BUSAN, South Korea, November 7 - CLIMATE change is a justice issue for Pacific people and coastal communities around the world. Reverend Tafue Lusama – General secretary of the Ekalesia Kelisiano Tuvalu – said most people who were affected by climate change had done very little to cause global warming. “Where is the justice when those who suffer most did the least to bring about the cause of the suffering?” Rev Lusama asked at a plenary on climate justice at the World Council of Churches 10th Assembly. “In the Biblical story of Noah, those who lived unjust lifestyles suffered the consequences in the flood and the just were carried to safety in the ark. “Today it is those who live unjust lifestyles who suffer the least and there is no justice in that.” Delegates at the assembly heard that without justice, global warming would continue and energy-consuming lifestyles in the developing world would increase. Rev Lusama suggested that the developing world needed to take action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by using less fossil fuel, eating wisely and reducing waste. Pacific Conference of Churches Climate Change Desk Officer, Peter Emberson, said there was a great need for compassion from the global church for those who faced the challenges of rising sea levels. “As Rev Lusama pointed out, the Pacific is just the front line,” Mr Emberson said. “Coastal communities around the world – in Australia and Bangladesh and riverside dwellers everywhere in the world – have already started to see the effects of climate change. “Our lifestyles must change and we must become more responsible in our use of resources if we want to arrest the situation.” Mr Emberson said Rev Lusama’s call was a sign of the Pacific’s desperation that the global church had done so little to urge its 500 million members to change their habits to save the environment. The assembly is expected to make a statement tomorrow on how churches should influence their members to act more responsibly - specifically in the areas of the environment, resources, water and climate change.
Posted on: Thu, 07 Nov 2013 02:41:34 +0000