Parishes can ‘lead’ on climate change as UN summit kicks off

Parishes can be a “shining example” to the community if they become actively involved in tackling climate change, according to a parish pastoral worker for the Archdiocese of Dublin.

Speaking from the Czech Republic while on pilgrimage to Poland Jane Mellett said she believes the Church can be a “leading voice” on the issue of working towards a more sustainable world.

“There’s the eco parish awards which is run by Eco Congregation Ireland and it’s a fantastic way to be a shining example in a community if a parish receives an award like that. It’s not an overly complicated thing to achieve,” she said.

Ms Mellett is currently taking part in a ‘Climate Pilgrimage’ to Katowice. This is where the 24th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change began on December 4.

The talks have been billed as the most important since the Paris climate change accord in 2015. Over the next two weeks, the aim is to make an end-of-year deadline for agreeing a rule book on how to enforce global action to limit further warming of the planet.

The pilgrimage was blessed by Pope Francis in the Vatican where it began on October 4 and is organised by the Global Catholic Climate Movement.

People from across the globe are talking part, with Ms Mellett saying hearing the first-hand experiences of people suffering the effects of climate change has been “transformative”.

“One factor that we could engage more with is hearing these climate stories and really seeing the faces of the people who are deeply affected,” said Ms Mellett.

“We talk a lot about climate justice, and from a justice perspective it’s not a fair situation where the lifestyles of one part of the world are deeply affecting and causing the suffering of people in another part of the world.”

Ireland was ranked second worst performing EU member in tackling climate change in summer 2018 by Europe’s largest NGO climate change coalition, Climate Action Network.

In addition to engaging with the eco parish awards, reading the Pope’s encyclical on the environment Laudato Si’ can also give people a better understanding of the worsening issue Ms Mellet said.

She added: “They’re two very simple things and I think once you start on an issue like this, it can snowball and more people in the community become involved, schools and local environmental groups.”