The Video clip is in English and French
The Africa Europe Faith and Justice Network have published their December newsletter. There is some good material if you are following up on COP 21 and some more video links
Don’t forget to link it with Laudato Si and the following from our Congregational Chapter Direction Statement: To recognize our interconnectedness with the whole of creation which obliges us “to protect our common home.”
For the first time in history, the governments of the world struck an agreement to act together on climate change. Last Saturday, the Paris Climate Agreement was signed by 195 countries committing to the end of the fossil fuel era with a long-term goal to bring emissions to zero and a regular review of national commitments every five years. (See more of the agreement here) This is a historic moment.
While we recognize this major shift in climate policy, we also acknowledge that the Paris Agreement has many problems that perpetuate climate injustice. Issues of climate finance for developing countries are not fully addressed. Language on human rights (read more here) was excluded. And it leaves out the practicalities of how our governments are going to reach their ambitious targets, given that their current climate plans are very far from what we urgently need. Read the full account here The Global Catholic Climate Movement
Link to the text of the Agreement
The Paris climate conference closed on Saturday evening by adopting a strong, clear, and honest agreement. The deal will not guarantee that the world stays within 2°C or reaches the more ambitious 1.5°C limit, but it lays out for the first time a framework for getting there. Crucially it does so without denying the reality gap between actions to date and what’s needed to save the planet from dangerous climate change.
The Guardian story reads that the Climate Agreement is the world’s greatest diplomatic success. ‘Like any international compromise, it is not perfect: the caps on emissions are still too loose, likely to lead to warming of 2.7 to 3C above pre-industrial levels, breaching the 2C threshold that scientists say is the limit of safety, beyond which the effects – droughts, floods, heatwaves and sea level rises – are likely to become catastrophic and irreversible. Poor countries are also concerned that the money provided to them will not be nearly enough to protect them. Not all of the agreement is legally binding, so future governments of the signatory countries could yet renege on their commitments.’ Read more…
A story that show the power of a ‘word’ to make or break an agreement
Other Viewpoints:
You may be interested in this interactive website – Climate Change Conference in Paris. It is in English and French. Click here You can Learn – get to know the issue, Act – with suggestions as to what to do, and Follow the conference day after day.
Read another viewpoint from The Guardian December 4th and check what your national papers are reporting. Do look at the video in the middle of the article.
Here are three of them. A two pager reflection-study-prayer guide. You may want to use them for your prayer and reflection in the lead up to the UN Climate Summit in Paris beginning on November 30th.
Reflection 1 reflects on the effect of rising sea levels on the people on Bangladesh. Reflection Guide 1
Reflection 2 extremes weather conditions with a focus on the Philippines. Reflection Guide 2
Reflection 3 ‘Wherever food is thrown out it is as if it were stolen from the table of the poor…’ Pope Francis Laudato Si Reflection Guide 3
See more information at Maryknoll Website Thanks to Maryknoll for their sharing!
COP 21 website English and French There are 4 sections Learn, Act, Follow, Come.