US religious leaders proove climate action is possible

At Paris talks, US religious leaders provide proof ambitious climate action is possible

Thousands of US congregations and individuals take IPL Paris Pledge to dramatically reduce emissions and ask U.N. delegates to follow their lead

PARIS—American faith leaders are traveling to the United Nations climate change summit in Paris this weekend to offer UN delegates the Paris Pledge, evidence of thousands of U.S. congregations and individuals who have agreed to reduce their own carbon emissions in a bid to prove that more ambitious targets are not only possible but necessary.

Interfaith Power & Light (IPL) founder and president the Rev. Sally Bingham will present the delegates with a list of congregations and individuals who have signed on to the pledge, committing them to cutting their own carbon emissions in half by 2030 and becoming carbon neutral by 2050. IPL leaders will be hosting events that spotlight the American faith communities’ efforts to cut carbon pollution.

IPL has led the United States’ interfaith response to climate change for over a decade, organizing congregations from across the religious spectrum. IPL developed the Paris Pledge in response to U.N. Secretary Ban Ki-Moon’s call for civil society to present bold initiatives at the Paris climate summit.

WHO:

•Rev. Canon Sally Bingham – In Paris, the Rev. Bingham will lead discussions with Sr. Brown and Susan Stephenson on the US faith communities’ efforts to cut carbon pollution. She will also present U.N. delegates with a list of thousands of individuals and congregations from across the U.S. who have pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As IPL’s president & founder, the Rev. Bingham was among the first religious leaders to identify climate change as a critical moral issue. Since then, she has helped mobilize 18,000 American communities of faith to take action.
•Sister Joan Brown is the executive director of New Mexico IPL. A Catholic Franciscan nun, Sister Brown was honored by the White House for decades of service engaging faith communities to take action on climate change.
•Susan Stephenson is the executive director of IPL. Susan has been a key player urging bi-partisan support for renewable energy and energy efficiency at the state and federal level since the conception of California IPL, over 15 years ago.

Events:

Sunday, Dec. 6, 2015
4:30pm - 6:30pm

How U.S. Faith Communities are Leading on Climate

People’s Climate Summit

Ateliear, Debat - Lycée Jean Jaures - Salle 312
Montreuil, France
Friday, Dec. 11, 11:15am

How U.S. Faith Communities are Leading on Climate

U.S. Tent, Le Bourget Conference Facility
Paris, France 93350

What:
Faith leaders representing thousands of U.S. congregations and individuals who have taken the Paris Pledge to reduce carbon emissions will travel to Paris to call for an ambitious, equitable and legally-binding agreement at the U.N.’s COP 21 climate summit.

ENDS

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