Get your voice heard on climate change through your faith community

The climate crisis is inseparable from questions of global justice, international development, and the issues facing the Muslim community in the UK and across the world. In this blog, we will introduce the work Hope for the Future is doing to engage the Muslim community and other faith groups to take action on climate change.

Alongside humanitarian aid organisations like Islamic Relief, we think groups like ours can play an important role in encouraging democratic engagement, helping people to push for policy change and address the root causes of the climate crisis.

Hope for the Future is an organisation which supports people to take local and national action on climate change and get their voices heard by their MPs and councillors. Many of us care about the environment, and recognise that councils and the government need to do more. We provide training, 1:1 support, and resources on understanding the role of your elected representative, how to engage with them, and tools to effectively communicate climate issues. You can sign up to our next free, online training here.

We work with groups across the UK, and run specific projects to support faith groups and young people. Faith communities have unique tools and opportunities to take effective action against climate change. This is evident in the strong values of community, opportunities for reflection, and commitment to justice that many faith groups share. Our faith work seeks to link practical, spiritual, and political action on climate change. If you are interested in receiving support, you can get in touch with us here.

At our upcoming event on Saturday 26th November in West Bromwich, we are bringing together faith communities with a specific focus on Muslims, Sikhs, and Christians. Through talks, activities, and prayer, we will explore connections between climate change, the energy crisis and the cost of living crisis. Faith leaders and local groups will offer their unique perspectives on how communities can take action towards local solutions.

The Black Country has some of the highest rates of fuel poverty in the country. As winter hits, people will be faced with unprecedented energy bills – leaving many trapped in freezing homes. These issues are inseparable from the climate crisis; reliance on fossil fuels for our energy supply is driving high energy prices for households and, at the same time, causing catastrophic harm to the natural world.

Climate change is affecting those who are least responsible for it, such as worsening farming conditions and causing natural disasters of unprecedented scale. Our event will explore the links between the local and global effects of climate change, looking particularly at the farmers’ protests in Punjab and the recent floods in Pakistan.

Faith provides an excellent basis for people to come together with a positive, hopeful perspective to take action for climate change awareness. A deep respect and sacredness for the environment is found across the world’s faiths, with many teachings and scriptures calling on people to respect and preserve the natural world. Preventing further climate change and responding to its ongoing impacts in a just and compassionate way are goals which can be taken up universally, by people of all faiths and none.