Campaigns

Many Christian organisations  are actively campaigning to raise awareness and promote action on environmental issues and especially Climate Change. Their work may take the form of rallies and petitions or may involve helping churches to grapple with scientific issues or to pray about the environment.

Latest Campaign Actions

CAFOD ("Create a climate for justice" -- contribute your "flower" to a garden of messages on climate change)

Christian Aid ("Tell Brown and Obama to go to Copenhagen")

Operation Noah (Ark Campaign -- see description below)

Tearfund ("Come on, Darling!" campaign on finance to help poor countries adapt to climate change)

Upcoming Campaigning Events

16 to 18 October: Stand Up and Take Action

This year's annual Stand-Up will have a joint poverty and climate-change theme. Participants will be asked not only to stand in solidarity with millions around the world, but also to work to persuade MPs of the need for urgent action on poverty and climate issues.

5 December: The Wave

Catch it! Join thousands of people in prayer and action just before Copenhagen. There will be an ecumenical service at 11:00 in Westminster Central Hall.  And then "The Wave," from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm. Organised by the Stop Climate Chaos coalition.

If you live in Oxfordshire, there's a meeting on 3 September to think for people to think about how they could get involved with these events. Want to come? Contact CCOW!   

Christian Organisations Working on Environmental and Climate Issues

A Rocha  is an international conservation organisation working to care for God's world. A Rocha incorporates a variety of subsidiary programmes, including Climate Stewards , which can help offset carbon emissions through projects managed by A Rocha partners, and Eco-Congregations (see below).  A member of Stop Climate Chaos, it also makes a strong contribution to churches' work by preparing resources for Environment Sunday each year.

CAFOD launched its "Climate Justice" campaign in March 2009. The campaign calls for a climate-change deal that puts the poorest at its heart by supporting developing countries' rights to sustainable development, funding adaptation, enabling technology to be transferred, and tackling emissions (with a 40% cut in developed countries by 2020). CAFOD is campaigning as part of an international consortium of Catholic agencies; you can read messages from people in many different countries on the main Climate Justice campaign page.

Christian Aid is campaigning for a fair and just deal at Copenhagen through its Countdown to Copenhagen campaign. On the "Countdown" page, you can take the "Countdown" pledge, and find out more about Christian Aid's work pressing for climate justice, the theology behind the campaign, and how Christian Aid is helping communities in developing countries to adapt to the impacts of climate change. 

Christian Ecology Link (CEL) campaigns for a greener church and a greener world.  It is a multi-denominational UK organisation that supports Christians from all traditions who wish to demonstrate their care for the environment. CEL offers a range of publications,  including ‘Green Christian’ magazine and several topic leaflets. One of its best known programmes is the "LOAF" campaign, which asks Christians to eat  local, organic, animal friendly, and fairly-traded food.  CEL has an email newsletter which is good way of keeping abreast of news, events and opportunities for prayer and action.

The John Ray Initiative (JRI) is an educational charity with a vision to bring together scientific and Christian understandings of the environment in a way that can be widely communicated and lead Christians to effective action as responsible stewards. JRI holds conferences that explore issues in depth and has a series of briefing papers about key issues that are free to download from their website.

Operation Noah is a Christian campaign focused exclusively on climate change. Its Ark Campaign has already engaged thousands of people across the country in building arks of all shapes and sizes in order to send a Climate Change message to Gordon Brown. The Arks have a serious message: Operation Noah is calling for 90% cuts in UK emissions by 2030 and a global framework for reducing emissions from the power sector by 2020 by at least one-third compared with the level of emissions from this sector in 2005.

Progressio's roots for environmental work lie in its background in community development and particularly its work with poor rural communities who are deeply at risk from climate change and environmental degradation. As a member of Live Simply and Stop Climate Chaos, Progressio offers resources for both theological reflection and campaigning action on climate.

SPEAK is a prayer and campaigns network for students and young people concerned about global injustice. Its climate campaigning pages offer information and an action postcard. Great for student and youth groups.

Tearfund asks its supporters to speak out, change their lifestyles and pray about climate and other environmental issues. Their most recent Climate Change campaign action, "Come on, Darling!" asks the Treasury to urge Europe to "pay up" the funds that developing countries need to adapt to the impacts of climate change.