Page 6 - Presbyterian Connection

Connection
JUSTICE
Climate and Change
6 FALL 2022
PRESBYTERIAN
presbyterian.ca
Forest fires threatening a nearby city.
By Allyson Carr, Justice Ministries
As I write this article (mid- July), numerous countries are experiencing record-breaking heatwaves. This is leading to increased hospitalizations and deaths from heat stroke and other heat-related health issues. Effects of record-high heat had been a major concern in Canada this year, but now that is the case for countries across the globe as well. Whether the consequences are a melted museum roof and buckled roads in China, tem- peratures in India that topped out around 49 degrees Celsius, or forest fires in parts of Europe, Canada and the US, the scorch- ing effects of these heatwaves are beginning to show—and people are starting to talk more openly about environmental factors. In response to fires that broke out and destroyed numerous homes amid record heat and dry condi- tions in the UK, the BBC reported that the mayor of London called it “the busiest day for the fire ser- vice in London since the Second World War” (July 21, 2022).
The ways in which the global
climate is rapidly changing signif- icantly impacts people throughout the world. Catastrophic drought and flooding have severely im- pacted farmers, increasing food insecurity. This, combined with supply chain issues, which are also impacted in part by climate change, are driving food prices up across Canada and interna- tionally. The war in Ukraine has, of course, increased food inse- curity as well. Homes have been destroyed, adding to a burgeon- ing housing crisis in Canada and elsewhere. The Insurance Bureau of Canada has said the floods that hit British Columbia last year were the single costliest weather event in the history of the province. Around 14,800 people had to be evacuated while the floods were ongoing. These are just a few examples of how we know that catastrophes related to climate change aren’t only predictions for the future—they are already here.
Disasters caused by our chang- ing climate have profound effects, not only on those whose homes or livelihoods are lost or damaged, but on everyone in the community and all connected communities.
They increase overall vulnerabil- ity to poverty, food insecurity and homelessness, to say nothing of the physical and mental health costs. Indigenous people, racial- ized people, those who are preg- nant or have disabilities or who live in northern or remote areas are significantly more vulnerable to the effects of climate change, though all people are likely to be affected in one way or another. In short, a climate crisis is not only an environmental emergency, but also a human emergency.
It would be easy to feel hope- less and powerless, but we are called to hope and to act. We can and should all work to personally reduce our carbon footprint and thus help lower the emissions contributing to climate change. But individual action, as impor- tant as it is, will only get us so far. What is needed are sustained international and corporate com- mitments to reduce the effects of global warming and climate change.
Collectively, we are not pow- erless. We must, however, ac- knowledge that we are in an un- folding emergency and respond accordingly. It will take concerted effort to curb climate change from worsening (for example, through significant legislation that lowers carbon emissions, cuts down on plastic production and transitions to a just, green economy) as well as a commitment to make adap- tations to the changes that are al- ready happening (for example, by improvements to infrastructure and dikes, changes to building codes and increasing the resil- iency of conservation areas and forests).
An important part of Christian witness is to love, honour and
care for the integrity of creation, which God called “very good.” Without doing so, we cannot fully live out the commandment to love God—harming creation is surely not a way of showing love for God or for our neighbour, whom we are also called to love. The church has spoken on the need to act justly in the shadow of the cli- mate crisis through, for example, urging the difficult but necessary actions of a “just transition” to a low carbon economy and asking all national PCC committees to look at how frequently they meet in order to see if there may be op- portunities to reduce carbon con- sumption (A&P 2021, pp. 411, 38). The PCC has also instituted a
“Creation Care Levy” on travel to the General Assembly (A&P 2018, pp. 363–368, 13–4). These ac- tions are only a start, and we will need to see how we can continue improving on that start—but our individual and community actions must be accompanied by national and global efforts.
This article draws on and up- dates elements from the 2022 section on climate in the Justice Ministries report to the General Assembly. To learn more about a just transition, or to find educa- tional or advocacy resources on climate issues, see the Ecologi- cal Justice page of the Social Ac- tion Hub: presbyterian.ca/justice/ social-action/ecological-justice.
Presbyterians Sharing helps congregations advocate governments and communities for urgent responses to the climate crisis.
Responding to the Addictions Public Health Crisis
By Katharine Sisk, Justice Ministries
On Friday, May 13, 2022, Cana- dian Ministries and Justice Min- istries hosted the Symposium on the Addictions Public Health Crisis: Equipping Churches to Respond Well. Held online, the symposium focused on the opioid crisis, a national public health cri- sis that affects people in all com- munities and across all ages and socioeconomic groups.
Between January 2016 and September 2021, 26,690 people in Canada died from opioid over- dose. The COVID-19 pandemic worsened this situation—in its first year, there was a 95% in- crease in deaths from overdosing (particularly involving fentanyl), compared to the year before. What is imperative to understand is that this crisis is not driven by people who use illicit or street drugs.
At the symposium, Dr. Pamela Leece, Public Health Physician at Public Health Ontario, provided an overview of the crisis and talked about public health principles to reduce harm and save lives. She also talked about a range of pub- lic health policy responses—from harm reduction actions, such as needle exchange and super- vised consumption services, to information sessions about de- criminalization and safer supply
policies (e.g., What are they? What has been their impact?). Throughout her presentation, Dr. Leece emphasized that policies and programs must resist stereo- typing and stigma and be devel- oped in consultation with affected communities.
Another presenter at the sym- posium was Natika Bock, the Community Impact and Invest- ment Coordinator for the United Way, B.C., and the Kamloops
Community Action Team Chair. Community Action Teams were established in partnership with the B.C. government to develop action-oriented, community-level strategies to address the over- dosing crisis. The Kamloops Community Action Team empha- sizes culturally appropriate and trauma-informed initiatives with Indigenous people.
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