Ecojesuit has expressed strong support for the Global Climate Strike this September. Organisers of the event are calling on people from around the world to disrupt business as usual by walking out of their homes, their classrooms, their offices, their farms, their factories, wherever they are on September 20 and 27.
The event is happening in parallel with the UN General Assembly from September 17 to 30 where global leaders will convene for the Climate Action Summit on September 23 and the Sustainable Development Goals Summit on September 24 to 25 at the UN Headquarters in New York.
“The Global Climate Strike is a strategic and opportune time to encourage local and global leaders to embark in greater efforts to address the climate emergency”, said Ecojesuit in its statement.
Ecojesuit, which stands for Ecology and Jesuits in Communication, is an online platform for sharing in the critical work of reconciliation and responding to ecological concerns (General Congregation 35 Decree 3). It was initiated by the Jesuit European Social Centre and the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific.
“We encourage schools, universities and all places of learning to hold dialogues, discussions and other educational activities that support the climate strike. Climate action need not always begin on the streets; it can begin in the classroom and at home”, the statement said.
Some of the Jesuit education institutions in Asia Pacific that have joined previous climate strikes include St Aloysius College in Australia and Apu Palamguwan Cultural Education Center in the Philippines.
Ecojesuit also urged Jesuits and collaborators who are already engaged in climate action to use the time leading up to the Global Climate Strike to reflect on and discern how their apostolates can take further action.
“In this, the Universal Apostolic Preferences identify collaboration with others as essential and some of us are already heeding this call”, they said.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a special report in 2018 that found climate change to be accelerating at a faster pace than previously expected, indicating the need for broader and more urgent action. In June this year, Pope Francis declared a climate emergency.
“Though the challenges before us are great, we are confident that we can overcome this climate emergency”, said Ecojesuit.
Last year, Ecojesuit called on Jesuit institutions to commit to making ethical investments and to divest in fossil fuels.
Read Ecojesuit’s statement supporting the Global Climate Strike here.