breaking news from COP21. Live streaming of the event can be viewed at UNFCCC webcasts.
This momentum will hopefully provide us with a real binding agreement that will call for climate change mitigation from across the board of gathered nations. It is vital for our planets survival that its inhabitants begin caring for its health in order to sustain as much biodiversity as possible as we travel into the future. The words of astronauts from around the globe eloquently convey such a message to those who hold the power to alter the direction in which we are traveling.
Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Climate Resilience / Disaster Risk Management
It is widely agreed upon that rising global temperature will lead to increased intensity and frequency of a variety of natural disasters around the world. One of the conferences at the TAP Pavilion covered Disaster Risk Management in Asian Cities. They focused on Asian cities because there is a fast pace of urbanization/carbonization occurring in the region and therefor there is a real need to strengthen city protection and resilience against natural disasters.
The introducer of the panel of experts on this topic was Tadashi Matsumoto, Director of Regional Development Policy for the Organization for Co-operation and Development (OECD). The moderator of the panel of experts was Rolf Alter, The Director of Public Governance and Territorial Development Directorate at OECD. OECD has a large focus on markets and cities and therefor is highly involved with urbanized planning for cities that are commonly hit with environmental disasters. The talks focused around cities in Indonesia, Korea, Japan and even in central Brazil.
In these areas some climate risks cities are facing include, but are not limited to; inflow of people which most governments don't have the capacity to manage, water implications such as clean water and sanitation, flash flooding, uncontrolled or unregulated development which leads to things like house fires, air pollution in cities surrounded by certain topography such as mountains, public health issues such as the spread of diseases, the brining of peat lands and deforestation which lead to environmental degradation. Organizations like the UNISDR and the DRR & CR help governments on a variety of scales work together to combat such issues.
Some of the action steps or projects that are currently taking place show the constant need for improvement of the environmental resilience and living areas of cities. Many cities have plenty of studies on the effects that natural disasters have, but now is the time for the studies to turn into actions. Governments need improved disaster risk mechanisms (central command stations for communication and planning). There is also a need for more alert systems and better means of communication. Many cities in these areas need civil defense organizations in each city in the form of initial response team, an area that I see potential for militaries/militias. As of now, the US military is filling as role as a global first responder to areas devastated by natural disaster around the world, such as the Haitian earthquake.
The introducer of the panel of experts on this topic was Tadashi Matsumoto, Director of Regional Development Policy for the Organization for Co-operation and Development (OECD). The moderator of the panel of experts was Rolf Alter, The Director of Public Governance and Territorial Development Directorate at OECD. OECD has a large focus on markets and cities and therefor is highly involved with urbanized planning for cities that are commonly hit with environmental disasters. The talks focused around cities in Indonesia, Korea, Japan and even in central Brazil.
In these areas some climate risks cities are facing include, but are not limited to; inflow of people which most governments don't have the capacity to manage, water implications such as clean water and sanitation, flash flooding, uncontrolled or unregulated development which leads to things like house fires, air pollution in cities surrounded by certain topography such as mountains, public health issues such as the spread of diseases, the brining of peat lands and deforestation which lead to environmental degradation. Organizations like the UNISDR and the DRR & CR help governments on a variety of scales work together to combat such issues.
Some of the action steps or projects that are currently taking place show the constant need for improvement of the environmental resilience and living areas of cities. Many cities have plenty of studies on the effects that natural disasters have, but now is the time for the studies to turn into actions. Governments need improved disaster risk mechanisms (central command stations for communication and planning). There is also a need for more alert systems and better means of communication. Many cities in these areas need civil defense organizations in each city in the form of initial response team, an area that I see potential for militaries/militias. As of now, the US military is filling as role as a global first responder to areas devastated by natural disaster around the world, such as the Haitian earthquake.
Stories of Hope Amidst Climate Change and Conflict
Even though it seems almost impossible to fight for the environment amidst a warzone, many throughout the world are doing just that on a day to day basis. The Equator Initiative looks to acknowledge those who have found innovative ways to protect the environment and their way of life (two areas that almost always overlap) in regions of intense conflict. During one of the side conferences in the Rio Pavilion at COP21, a panel of award recipients from a variety of countries took turns sharing their powerful stories of endurance and survival. All of the accounts focused on the goal to preserve cultural heritage that was connected to the land and build provide jobs,to those who desperately needed them,in time of conflict and insecurity. All these grass root movements were driven by human rights initiatives that fought for both human and environmental justice.
One award recipient, from Ethiopia, spoke about community solutions in cases of conflict. He gave a brief presentation on the best practices in Southern Ethiopia and Northern Kenya that have strengthened communities with respect to conflict management. Another speaker, a MASTA member from Honduras, talked about how violence over territory rights in the region have produced instability and insecurity among communities. Additionally, deforestation of local forests are also the main cause of insecurity and conflict, which is only elevated due to the fact that drug trafficking is prominent in the region. For more information, please visit the Equator Prize 2015 Winners to learn about these remarkable stories regions including; Sub-Sahara Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Asia and the Pacific.
One award recipient, from Ethiopia, spoke about community solutions in cases of conflict. He gave a brief presentation on the best practices in Southern Ethiopia and Northern Kenya that have strengthened communities with respect to conflict management. Another speaker, a MASTA member from Honduras, talked about how violence over territory rights in the region have produced instability and insecurity among communities. Additionally, deforestation of local forests are also the main cause of insecurity and conflict, which is only elevated due to the fact that drug trafficking is prominent in the region. For more information, please visit the Equator Prize 2015 Winners to learn about these remarkable stories regions including; Sub-Sahara Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Asia and the Pacific.
Monday, December 7, 2015
Climate / Migration / Security - human dimension of Climate Change
My interest during my time at COP21 evolved around the issues of food/water security, natural disasters along with migration that all are expected to intensify with the predicted trends of global warming. Often times, climate change with extreme disasters go hand in hand with conflict. Whether its desertification in sub-Africa to an extended monsoon season in Vietnam, climate change is causing the security of food and water to be threatened which is causing the forced displacement of many people. During these events, the impact on physiology can often increase fear and conflict during migration of climate refugees. Unfortunately, it is also often the case that some would have preferred not to survive form such horrible natural disasters, including floods and droughts, because they become too vulnerable afterwards.
As of now, both Norway and Switzerland lead the way for aiding displaced people from climate disasters. Now is the time for other countries to follow their lead because those displaced have often not taken part in the actions that have caused them to become displaced (rise of sea levels, tsunamis, deforestation).
The locations were displacement is most common are; sub-Sahara Africa/Sahel region, poor coastal regions, South East and South Asia, and Islands. In these regions, the environment has become a major factor for migration, just like politics or economics.
To aid in supporting climate refugees, the Nansen Initiative is one of the agendas with a protection objective focused on people displaced across boarders in the context of disaster and the effects of climate change. Along with initiatives such as this, is the hope to create the globally recognized status of climate refugees in order to take a broader approach on dealing with displacement. Planned relocation is also underway in select regions of the world and is need on a much larger scale in the near future. It is far better if someone can help people move out before disaster hits rather than after the fact. There is a urgent need to relocate villages away from eroding coastlines in Africa and Panama, for example. This requires arrangements between countries, so the migrants are both prepared to move and are not taken advantage of while traveling. There is a need for more protection and assistance, even a military visa for temporary protection. all of this I view as an opportunity for the U.S. military and its allies to get involved and lend a helping hand.
The head of the Department of the International Organization for Migration wish to help populations migrate with dignity. He explained that " the environment often combines with other factors that lead to displacement." There are also 6 dichotomies to be taken into account:
1. Internal Vs. International migration
2. Temporal Vs. Permanent immigrants
3. Forced Vs. Voluntary migration
4. Migration related to sudden events Vs. Migration due to slow patterns
5. Suffering from the impacts of climate change Vs. Preparing oneself beforehand to move
6. Problem Vs. Solution migration - This is the idea that even though migration is often part of the solution to a problem, it can also lead to many problems that can arise down the road.
Each must be fully considered by the IOM regularly as they deal with migration issues.
Additionally, the Atlas of Environmental Migration, which was published just a few days ago, and the Human Mobility in the Context of Climate Change also contain very important topics of research when it comes to working with climate refugees. For those further interested, there also is a Museum of immigration history in Paris.
It is currently estimated that 40% of conflict is due to climate change caused events which means that the issue of war and peace is also and environmental issue and a warmer planet will also be a more violent planet. Many currently suspect that the recent drought has played a major role in the Syrian conflict which still rages on today. Also, because similar droughts have occurred in places like Kenya where routes of traditional nomadic populations have been impacted, there is a need to set up migratory corridors. As of now, the legal tools for climate migrants are very few and far between. Unfortunately, it seems that the status of climate refugee will prove to be generally ineffective and the current notion of refugees is usually only used with populations in regions of present conflict. What should occur is the introduction of national level regulation and laws to integrate across boarders to assist migrating climate refugees. There also needs to be a development of regional tools, such as soft laws or guidelines (ethical codes) to dealing with displaced peoples. There should be temporary protection laws to support migrants from natural disasters and human rights must always be implemented, which unfortunately is not currently the case.
Some other notes that I gathered included:
-Where funding will come from is a common sticking point (green fund, private sector, government, FBOs, NGOs, IGOs).
-Need to educate populations about resilience and about migration before it actually occurs.
-Some say that military involvement/aid would only be a catalyst for further conflict in certain situations.
-Climate must be integrated into migratory policies, especially because states want to keep their sovereignty.
-All of this is about people.
As of now, both Norway and Switzerland lead the way for aiding displaced people from climate disasters. Now is the time for other countries to follow their lead because those displaced have often not taken part in the actions that have caused them to become displaced (rise of sea levels, tsunamis, deforestation).
The locations were displacement is most common are; sub-Sahara Africa/Sahel region, poor coastal regions, South East and South Asia, and Islands. In these regions, the environment has become a major factor for migration, just like politics or economics.
To aid in supporting climate refugees, the Nansen Initiative is one of the agendas with a protection objective focused on people displaced across boarders in the context of disaster and the effects of climate change. Along with initiatives such as this, is the hope to create the globally recognized status of climate refugees in order to take a broader approach on dealing with displacement. Planned relocation is also underway in select regions of the world and is need on a much larger scale in the near future. It is far better if someone can help people move out before disaster hits rather than after the fact. There is a urgent need to relocate villages away from eroding coastlines in Africa and Panama, for example. This requires arrangements between countries, so the migrants are both prepared to move and are not taken advantage of while traveling. There is a need for more protection and assistance, even a military visa for temporary protection. all of this I view as an opportunity for the U.S. military and its allies to get involved and lend a helping hand.
The head of the Department of the International Organization for Migration wish to help populations migrate with dignity. He explained that " the environment often combines with other factors that lead to displacement." There are also 6 dichotomies to be taken into account:
1. Internal Vs. International migration
2. Temporal Vs. Permanent immigrants
3. Forced Vs. Voluntary migration
4. Migration related to sudden events Vs. Migration due to slow patterns
5. Suffering from the impacts of climate change Vs. Preparing oneself beforehand to move
6. Problem Vs. Solution migration - This is the idea that even though migration is often part of the solution to a problem, it can also lead to many problems that can arise down the road.
Each must be fully considered by the IOM regularly as they deal with migration issues.
Additionally, the Atlas of Environmental Migration, which was published just a few days ago, and the Human Mobility in the Context of Climate Change also contain very important topics of research when it comes to working with climate refugees. For those further interested, there also is a Museum of immigration history in Paris.
It is currently estimated that 40% of conflict is due to climate change caused events which means that the issue of war and peace is also and environmental issue and a warmer planet will also be a more violent planet. Many currently suspect that the recent drought has played a major role in the Syrian conflict which still rages on today. Also, because similar droughts have occurred in places like Kenya where routes of traditional nomadic populations have been impacted, there is a need to set up migratory corridors. As of now, the legal tools for climate migrants are very few and far between. Unfortunately, it seems that the status of climate refugee will prove to be generally ineffective and the current notion of refugees is usually only used with populations in regions of present conflict. What should occur is the introduction of national level regulation and laws to integrate across boarders to assist migrating climate refugees. There also needs to be a development of regional tools, such as soft laws or guidelines (ethical codes) to dealing with displaced peoples. There should be temporary protection laws to support migrants from natural disasters and human rights must always be implemented, which unfortunately is not currently the case.
Some other notes that I gathered included:
-Where funding will come from is a common sticking point (green fund, private sector, government, FBOs, NGOs, IGOs).
-Need to educate populations about resilience and about migration before it actually occurs.
-Some say that military involvement/aid would only be a catalyst for further conflict in certain situations.
-Climate must be integrated into migratory policies, especially because states want to keep their sovereignty.
-All of this is about people.
Oceans Day
Friday the 4th was Oceans Day at the Rio Pavilion inside the Climate Generation zone. The forums focused on regional ocean challenges: Pathways to Climate Finance of Small Island Developing States. Because many islands and the artic are regions that put forth the least amount of emissions but take on the most weight of the effects of climate change, there is a need to give sustainable finance to these areas so they can receive debt relief. Many of the talks were through the Global Island Partnership and the Nature Conservancy.
The vision of these set of conferences were a healthy ocean and a protected climate. They consisted of presidents and chancellors of various islands states who came to talk about the importance of the ocean and how island states are taking the blunt of climate change without reaping the benefits of causing it. Each speaker emphasized how 2015 is a critical year for the oceans and climate and how there is a need for strong implementation of review processes that push countries to update their climate mitigation techniques consistently.
The President of Palau, a small island country, expressed the importance of the establishment and watch over marine sanctuaries/no take zones thorough the oceans, similar to the one that Palau recently established (the size of France). "Large marine protected areas are critical to allow for marine ecosystems to recover. Image if every country set aside ocean sanctuaries to protect what we have for the future." He ended his speech with saying "industrial fishing and smoke stacks have no place in a sustainable island future."
The President from COP20 in Lima Peru, who is now also the Minister of the Environment of Peru, emphasized that "when we talk about resilience, we need to include a discussion about the ocean." He also stated, that "blue is the color of the ocean, blue is the color of the sky, it is the color of hope."
The Commissioner of the European Fisheries from UNESCO stressed that there is currently "lots of pressure on many marine ecosystems." He also explained that to achieve a blue economy, the EU, along with other countries must
1. Achieve an agreement in Paris to keep warming below 2 degrees.
2. Cultivate healthy seas to limit the negative effects of climate change, proper use of maritime space and reduce marine litter.
3. Remove the obstacles that prevent sustainable blue growth, pursue marine renewable energy by because by the year 2050 the ocean could provide 10% of all European Energy.
4. Improve existing ocean governments and create new ones in order to; protect biodiversity in ocean areas beyond national boarders, improve arctic policy concerning the use of resources and claim rights.
"The ocean is very much apart of our solution to the future."
The Undersecretary for economic growth in the environment for the US was also present and gave a short speech as well. She stated that "40% of the US population lives in coastal areas" and that "the ocean is warming and becoming more acidic, there is also a rise in sea levels (8inches) more coastal storms, and many species are migrating to cooler waters which is causing ecological and economic disruptions." She also stated that "by 2100, the average global sea level is projected to rise by 1.4ft." Additionally, she also mentioned that NOAA has recently declared the third recorded global coral leeching event.
Some of the major comments from the President of the Global Ocean Forum and th eorginizer of the event were;
"Since Copenhagen, we have seen new developments that act as irrefutable science of where our climate is headed and the impacts are happening now, and urgent action is needed now, not tomorrow."
"We need and ambitious legally binding agreement and we need urgent attention and target financing to island and coastal states."
There were also other side events that took place throughout the week that were related to this topic, below are my notes from a few of them.
Carrabin Challenge Initiative (Ambassador Spencer Thomas), many others like it, they all serve as a role model for further models of global island states. Cooperation and competition between these organizations/challenges. Many countries involved in these challenges to recognize the importance of tropical (land/sea) ecosystems. Private sector and business were also involved. 10 Countries and 15 companies. Protect 20% of all coastal and marine ecosystems by 2020 is just one of their many goals.
Minister of the Environment for the State of Australia (Hon. Greg Hunt) all about regional and cooperative initiatives. At 50b tons of net CO2 globally. Many ocean initiatives. Great Barrier Reef is under extreme stress. Many plans to preserve the Reef on a variety of time scales, also focus on the improvement of water quality. Ban forever the disposal of carbon dredge material around the Great Barrier Reef sea park. Coral Triangle initiative. Supporting nations provide education and marine conservations. Australia has given $13m so far.
The vision of these set of conferences were a healthy ocean and a protected climate. They consisted of presidents and chancellors of various islands states who came to talk about the importance of the ocean and how island states are taking the blunt of climate change without reaping the benefits of causing it. Each speaker emphasized how 2015 is a critical year for the oceans and climate and how there is a need for strong implementation of review processes that push countries to update their climate mitigation techniques consistently.
The President of Palau, a small island country, expressed the importance of the establishment and watch over marine sanctuaries/no take zones thorough the oceans, similar to the one that Palau recently established (the size of France). "Large marine protected areas are critical to allow for marine ecosystems to recover. Image if every country set aside ocean sanctuaries to protect what we have for the future." He ended his speech with saying "industrial fishing and smoke stacks have no place in a sustainable island future."
The President from COP20 in Lima Peru, who is now also the Minister of the Environment of Peru, emphasized that "when we talk about resilience, we need to include a discussion about the ocean." He also stated, that "blue is the color of the ocean, blue is the color of the sky, it is the color of hope."
The Commissioner of the European Fisheries from UNESCO stressed that there is currently "lots of pressure on many marine ecosystems." He also explained that to achieve a blue economy, the EU, along with other countries must
1. Achieve an agreement in Paris to keep warming below 2 degrees.
2. Cultivate healthy seas to limit the negative effects of climate change, proper use of maritime space and reduce marine litter.
3. Remove the obstacles that prevent sustainable blue growth, pursue marine renewable energy by because by the year 2050 the ocean could provide 10% of all European Energy.
4. Improve existing ocean governments and create new ones in order to; protect biodiversity in ocean areas beyond national boarders, improve arctic policy concerning the use of resources and claim rights.
"The ocean is very much apart of our solution to the future."
The Undersecretary for economic growth in the environment for the US was also present and gave a short speech as well. She stated that "40% of the US population lives in coastal areas" and that "the ocean is warming and becoming more acidic, there is also a rise in sea levels (8inches) more coastal storms, and many species are migrating to cooler waters which is causing ecological and economic disruptions." She also stated that "by 2100, the average global sea level is projected to rise by 1.4ft." Additionally, she also mentioned that NOAA has recently declared the third recorded global coral leeching event.
Some of the major comments from the President of the Global Ocean Forum and th eorginizer of the event were;
"Since Copenhagen, we have seen new developments that act as irrefutable science of where our climate is headed and the impacts are happening now, and urgent action is needed now, not tomorrow."
"We need and ambitious legally binding agreement and we need urgent attention and target financing to island and coastal states."
There were also other side events that took place throughout the week that were related to this topic, below are my notes from a few of them.
Carrabin Challenge Initiative (Ambassador Spencer Thomas), many others like it, they all serve as a role model for further models of global island states. Cooperation and competition between these organizations/challenges. Many countries involved in these challenges to recognize the importance of tropical (land/sea) ecosystems. Private sector and business were also involved. 10 Countries and 15 companies. Protect 20% of all coastal and marine ecosystems by 2020 is just one of their many goals.
Minister of the Environment for the State of Australia (Hon. Greg Hunt) all about regional and cooperative initiatives. At 50b tons of net CO2 globally. Many ocean initiatives. Great Barrier Reef is under extreme stress. Many plans to preserve the Reef on a variety of time scales, also focus on the improvement of water quality. Ban forever the disposal of carbon dredge material around the Great Barrier Reef sea park. Coral Triangle initiative. Supporting nations provide education and marine conservations. Australia has given $13m so far.
COP21/UNFCCC-Photos
Here are some general pictures of the first week of the 21st Conference of parties and The Climate Generations Pavilion.
Here are some cool pictures from the COP Solutions Pavilion, outside of the COP21 area.
Conservation and Faith
Throughout the week, there were a variety of conferences that evolved around the topics of hope for international conservation through (FBOs) Faith Based Organizations. A Rocha, a Christian nature conservation organization ones one of the main FBOs that presented on their progress over the last decade or so. Organizations such as this strive to pursue scientific knowledge with the wisdom we obtain through faith, which I very much connect with.
Katherine Hayhoe, a distinguished scientist from Texas, gave a lecture on why facts aren't enough, when talking to skeptics about climate change. Our arguments for protecting the earth should be based on moral and religious values, not just the cold hard facts. Her message is very well portrayed in recent documentary titled Years of Living Dangerously. "Climate change exasperates many risks and there are many connections between poverty and climate change. Through it all, God gives us the responsibility to act."
2 Timothy 1:7 - How we should respond
"Only when our clever brain and our human heart work together can we achieve our full potential."
-Jane Goodall
A Bishop from Manila, the secretary general of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), talked about how the vast majority of climate activism musty come from religious communities, since it is the cornerstone values of such organizations that call for immediate action. He calls for a climate justice, a moral dimension of climate change that goes beyond just prayer. "If we destroy creation, it will destroy us" (Pope Fancis). Because "churches are the harvester of hope," the Bishop from Manila calls for a "common command voice of the religions to solve this global issue." There is a need for more government, NGO, and FBO involvement to provide relief assistance to the poorest of the planet, especially in the face of climate change.
Colossians 1:16
Caroline Pomeroy, the director for Climate Stewards for Tomorrow Today, has always had a passion to help Christians get individually involved with caring for creation. The question is often asked, does carbon offsets=modern papal indulgences? With Caroline's company, she does all she can to fight this stigma. Their vision is to "Reduce what you can, and offset the rest." One of their many programs is planting trees in Ghana as a educational tool for young kids in school and to help give local farmers more income. Through all their programs, they teach local indigenous people how to work with outside FBOs and NGOs to increase their resilience to the future impacts of climate change.
One of the Co-directors from A Rocha, a priest form the UK, also spoke on impacting papers that covered the above mentioned topics, such as the Death of Environmentalism. This paper focuses on the idea that religion is still relevant in the context of climate change and has a vast amount of material and human resources to solve the issue. This along with others, like the 1986 Assisi Declarations call for faith groups getting active to combat climate change. This is largely because churches own huge areas of land that are considered ecological refuges because they are sacred hot spots and the churches around the world also are major investor when it comes to climate change. There is also a call for re-aligned vocation of many churches from both Ego/Eco-centric to something more in the middle. We need a "new theocentric view, one of knowing our place in caring and preserving. in this way, humans are the ultimate keystone species. Wholism (oikos) must be adopted, we must know that we are part of a biggetr picture and find rootedness in our own places."
Perdeep Singh Rai- "Any tree without roots will cause damage, it is the same for a child."
Psalm 104:10-31 the biodiversity Psalm/the interdependent Psalm
Psalm 24:1 creation care
MY NOTES
Katherine Hayhoe, a distinguished scientist from Texas, gave a lecture on why facts aren't enough, when talking to skeptics about climate change. Our arguments for protecting the earth should be based on moral and religious values, not just the cold hard facts. Her message is very well portrayed in recent documentary titled Years of Living Dangerously. "Climate change exasperates many risks and there are many connections between poverty and climate change. Through it all, God gives us the responsibility to act."
2 Timothy 1:7 - How we should respond
"Only when our clever brain and our human heart work together can we achieve our full potential."
-Jane Goodall
A Bishop from Manila, the secretary general of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), talked about how the vast majority of climate activism musty come from religious communities, since it is the cornerstone values of such organizations that call for immediate action. He calls for a climate justice, a moral dimension of climate change that goes beyond just prayer. "If we destroy creation, it will destroy us" (Pope Fancis). Because "churches are the harvester of hope," the Bishop from Manila calls for a "common command voice of the religions to solve this global issue." There is a need for more government, NGO, and FBO involvement to provide relief assistance to the poorest of the planet, especially in the face of climate change.
Colossians 1:16
Caroline Pomeroy, the director for Climate Stewards for Tomorrow Today, has always had a passion to help Christians get individually involved with caring for creation. The question is often asked, does carbon offsets=modern papal indulgences? With Caroline's company, she does all she can to fight this stigma. Their vision is to "Reduce what you can, and offset the rest." One of their many programs is planting trees in Ghana as a educational tool for young kids in school and to help give local farmers more income. Through all their programs, they teach local indigenous people how to work with outside FBOs and NGOs to increase their resilience to the future impacts of climate change.
One of the Co-directors from A Rocha, a priest form the UK, also spoke on impacting papers that covered the above mentioned topics, such as the Death of Environmentalism. This paper focuses on the idea that religion is still relevant in the context of climate change and has a vast amount of material and human resources to solve the issue. This along with others, like the 1986 Assisi Declarations call for faith groups getting active to combat climate change. This is largely because churches own huge areas of land that are considered ecological refuges because they are sacred hot spots and the churches around the world also are major investor when it comes to climate change. There is also a call for re-aligned vocation of many churches from both Ego/Eco-centric to something more in the middle. We need a "new theocentric view, one of knowing our place in caring and preserving. in this way, humans are the ultimate keystone species. Wholism (oikos) must be adopted, we must know that we are part of a biggetr picture and find rootedness in our own places."
Perdeep Singh Rai- "Any tree without roots will cause damage, it is the same for a child."
Psalm 104:10-31 the biodiversity Psalm/the interdependent Psalm
Psalm 24:1 creation care
MY NOTES
Look at climate stewards online and climate caretakers online /
citizen’s climate lobby Get church leaders to think about the issue more to get their church’s
involved. In their carbon offsetting-they have met accreditation standard to make
the effort worth while. Built in insurance
buffers as well to ensure a confidence of integrity. Start with the values and then tie in the science later to convince
others about climate change. Reason why we all care comes from the same place, and we can approach
the problem from very unique backgrounds. All about sacrifice for what we love, and showing it publically to
inspire hope. Need to convey
very personal stories/prophetic action-what made them do that.Do
the action and share the stories to foster courage for change
Sunday, December 6, 2015
Mayor of St. Cloud
The morning of the 3rd we
were able to meet with the mayor of St. Cloud outside of the official
proceedings of COP21/UNFCCC. He has traveled to Paris for COP21 as a
representative of the Mississippi River Basin Association, which consists of
some 60 mayors or so representing their cities along the river. This association was formed by a collection
of cities to improve water quality of the river. Since 20m people rely directly
on it for fresh water, it is imperative that there is collaboration between
towns all along the river to keep the river water clean. The association also
focuses on food transportation along the river, since by 2030, with a world
population of 9.6b people, 25% off all the world’s food will be grown along the
ten major river basins of the world.
The mayor, along
with three other mayors from the Mississippi River Basin Association are
attending COP21 to connect with other officials who represent people living
along the major river basins around the world. While meeting with the other
officials, they hope to learn best practices for water quality upkeep and food
transportation along river basins. They also wish to pursue further, and
stronger, collaboration with other forms of governments representing other
river basins.
The city of St.
Cloud, MN, has a state of the ark water treatment facility and two
hydroelectric dams, so it does not deal with transportation of food and other
goods along the Mississippi River. IT instead, focuses more on the water quality,
since it is a city that takes many gallons out of the river and puts many back
in daily. Also, because St. Cloud is the first major city along the Mississippi
river, it is crucial that it, of all cities along the river, does no
irresponsibly use the water.
The Mayor
advocates strongly for the bipartisan power of cities to just get up and start
pursuing sustainable development practices without laws or regulations being
passed at the state or federal level. All these things have been done by the
City of St. Could simply because that is what the community wants, clean
drinking water, clean food, and fresh air. Because of this, I personally am
very skeptical of what the mayor is doing at COP21 in the first place, since he
expresses little interest to take anything away from the convention except
publicity for himself and the city of St. Cloud.
St. Cloud also has
a 101 class (online at St. Cloud website) to inform citizens of their
management practices so that the citizens can become more involved in the
planning and decision making process. So younger citizens in particular can be
more involved in making their voices heard for things such as more trials and
sidewalks in their city.
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