Erasmus+ – project
Revd Dr Rachele (Evie) Vernon O’Brien and Rebecca Boardman are Theological Advisor and Programmes Manager for the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel).
Founded in 1701, USPG partners churches and communities worldwide in God’s mission to enliven faith, strengthen relationships, unlock potential and champion justice. We believe that ecological justice and our relationship with the world- and with each other- are critical as we look to engage in mission today.
Article in the Church Times on climate change and the global church: www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2018/16-march/features/features/a-cross-border-crisis
Faith in a Changing Climate – USPG resource: www.uspg.org.uk/docstore/175.pdf
Evie (left) is Jamaican by birth; British by naturalisation. Rebecca (right) is British. Both live in the UK.
Both Jamaica and the UK are island nations and face similar challenges including deforestation, shrinking bio-diversity, coastal erosion and major air, land and water pollution.
According to a State of Nature report from 2016 more than one in 10 of the UK’s wildlife species are threatened with extinction, and since 1970 there has been a two-thirds decline of the most endangered species. The UK is “among the most nature-depleted countries in the world” with most of the country having passed the threshold so that “ecosystems may no longer reliably meet society’s needs”. Historic and current trends of deforestation and industrialisation along with increasing demands from a growing population (including housing) intensifies pressure on the natural environment. The report highlights the destructive impact of intensive farming, urbanisation and climate change on the UK.