Caerphilly Creation Celebration highlights urgent need for climate action

Campaigners with Canon John & Wayne David MP

On Monday, 2 September, the community of Caerphilly in South Wales came together to hold a Creation Celebration - a special event where people celebrate the environment - and to ask the local MP, Wayne David, to take urgent action to tackle climate change.

The parish of St Helen's, Caerphilly, was transformed with decorations and offerings including globes and plants for the Creation Celebration, which was organised by volunteers of the charity CAFOD and attended by over 30 members of the local community.

After the Mass, which included special readings around the theme of the environment, the congregation came together to sign a petition addressed to the UK government asking for faster and more effective climate action.

Volunteer Berenice Williams said: "It was a really great event and helped to raise awareness about the importance of acting to reduce our environmental impact. The Mass was a lovely opportunity to reflect, and think about what we could change in our own lives to make a real difference to help both our local community and the wider world."

The Creation Celebration continued in the parish hall where everyone brought a picnic to eat together while discussing the importance of nature to local life - including the impact of the sea and coastal areas.

This was one of many Creation Celebration events, inspired by CAFOD's 'Our Common Home' campaign and organised by CAFOD volunteers around the country. It is hoped the events will highlight the growing concern for the environment and start new conversations about climate change.

Therese Warwick, CAFOD's local representative in South Wales who attended the event, said: "We would like to say a massive thank you to the community of St Helen's for organising this Creation Celebration - and would like to give special thanks to Canon John Kelly for helping to organise the special service.

"We have just experienced one of the hottest summers on record, and now we need to work together to go further, faster to end our contribution to climate change.

"Events like these show that communities are serious about taking responsibility and forging new habits - and this gives hope that together, we can turn the tide."

See more pictures on ICN's Facebook page.

Find out more about CAFOD's campaigns at: https://cafod.org.uk/Campaign