Impacts of climate change across the Anglican Communion

Graves being lost to the waves in Grenada. Photo: Anglican Alliance/Clifton Nedd

What is it like to live through a catastrophic hurricane? How is diabetes related to climate change? Why are Indigenous People being forced from their ancestral homes?

Below are links to stories that demonstrate the wide range of impacts of the climate emergency in different parts of the Communion. See also this web story from September 2019 in which four of the Anglican Alliance’s regional facilitators talk about about how climate change is impacting their regions.

Migration. In January 2019 a round table was convened at Lambeth Palace under the aegis of the Archbishop of Canterbury to explore migration caused by climate change, focusing on small island states. The programme included powerful contributions from people directly affected by climate change together with distinguished academics, diplomats, faith leaders and faith-based organisations from affected regions. A detailed report with videos of the sessions and further links can be accessed here: people forced from home by climate change.

Stories from across the Communion

“The main impact of climate change in the Central America region has to do with drought and flooding; it has to do with farmers not being able to identify the time to harvest and when to plant. It is also having an effect on women and children who are usually the most excluded people in society, who usually fall through the cracks. It also has an effect on forced migration, because if people don’t have places where they can work or produce for their families, they are forced to move to places seeking somewhere they can be productive and provide a future for their families.” Archbishop Julio Murray, the Primate of Central America and Bishop of Panama.

A climate change prayer from the Pacific

Lord, tiny as we are in our islands in this vast ocean, we praise and honour you for the beauty of your creation including us, sinners.

We ask your forgiveness for the many ways that we have failed to maintain and sustain your world, our beautiful home.

We pray and ask that you give us new vision, hearts, minds, hands & feet that proactively seek to safeguard your creation, our home.

Lord God, remove the greed from our hearts that destroys your creation and put in us pure and abiding hearts that love and care for others and your wonderful world. Amen