NAIROBI, KENYA – Following the conclusion of a two-day “Convocation on Climate and Hunger,” Christian leaders from Africa, Europe, and the United States signed a statement committing themselves to stand together and “seek public policies that yield measurable results and meaningful change for those disproportionately affected by hunger and climate change.”
Through the Convocation and statement, the leaders hope to unify and amplify a global
Christian voice on the need to address climate change to end hunger in advance of the 2022
United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 27), which will be held next month in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. Organizers of the Convocation believe the unique gathering is the first to bring together Christians from the three continents to address climate change and its impacts on hunger.
“Today, Christian leaders from the U.S. and Europe stand in solidarity with Africa’s Christian leaders in their calls for action on climate and hunger at COP 27,” said Rev. Eugene Cho, president and CEO of Bread for the World. “We hope the Convocation and statement model how the western world can affirm the voices of Africans in tackling the issues of hunger and climate change as a group of equals.”
African Christian leaders welcomed Christian leaders from the United States and Europe to come alongside them in support of policies that will establish climate justice and end hunger.
The convocation statement reads in part: “As Christians from Africa, Europe, and North America, we share a fierce resolve to stand and work together to end the hunger crisis made worse by climate instability, to renew God’s creation, and to bring our planet into balance, forming a beloved community in which all of creation can thrive. Climate justice is our means for furthering this resolve…
“Together, we seek public policies that yield measurable results and meaningful change for those disproportionately affected by hunger and climate change. We recognize that highincome countries have historically been the highest emitters of greenhouse gas emissions and have strategic roles to play in ending the dual hunger and climate crisis.”
The “Convocation on Climate and Hunger” was organized by the U.S.- based Bread for the World and hosted by the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC-CETA).
