Join
Peaceworks and our Allies in a Climate Walk, Sunday, Sept. 20. Join with your
neighbors to call attention to the urgent need for immediate action.
Pope
Francis is coming to the U.S. More specifically, he is going to be addressing a
joint session of Congress on Thursday, Sept. 24. In his encyclical, Laudato Si, the Pope has taken as clear
a stance as possible regarding the moral imperative to take action now to
address the climate crisis. He has called for recognition of the impact of our
actions on future generations and on the poor and the marginalized, who are
being most directly impacted today.
This
has the potential to be a transformative moment. Those who’ve clung to denial
for so long are now facing both an overwhelming scientific consensus and a call
to moral action from religious and spiritual leaders from many traditions,
including now the Catholic Church, the largest single religious institution in
the world.
Many
organizations, including Peaceworks, which has been a voice for climate action
for decades, are heartened by the Pope’s stand, and we’d like to do all we can
to assure that his message is heard as widely as possible. On Sunday, Sept. 20,
therefore, we are holding a Climate Walk that we hope will bring together
hundreds of mid-Missourians. This highly visible 5K (~3 miles) Walk will focus
community attention on the climate just before the Pope arrives. Being visible
we can amplify Pope Francis’ message and bring it home to our neighbors and
colleagues.
The
Walk is an awareness raiser. It’s also a fundraiser to help fund Peaceworks’ climate
action advocacy and education efforts. Getting pledges and/or making a
contribution yourself is encouraged, but optional. We hope you will participate
in whatever ways work for you and help make this the largest, most impactful
climate demonstration yet in our area.
