Climate negotiators must "act now", say church leaders

Geneva: December 16, 2009, (PCTV Newsdesk)

With the climate change negotiations sputtering and showing signs of being less than legally binding, ambitious and fair, leaders of churches and international church organizations sent a message to negotiators Tuesday evening imploring them to "not be afraid." The letter, which was signed by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the incoming and outgoing general secretaries of the World Council of Churches as well as church leaders from Europe, North America and the Pacific, says the negotiations are at a crucial stage and negotiators need to be steadfast to "act now."

The message also called on the negotiators to keep in mind the historical responsibility of the industrialized countries in climate justice. "At this crucial stage in the negotiations we would like to reiterate our firm conviction that there is an undeniable historical responsibility on the part of the industrialized countries for the climate change crisis that we currently face."

Full text of the message:
http://www.oikoumene.org/?id=7471

WCC activities in Copenhagen:
http://www.oikoumene.org/?id=7462