Bright Now Newsletter - October 2014 Wow! Church of Sweden, Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) and Diocese of Perth all disinvest from fossil fuels I

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Bright Now Newsletter - October 2014

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Wow! Church of Sweden, Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) and Diocese of Perth all disinvest from fossil fuels

In September the Church of Sweden removed remaining gas companies from its portfolio to make its $691 million of assets fossil free, while the Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) disinvested from companies engaged in fossil fuel extraction.

This week the Anglian Diocese of Perth in Australia also committed to disinvest, directing its investment board to produce a report within 12 months detailing how the Diocese can disinvest from fossil fuels and reinvest in renewable energy.

These decisions, following the World Council of Churches’ commitment to disinvest in July, show how quickly the divestment movement is growing among worldwide Churches. We hope UK Churches will join the movement. To find out more, read our latest blogs on UCA and Church of Sweden disinvestment. Read more about the Diocese of Perth’s decision here.

Oxford City Council and Rockefeller Brothers Fund disinvest from fossil fuels!

In September, Oxford became the first city council to pass a motion in favour of fossil fuel disinvestment, committing the council to avoid direct investments in fossil fuels on moral grounds. Read more here.

In the same month, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund - with investment assets worth $860 million - announced its decision to move its money from fossil fuels to clean technology. The fund joins a coalition of philanthropist organisations that have disinvested from more than £31 billion in fossil fuel assets. Read more here.

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Hundreds of thousands march for climate action in 150 countries across the world

On 21 September hundreds of thousands of people took part in the biggest ever day of global climate action. In the UK, Operation Noah supporters joined more than 40,000 marching in London, while others marched across the country in Manchester, Bristol, Edinburgh, Sheffield, Stroud and Dudley. London faith groups also took part in an interfaith prayer gathering, where they shared Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s prayer for climate justice.

In our latest blog Jean Leston, Operation Noah board member, reflects on a day of ‘sore feet and blessings’.

World faith leaders and theologians call for disinvestment at UN Climate Summit

On 21 and 22 September world faith leaders gathered in New York for an Interfaith Summit on Climate Change. Representatives from 21 countries on six continents delivered a statement to the UN Climate Summit calling on governments to phase out fossil fuels subsidies and divest from or cap coal immediately.

In the same week, GreenFaith - an interfaith coalition for the environment - released a statement signed by over 80 prominent theologians and religious leaders urging faith communities to disinvest and reinvest in clean technologies. Signatories include Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

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Tutu video calls for an end to fossil fuel era

In September Archbishop Desmond Tutu released a video statement calling for fossil fuel disinvestment as a ‘matter of conscience, a matter of faith and a matter of our continued existence’. Watch the full video here.

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NEW RESOURCES

Bright Now paper on the financial case for disinvesting and reinvesting in low-carbon sectors

This paper sets out the financial case for disinvestment from fossil fuels and explores opportunities for reinvestment in renewable energy and other low-carbon sectors currently available to the Church. The paper is available on the Bright Now website.

Bright Now Post-card

A post-card flier with information about the campaign and actions that people can take - you can request copies for distribution in your church or at events.

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Support the campaign – how can you get involved?

As momentum builds around the world, with Churches, universities, trusts, local authorities and other institutions ditching fossil fuels, it’s time for UK Churches to take action. Call on the Church to disinvest by:

Writing a letter to the Church of England or Methodist Church in Britain
Signing our petitions urging national denominations to disinvest:

Church of England

Methodist Church in Britain

Church in Wales

Church of Scotland

Raising a motion calling for disinvestment through your regional or national Church denomination governing structures. Guidance is available on how to do this in the Church of England and in the Methodist Church, which can be modified for use with other denominations.

Find out more about Bright Now by contacting Ellie Roberts at ellie.roberts@operationnoah.org or if you are interested in becoming more active in the climate movement in your church community contact: campaigns@operationnoah.org.

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Divest the Vatican campaign

Pope Francis has been outspoken about the threat of climate change and is in the process of writing an encyclical, one of the highest forms of Catholic teaching, on humanity’s role in caring for the Earth. Urge Pope Francis to divest the Vatican Bank from the fossil fuel industry and publicly support the divestment movement by signing 350.org’s petition.

Upcoming events

19 – 25 October: Good Money Week

Good Money Week aims to raise awareness of the importance of sustainable and ethical investment and finance. Explore ways for your Church to get involved and download the Good Money Week Guide for Churches here.

Saturday 1 November: Launch of Pray and Fast of the Climate

The Pray and Fast for the Climate website is now live at www.prayandfastfortheclimate.org.uk. Please have a look, sign up for monthly prayer points and consider forming a group to pray with each month to insert on the map. There are so many key meetings, including the UN negotiations in Paris in 2015, to pray for over the coming year.

There will be a service at St John's Waterloo from 11am on 1 November to launch Pray and Fast for the Climate. Speakers include Revd Steve Chalke. A poster is available here to download or you can request fliers from admin@operationnoah.org.

Saturday 22 November: Fossil Free Festival in Huddersfield

Huddersfield Quaker Meeting are holding a fossil free festival, which will include a film screening of Do the Math, workshops, kids’ eco activities, music, campaign group stalls and refreshments. Find out more here.

Job Vacancies - Christian Ecology Link (CEL)

CEL is recruiting green Christian communicators for the following positions:
* Voluntary editor for the Green Christian biennial magazine
* A paid Information Officer (5 hours a week) to deal with enquiries.

Further details are here.

Please support our campaign work by donating

We rely on supporter donations to continue much of our activities. Please consider giving a donation here.

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