Newsletter

Winter 2001

Forum 2002: Global Climate Change
By Peter Bakken

This summer, Au Sable will join with the John Ray Initiative to sponsor a major conference in Oxford, England, on global climate change. Attending the conference will be an international group of scientists, policymakers, and religious leaders and scholars.

The purpose of the conference is to increase awareness of the scientific evidence for global climate change and of its likely impacts on human communities throughout the world, and to explore its implications for religion, ethics and society. Participants will propose ways in which churches, scientists, industry, governments and individuals can provide leadership in making an effective response to this issue. Attendance is by invitation only.

Organizers of the conference are Sir John Houghton and Dr. Calvin DeWitt. Sir John Houghton is Co-Chair of the Scientific Assessment Working Group of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and Chair of the John Ray Initiative, a faith-based environmental education and stewardship institute in the United Kingdom. Dr. Calvin DeWitt is Professor of Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Director of the Au Sable Institute. Funding support for the conference is being provided by the U.K. Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

"Climate change - popularly called 'global warming' - is a religious and moral issue as well as a scientific, economic, and political one," said Sir John Houghton. "There is no doubt in the minds of the majority of scientists who study this issue that human activities are seriously affecting the global climate. The longer we take to face up to this fact, the more difficult will it be to respond effectively with appropriate adaptation and mitigation actions."

Leading scientists will provide an overview of the current state of knowledge about climate change and its impacts. Economists and industrialists will lay out the policy options for slowing climate change, adapting to it, and lessening its effects. Theologians and ethicists will present the moral and religious reasons for taking action. Leaders from government, business, religion, and international organizations will discuss how their institutions can address the challenge posed by human-caused climate change. Working groups will meet during the Forum to discuss practical issues and action strategies, and will draft a concluding conference statement.

Of special concern are the linkages between climate change and global poverty and environmental sustainability. Scientists expect global warming to have especially serious consequences for developing countries, which will have a harder time coping with additional stresses of high temperatures, drought, disease, and stresses on agriculture, forests, and natural ecosystems. Some Pacific Island nations and some areas of delta regions (Bangladesh and Southern China, for instance) could become completely submerged as increasing temperatures cause sea levels to rise, affecting many millions of people.

"As the world's largest producer of 'greenhouse gases,' as well as the world's richest, most powerful, and most technologically advanced nation, the United States has a special responsibility to take leadership on this issue," said Dr. DeWitt. "We need to educate the American public and its governmental and religious leaders about the full seriousness of this problem, and about our moral and religious responsibility to speak up on behalf of the poor, of future generations, and God's good creation."

The John Ray Initiative (JRI) was launched in 1997. Named after the 17th-Century pioneer naturalist and theologian, JRI aims to promote environmental stewardship and sustainable development, in accordance with Christian principles and the responsible use of science and technology. Through publications, seminars and workshops, presentations and its website, JRI seeks to inform and challenge the churches and to bring an ethical perspective to environmental issues in the wide arena. Patrons of JRI include the Archbishop of Canterbury and Sir Ghillean Prance, FRS (former Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew). The JRI website is www.jri.org.uk.

More information about the event can be found at www.climateforum2002.org

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