Catholics called to combat climate change?

Social justice news
December 19, 2007

Catholics called to combat climate change?
In February of 2007, Dr. Marcy Brown-Marsden participated in a workshop sponsored by former Vice President Al Gore where she agreed to go back to Dallas and give at least 10 talks to different audiences on the effects of climate change as part of Gore’s grassroots initiative, The Climate Project.

Since then, the University of Dallas professor and director of Environmental Science has hosted 27 discussion on climate change–with 6 more scheduled for the spring.

“As a scientist, I really feel the need to get out the science to people,” Brown-Marsden said. “That’s perhaps the starting point.”

As the leading emitter of greenhouse gases in the world, the United States ought to be leading the charge to curb climate change, many environmentalists have argued. The recent disappointing results at the most recent climate talks in Bali, Indonesia – where the U.S. agreed to participate in negotiations in 2009 but nothing more – indicate that it is efforts such as those led by Marsden Brown that are changing the dialogue on climate change, not those initiated by our nation’s leaders.

“The really troubling perspective from my view is that the country that is the most responsible…, the U.S., is not the world leader on this. It is the biggest foot-dragger of all the developed countries,” said Dr. Russ Butkus, a theology professor of Environmental Ethics at the University of Portland.

“That’s morally unacceptable,” he said.

Moreover, the climate talks in Bali came at a time when scientific consensus indicates that those who will be most adversely affected by climate change will be countries in Asia and the Pacific – nations where the majority of the world’s small farms are, a majority of inhabitants live in poor communities near the coast, and communities least economically capable of adapting to climate change, according to a report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Assessing the likely costs for poor countries – who often contribute the least to climate change – to adapt to higher temperatures, more unpredictable weather patterns, and more frequent storms tops the 96-page report’s list of most urgent priorities.

“Developing countries…have the least secure infrastructure,” Butkus said. “These are the countries that are going to be hit hardest.”

“It’s the ultimate injustice,” he said.

Meanwhile, climate change has gained traction in the American public eye despite a slow response from government leaders, environmentalists say.

Many Catholics don’t realize that the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a document on climate change that accepted the scientific consensus that global warming was a reality and urged Catholics to embrace the “universal common good,” and become better stewards of the Earth. Moreover, the document, titled “Global Climate Change: A Plea for Dialogue, Prudence, and the Common Good,” was released in 2001.

“You’re talking about a major expansion in Catholic social teaching,” said Butkus.

And despite recent legislation passed by Congress Wednesday mandating an average fuel efficiency of 35 miles per gallon for cars and light trucks in the United States, much of the work on climate change will continue to be done from the ground up.

“In terms of Catholic social teaching,” Butkus said, “the catalyst is there. It’s a matter of embracing it.”—Matt Bigelow

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