Climate activism and the church
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Recently, the Church of England announced that its multi-billion pound funds would no longer invest in any fossil fuel companies. For years the Church had tried to use their position as shareholders in companies including BP, Shell, Total and ExxonMobil to nudge them towards cutting emissions and changing strategies. But now they have given up, concluding the oil and gas firms were not aligned with the Paris climate deal’s aim to limit temperature rises to 1.5 degrees.
Will this divestment make any difference, or is it just virtue-signalling? What role should the church play in campaigning around the climate crisis? And, is it hypocritical to throw stones at these companies when the church is struggling to decarbonise and hit its own net zero targets anyway?
- Read more about the divestment plan here: https://premierchristian.news/en/news/article/church-of-england-divests-from-fossil-fuels
- The pioneering eco-church in Bristol I mention at the end is called Hazelnut Community Farm https://hazelnutcommunityfarm.com
Released on 3 Jul 2023
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