Faiths for the Environment

In the build-up to COP26, Faiths Forum for London partnered with Faith for the Climate, Faiths United Youth Network, The Royal Parks, Friends of the Earth, Hindu Climate Action, Bahu Trust, EcoSikh, EcoSynagogue, Women’s Interfaith Network and Eco Dharma Network on a project that explored where faith and nature meet.

The project began when The Royal Parks and its Mission Invertebrate team approached Faiths Forum for London and Faiths United Youth Network to find ways to engage under-represented people, in line with their aim of widening participation and making their spaces accessible to all communities.

At its heart was a webinar series, “Where Nature Meets Faith”. Over five consecutive weeks it explored environmentalism, sustainability and climate change from the perspective of each of the nine world faiths that Faiths Forum represents, and their teachings. The aim was to increase engagement in environmental activities among faith communities, young people and underserved groups, mainly in London.

Our speakers included:

• Olivia Fuchs, a local women’s leader at Soka Gakkai International and project coordinator for the Network of Buddhist Organisations’ Eco Dharma Network
• Canon Giles Goddard, Vicar of St John’s Church and founder and chair of the Faith for the Climate network
• Malcolm Deboo, 26th elected President of the Zoroastrian Trust Funds of Europe

With their help we explored some important questions:

• What is the relationship between nature and religion?
• Do faith communities have a religious or moral duty to become more environmentally sustainable?
• How can we use our faith to tackle the climate crisis?

After the series, The Royal Parks hosted guided walks so that faith communities could put the themes of the webinars into action. The shared experience of the walks also built interfaith cohesion and mutual understanding.