FaithInvest team to be featured at New York Times Climate Hub discussing the role of faith in the battle against climate change
GLASGOW – FaithInvest Founding President Martin Palmer and Director of Movement Building Lorna Gold will be featured speakers at an event focusing on the power of faith to motivate communities to address climate change. The event, hosted by the New York Times, will also provide an early glimpse at the highly anticipated forthcoming 'Laudato Si' documentary, based on Pope Francis' urgent call for action.
The 'Laudato Si' – Faithful Action event will take place Tuesday November 9 from 19:30 to 22:30 GMT at the Climate Hub's Forum venue, and will be viewable live online as well as available to watch afterwards. It will feature first and foremost a 'green carpet premiere' of excerpts from the ongoing 'Laudato Si' documentary by BAFTA- and Oscar-winning production company Off The Fence.
The documentary has been inspired by Pope Francis' 2015 encyclical, which issued an urgent call to arms to protect our planet and one another.
In addition to a Q&A session about the documentary, Tuesday's event will feature discussion on the ways in which faith can mobilize people where activism can't. Up until very recently many environmental campaigners have overlooked the importance of faith in people's everyday lives – especially in those parts of the world where emissions are high, and human and natural health are seriously compromised.
In addition to Martin Palmer and Lorna Gold, the event will also feature filmmaker Nicolas Brown, activist Ridhima Pandey and Father Joshtrom Isaac Kureethadam, who serves on the Vatican's Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.
The 'Laudato Si' documentary's title draws from the name and first paragraph of Pope Francis' encyclical, which reads:
'"Laudato si’, mi’ Signore” – “Praise be to you, my Lord”. In the words of this beautiful canticle, Saint Francis of Assisi reminds us that our common home is like a sister with whom we share our life and a beautiful mother who opens her arms to embrace us.'
The same document has inspired the larger Laudato Si' Movement, which mobilises Catholic action on climate change and is working closely with FaithInvest's groundbreaking Faith Plans for People and Planet initiative, organised with WWF’s Beliefs and Values programme. Both Martin Palmer and Lorna Gold are featured in the forthcoming documentary, and Lorna leads the Faith Plans programme. She is also chair of the Laudato Si' Movement.
Faith Plans for People and Planet was officially launched in October 2021. It is an unprecedented coalition of faith communities from across the globe who have formed to take on the crisis of climate change. Still growing, it is already the largest and most ambitious environmental initiative ever launched by the world's faiths.
To learn more about Faith Plans visit: faithplans.org
The New York Times Climate Hub is a series of events during COP26 focused on thought leadership and action on climate change. Event speakers have included Al Gore, Matt Damon and Greta Thunberg. The Climate Hub describes itself as endeavouring 'to bridge the gap between the COP26 summit and the public, creating a space where business leaders, policymakers, COP26 delegates and the wider community can come together to debate, discuss and discover climate change solutions and how to put them into practice.'
To attend the event in person or online, you can register via the Climate Hub website .