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Parliament’s Climate Program Represented at the UN Environment Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya

March 19, 2019

As a newly accredited organization to UN Environment, the Parliament of the World’s Religions was invited to attend the 4th UN Environment Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya. The United Nations Environment Assembly is the world’s highest-level decision-making body on the environment. It addresses the critical environmental challenges facing the world today. Understanding these challenges and preserving and rehabilitating our environment is at the heart of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Environment Assembly meets biennially to set priorities for global environmental policies and develop international environmental law. Through its resolutions and calls to action, the Assembly provides leadership and catalyzes intergovernmental action on the environment [1].
Delegations from UN Member States, NGOs, and Civil Society participated in this convening, which included 23 adopted resolutions along with panels, workshops, official statements, and addresses by President Macron of France and President Kenyatta of Kenya.
During the Assembly, UN Environment’s Faith for Earth Initiative held a week-long convening. Parliament Trustee and Climate Action Task Force founding member Kusumita Pedersen presented on the Parliament’s role as a founding member of the Interfaith Rainforest Initiative. She also discussed the theological underpinnings of climate commitments. Joshua Basofin, Director of Climate Action, discussed the importance of commitments as a tool for galvanizing and coordinating action on climate change in faith communities. He also gave a synopsis of the soon-to-launch Climate Commitments Project web hub, which will house our virtual tools.
The Parliament’s status as an accredited organization to UN Environment has allowed us to expand the international scope of our Climate Action Program. During the week-long Assembly, we forged partnerships across continents, found areas of synergy with new interfaith partners, and rededicated ourselves to our mission of becoming a global hub for interfaith collaboration on climate change. We look forward to sharing new developments with you as our international work progresses.

[1] “UN Environment Assembly and Governing Council” UN Environment [Online] Available: http://web.unep.org/environmentassembly/un-environment-assembly-and-gove…