London: Countdown to Conference for Religious on Fossil Fuel Disinvestment

Lorna Gold - image Sasko Lazaroy

Religious are gathering in London next week to examine 'Fossil fuel Divestment for a Zero Carbon Future'. The conference for religious will take place on Thursday 14 February at Mount Street Jesuit Centre in London. It will be an opportunity for religious to find out more about how Catholic institutions are responding to the urgent call on climate change launched by Pope Francis in Laudato Si'. The conference will explore fossil fuel divestment and how religious can get involved in supporting the clean energy transition to ensure a brighter, cleaner future for everyone. It will also be a chance to find out more about joining the next Catholic divestment announcement in May 2019.

Around 50 participants are already booked, from 20 religious orders, but a few places are still available. The conference (11am - 4pm) is open to any members of religious communities with an interest in global justice and environmental issues, religious bursars and key advisors to religious hierarchy on financial management.

Speakers include Lorna Gold, Coordinator of the Laudato Si' Project at Trocaire and Vice Chair of the Global Catholic Climate Movement; Sr Sheila Kinsey FCJM, Executive Co-Secretary of the JPIC Commission UISG-USG in Rome; Fr Martin Poulsom SDB, Senior Lecturer in Theology at the University of Roehampton; Sian Ferguson, Trust Executive of Ashden Trust, JJ Charitable Trust and Mark Leonard Trust (three of the Sainsbury Family Charitable Trusts); Fr Martin Newell CP, Vice Provincial of the Passionists in England & Wales; Ellen Teague, JPIC Media Worker at Columbans in Britain; Maria Elena Arana, Campaign Coordinator at CAFOD; James Buchanan, Bright Now Campaign Manager at Operation Noah.

More than 1,000 organisations around the world - including the Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference, Caritas Internationalis, the Passionists in England & Wales, the Columban Missionaries and the Franciscan Sisters of Mary in the US - have taken the step of divesting (disinvesting) from fossil fuel companies in response to the global threat of climate change.

Sponsors of the conference are: CAFOD, Operation Noah, Global Catholic Climate Movement, National Justice & Peace Network, Conference of Religious and Association of Provincial Bursars. The conference will round off with a Creation Mass.

The event is free of charge, and participants are asked to bring something to share for a vegetarian lunch.

Contact: James Buchanan on james.buchanan@operationnoah.org or call 07801 570653.

LINK

Bright Now - the campaign for fossil free Churches