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Caring for God’s creation
The causes and effects of climate
change and what we can do about it
In the beginning, God created the heavens
and the earth.
Genesis 1:1
God saw everything that he had made, and
indeed, it was very good.
Genesis 1:31
“Creation is a gift,
it is a wonderful gift that God has given us,
so that we care for it and we use it
for the benefit of all,
always with great respect and gratitude”.
Pope Francis, Laudato Si
“This sister [the earth] now cries out to us because of
the harm we have inflicted on her by our
irresponsible use and abuse of the goods with which
God has endowed her.
We have come to see ourselves as her lords and
masters, entitled to plunder her at will. The violence
present in our hearts, wounded by sin, is also
reflected in the symptoms of sickness evident in the
soil, in the water, in the air and in all forms of life.
This is why the earth herself, burdened and laid
waste, is among the most abandoned and
maltreated of our poor.” - Pope Francis, Laudato Si
Hundreds of leading
scientists have said with
95% certainty that
humans are the main
cause of climate change
Heat from the sun
shines onto the Earth.
It passes through a
blanket of gases in our
atmosphere.
Some of the heat
energy is reflected back
into space.
Some of the heat energy gets
absorbed by the blanket of
‘greenhouse’ gases.
Human activities are
creating more greenhouse
gases including carbon
dioxide, CO2.
As we burn more fossil
fuels, for example, the
blanket of greenhouse
gases becomes thicker.
More greenhouse gases in
the atmosphere mean that
more heat energy is
absorbed.
This increase in the
temperature of the earth, o
‘global warming’, is what
causes climate change.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC),
made up of leading scientists, says that:
• The atmosphere and ocean have warmed, the amounts of
snow and ice have diminished, and sea level has risen.
• Carbon dioxide concentrations have increased by 40
percent since pre-industrial times, primarily from fossil fuel
emissions.
• Each of the last three decades has been successively
warmer at the Earth’s surface than any preceding decade
since 1850.
• Climate change will impact on food production and
economic growth, making poverty reduction more difficult.
Those who’ve done least to cause
climate change will be worst affected
Visit: The Guardian interactive map and
investigate which countries are most and
least responsible for climate change.
The average person
in the UK is
responsible for 79
times the amount of
CO2 as someone in
Malawi
What can we do?
Tell politicians to dramatically cut our carbon emissions!
Here’s some of the things they could do:
• rapidly move away from fossil fuels and use renewable
energy instead.
• recognising that it’s richer countries who’ve done most to
cause climate change, increase funding to poorest countrie
to help them adapt to the changing climate.
• improve the energy efficiency of our homes.
• encourage and enable people to walk, cycle and use public
transport over the car or planes.
• think about how we use our land in an environmentally
friendly way.
But we need to change our
own lives too:
What you can do
• Drive less (or encourage your family to!)
• Reduce the energy you use at home
• Reduce, reuse, recycle
“
“
“ ““
The rains come at the
Non-indigenous people have
wrong times now – like it rained in January for
been destroying
nature
for
We
believe
that
if money
Our
ancestors
had
four days. It’s no use to farmers if the rains
because
they
not
value
orour
respect
our
forest
is
lostdoall
life
is also
lost.
I had we
In
Mayan
culture,
the
Earth
is
mother,
it
right
–
when
they
cut
down
a
come at unexpected times. Many had no seeds
the
environment...
never
heard
about
climate
change,
but if it our
are
her
children.
But
now
we
are
destroying
tree
they
had
to
ask
the
earth...
left or were scared to plant them. Farmers are
I want
to say
to and
non-indigenous
peoples
continues
we
could
lose
this
forest.
Mother
Earth
this
has
global
effects.
Who
knows
Trinidadconfused.
Sánchez, executive director,
COMAL,
Honduras
that you need
toKroeng
listen
and
learn from us
Ke Kachok,
group leader,
Cambodia
Virgilio Ramirez, Director of Radio Balam Estero, Guatemala
how many days these wrong-time
Davi Kopenawa Yanomami,
rains
will last?
President of Hutukara Yanomami Association, Brazil
”
””
”
”
Charles Wangeneye,
Director of Caring for Environment for Development (CED), Kitui, Kenya
What do people in less economically
developed countries say?
“If we don’t confront climate
change, we won’t end poverty”
Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank
Take action and find out more>>
www.sciaf.org.uk/campaigns
SCIAF (Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund). 19 Park Circus, Glasgow G3 6BE. Charity No. SC012302 Company No. SC197327.
Thanks to CAFOD for providing information for some of these slides. Photos: Sarah Hunter and Thomas Omondi.