The Church of England is still heavily invested in fossil fuels despite the fact that oil, gas and coal are literally fuelling the climate crisis, but with your help, we can change that. Register for our one-hour ‘Divest the Church of England’ training session, which we’ll hold Zoom on Tuesday 15 March at 5.30pm. Register for this one-hour training session here.
At Operation Noah we believe the Church has an important role to play in tackling the climate crisis. In the lead up to COP26 we need to call for the strongest possible action on the climate crisis. COP26, a meeting of world leaders to discuss the climate crisis, is being hosted in the UK. Come and find out what you and your church can do to make the most of this historic opportunity.
Speakers
We are delighted to welcome Chine McDonald and Josh Tregale to speak to us this year.
Chine McDonald is Head of Public Engagement at Christian Aid. She edited Rage and Hope: 75 Prayers for a better world, a Christian Aid book which was published in March 2021. Her second book, God is not a white man and other revelations, will be published in May. Chine will talk about Christian Aid’s work on climate change and the perspective of black British Christians, as well as her wider work equipping the Church to be a voice for justice.
Rev Dr Dave Gregory is a former President of the Baptist Union. He convenes the Baptist Union Environment Network and is Director of the John Ray Initiative, a charity with a vision to bring together scientific and Christian understandings of the environment in a way that can be widely communicated and lead to effective action. He is also a former meteorologist at the Met Office, Hadley Centre and the European Weather Centre and is also involved in helping churches engage with science, particularly through Messy Church Does Science. Dave will speak about the Baptist Union’s recent decision to make a divestment commitment. The decision was passed by an overwhelming majority of 98.5% after Dave co-authored a proposal to divest as a practical commitment towards climate justice ahead of COP26.
Josh Tregale is a young climate activist who believes that the prophetic voice of the Church is a powerful statement. He will talk about his experiences of being Campaign Co-ordinator for MOCK COP26. The online conference was organised by young people and aimed to improve on the original plans for COP26 after it was delayed by a year. Josh is also International Campaign Coordinator at Teach the Future, a campaign for climate education.
Breakout rooms
When you register you will be able to choose one of the following workshops:
Why and how should churches divest from fossil fuels with James Buchanan and Bokani Tshidzu of Operation Noah’s Bright Now campaign
Hold a Climate Sunday in the lead-up to COP26 with James Anthony from Climate Sunday
Camino to COP with Melanie Nazareth of Christian Climate Action
Theme COP26: the Church’s call to prophetic action and voice
Please put this date in your diary and expect inspiring speakers and thought-provoking workshops! More information will follow shortly on our website, in our newsletter and on social media.
The webinar will provide an overview of how Churches in the Anglican Communion can act for climate justice ahead of COP26 through divestment and investment.
Across the Anglican Communion, Churches are supporting a just and green recovery by divesting from fossil fuels and investing in clean alternatives. The Anglican Church of Southern Africa, the Church of Ireland and the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia have divested from fossil fuels. The Church in Wales and Scottish Episcopal Church are set to debate divestment at Governing Body meetings in the coming months. There have also been calls for the Church of England to accelerate divestment from fossil fuels, following a motion on divestment passed at General Synod in 2018.
Join this interactive webinar to hear from inspiring leaders across the Anglican Communion, who will share their insights about the steps that Churches need to take on divestment and investment ahead of COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021.
The webinar will provide an excellent opportunity to find out how you can get involved in campaigning for divestment in your local church, diocese and at a national level.
We are delighted to welcome the following speakers:
Keynote speaker: Rt Revd Dr Steven Croft, Bishop of Oxford: Fossil fuel divestment, positive investment and the urgent need for a just and green recovery from Covid-19
Revd Dr Rachel Mash, Environmental Coordinator of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa and Secretary to the Anglican Communion Environmental Network: The theological underpinnings of divestment
Revd Jacynthia Murphy, Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia: The impact of the climate crisis in the Pacific Islands and decision of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia to divest
Very Revd John Conway, Provost of St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral, Edinburgh: How St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral divested from fossil fuels and what needs to happen now in the Scottish Episcopal Church
Revd Stuart Elliott, Vicar of Betws-y-Coed Parish Church and Member of Church in Wales’ Environment Group and Ethical Investment Group: Fossil fuel divestment in the Church in Wales and investment in climate solutions
Stephen Trew, Member of the Church of Ireland General Synod: The Church of Ireland divestment journey
James Buchanan, Bright Now Campaign Manager at Operation Noah: Key findings of the report Church investments in major oil companies: Paris compliant or Paris defiant?
It will provide an opportunity to find out more about how your Church, Diocese or Province can join the next global divestment announcement for faith institutions on 17 May 2021.
The webinar is organised by the Anglican Communion Environmental Network, Operation Noah, Christian Aid, Tearfund and Eco-congregation Scotland.
As Scotland prepares to host the UN climate talks (COP26) later this year, we have a unique opportunity to make an impact and increase the pressure on institutions and governments to respond with the urgency that the climate crisis demands.
Eco-Congregation Scotland is organising a webinar to help you find out how Churches in Scotland – both locally and nationally – can support a just and green recovery by divesting from fossil fuels and re-orienting investments towards a clean energy future.
Very Revd John Conway, Provost of St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Edinburgh, will speak about how St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral divested from fossil fuels, as well as what needs to happen now in the Scottish Episcopal Church
Seonaid Knox, former clerk to the Church of Scotland Youth Assembly, will speak about her involvement in the Church of Scotland divestment campaign, and why the Church needs to listen to the voice of younger generations
Alejandro Alemán Treminio, Climate Change Officer at the Nicaraguan organisation Centro Humboldt (a Christian Aid partner) and coordinator of Climate Action Network Latin America, will speak about the impacts of the climate crisis in the region, how communities are being supported to adapt and his hopes for climate justice at COP26
The webinar will be chaired by Fiona Buchanan, Campaigns and Advocacy Coordinator at Christian Aid Scotland.
The webinar will see the launch of the Scottish Churches COP26 Pledge on Divestment and the Just and Green Recovery, which can be signed by individuals, churches, regional Church bodies and national Churches.
The webinar is an excellent opportunity to find out more about how your church can join the next global divestment announcement for faith institutions in spring 2021. Join us to find out where your Church denomination currently stands on fossil fuel divestment, and how you can get involved in the campaign.
There has been growing support in the Methodist Church for divestment from fossil fuels. In June 2020, 260 Methodists (including 114 ministers) signed a letter calling for the Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church to fully divest. The Methodist Council passed a resolution on divestment in October 2020. Several Methodist churches have already announced their decision to divest from fossil fuels.
Join this interactive webinar to hear why divestment is such an important response to the climate crisis with Bill McKibben, who started the global fossil fuel divestment movement, and Mark Campanale, whose groundbreaking research with Carbon Tracker has highlighted the risks of continued investment in fossil fuels. The webinar will be an opportunity to hear from Methodist leaders who are campaigning for divestment and find out how you can get involved.
We are delighted to welcome the following speakers:
Keynote speaker: Bill McKibben, author, environmentalist, Methodist and co-founder of 350.org: The moral imperative to divest from fossil fuels, the global divestment movement and why 2021 is a crucial year for tackling the climate crisis
Mark Campanale, founder of the Carbon Tracker Initiative: The financial risk of fossil fuel investments
James Buchanan, Bright Now Campaign Manager at Operation Noah: Key findings of Bright Now report: Church investments in major oil companies: Paris compliant or Paris defiant?
Martha Rand, Vice Chair of the Methodist Zero Carbon Group: Responding to the climate emergency for the new generation of Methodists
Sheridan Pengelly, Vice Chair of the Methodist Zero Carbon Group: The experience of a local church divesting from fossil fuels
Revd John Howard, former Chair of JACEI (the Methodist Church’s ethical investment advisory group) will join the speaker panel for Q&A.
The webinar will be chaired by Michael Pryke, Chair of the Methodist Zero Carbon Group and former Methodist Youth President.
The webinar will also offer an opportunity to find out more about how your church, Circuit or District can join the next global divestment announcement for faith institutions in spring 2021. The Methodist Zero Carbon Group will share a new resource on divestment as well as introducing other areas they will be working on ahead of the upcoming UN climate talks, COP26, in Glasgow in November 2021.
The webinar is sponsored by Operation Noah, Christian Aid and the Methodist Zero Carbon Group.