Interfaith Power & Light

A Religious Response to Global Warming

NEWS ADVISORY: Interfaith Power & Light’s Board Chair to receive Ted Turner’s Captain Planet Exemplar Award

NEWS ADVISORY                                                                      Contact: Susan Stephenson      

December 5, 2018                                                                    (415) 561-4891; (510) 484-7198

 

 

Interfaith Power & Light’s Board Chair to receive Ted Turner’s Captain Planet Exemplar Award

 

Interfaith Power & Light’s Board Chair, Rev. Dr. Gerald L. Durley is to receive Captain Planet Exemplar Award at the Captain Planet Foundation Gala on Friday, December 7, 2018 in Atlanta, GA. According to Ted Turner, Rev. Durley is receiving the award “In celebration of your commitment  to a sustainable future, the fight against climate change, and your indefatigable work to spread the message of creation care.”

 

Rev. Durley is the former Pastor of the historic Providence Missionary Baptist Church of Atlanta, where he served for nearly 25 years. Rev. Durley’s previous roles include Executive Director of the Head Start Program for Fulton and Douglas Counties, Director of the Health Promotion Resource Center at the Morehouse School of Medicine, and founder of Perspectives, International, a consortium of historically black colleges and universities. In 2011, Rev. Durley was inducted into the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame for his contributions during the civil rights movement of the 1960s.

 

Rev. Durley believes that “Climate change is a civil rights issue.  We are seeing its impacts in our own communities in the form of record-breaking temperatures, floods, droughts, hurricanes, and the list goes on and on.”

 

For over twenty-five years, Captain Planet Foundation has been activating generations of environmentally literate citizens empowered to protect and sustain the natural systems upon which all life depends. The Captain Planet Foundation invests in high-quality, solution-based projects that inspire and teach youth to become collaborators and agents of change. Awardees along with Rev. Durely are Adrian Grenier, Coda Christopherson, Chloe Mei Espinosa, Dyson Chee, Robbie Bond, and Steff McDermot.  Past honorees include President Jimmy Carter, Dr. Sylvia Earle, Ovie Mughelli,  and Dr. Jane Goodall.

 

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Interfaith Power & Light is mobilizing a religious response to global warming in congregations through the promotion of energy conservation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy.

www.interfaithpowerandlight.org

Faith Leaders Decry Environmental Regulatory Rollbacks

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 30, 2018

Interfaith Power & Light
Contact: Susan Stephenson
[email protected]
(415) 561-4891
(510) 484-7198

Faith Leaders Decry Environmental Regulatory Rollbacks

 

WASHINGTON (October 30, 2018) – Today, Interfaith Power & Light and 22 of its state affiliate organizations joined 132 organizations from a diverse set of faith backgrounds spanning 33 states in urging the Trump Administration and federal officials to reverse rollbacks of crucial environmental safeguards.

In a letter delivered to the Environmental Protection Agency Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler, Department of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, and the President, the organizations asserted: “By undermining and weakening our country’s ability to protect our environment and address climate change, the United States government has taken a backseat in this time of ecological crisis… The result is direct harm to the environment and vulnerable communities—communities that we serve and of which we are members.”

The EPA’s own projections show that rolling back methane waste prevention rules, clean car standards, and the Clean Power Plan will increase greenhouse gas and carbon pollution. As many states are still recovering from the devastation of Hurricanes Maria, Florence, and Michael, such rollbacks will inevitably exacerbate the impacts of climate change, multiplying the frequency and severity of extreme weather at home and abroad.

The anticipated rollback of existing Mercury and Air Toxic Standards will disproportionately affect vulnerable communities, pregnant women, children, and people of color, exposing them  to harmful toxins. These pollutants pose a significant threat to Americans’ well-being, as exposure increases asthma and allergy attacks as well as heart attacks. By the EPA’s own projections, the combined impact of these rollbacks could cause nearly 14,000 premature American deaths annually. These are real people’s lives that can be saved by acting now to clean up our environment.

Not only do these rollbacks exacerbate severe weather and undermine public health, they endanger and pollute the water, air, and ecosystems that we ultimately rely on and are called to protect.

As we approach the midterm elections, these communities of faith look to support leaders that will protect our common home and those who will be most harmed by its degradation. Acting responsibly to address the climate crisis should be a top priority for current and future political leaders.

“These reckless rollbacks of climate and pollution safeguards have real impacts on families and communities,” said Rev. Susan Hendershot, President of Interfaith Power & Light. “As people of faith, we are called to speak out in love and compassion on behalf of those who are most vulnerable. It is our moral duty.”

For the full letter, please click here. To learn more, please visit interfaithpowerandlight.org.

Press Release: Faith leaders condemn EPA Proposal to Roll back Methane Pollution Standards

NEWS RELEASE                                              Contact: Susan Stephenson   

September 11, 2018                                                 (415) 561-4891; (510) 484-7198

 

Faith leaders condemn EPA Proposal to Roll back Methane Pollution Standards

Today, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler proposed to weaken methane pollution standards for the oil and gas industry. These commonsense safeguards were designed to limit the release of methane pollution, a potent greenhouse gas, from oil and gas infrastructure, and also to help protect communities from other dangerous pollutants released alongside methane. Methane is leaked into the air (often wasting millions of dollars) when gas is vented and flared, and also in transport.

Rev. Susan Hendershot, President of Interfaith Power & Light, stated: “All faith traditions share a sacred calling to care for the earth and to care for those who are most vulnerable in our communities. Methane pollution causes deep and irreparable harm to God’s good Creation, polluting not only the land and the air, but also jeopardizing the health of children and those living in frontline communities. Any proposals to weaken or do away with safeguards against methane pollution are unethical and immoral.”

Methane is a significant driver of climate change, and a rollback of these critical health protections would put our families’ health at risk. This rollback marks the beginning of a two-part scheme by Wheeler and the Trump Administration to dramatically weaken standards to control dangerous pollution.

Sister Joan Brown, Executive Director New Mexico Interfaith Power & Light, said: “People of faith made thousands of comments in support of strong EPA methane standards through a long public process. Methane pollution is hurting our children in New Mexico and stealing over $250 million annually from our state budget that funds education. The droughts and fires we experienced this summer are related to methane which is a cause of climate change. This is a grave moral and ethical concern. People of faith in New Mexico will continue to work for the Common Good and our sacred creation.”

Interfaith Power & Light is mobilizing a religious response to global warming in congregations through the promotion of energy conservation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy.

www.interfaithpowerandlight.org

Press Release: New Interfaith Power & Light chairman brings civil rights legacy and passion to climate movement

NEWS  RELEASE                                                                 Contact: Susan Stephenson    

September 4, 2018                                                                      (415) 561-4891; (510) 484-7198

 

New Interfaith Power & Light chairman brings civil rights legacy and passion to climate movement

Rev. Dr. Gerald Durley, civil rights leader who worked with Martin Luther King, Jr., is named chair of nation’s largest faith-based climate organization

SAN FRANCISCO — Interfaith Power & Light (IPL) announced that Rev. Dr. Gerald Durley, pastor emeritus of Providence Baptist Church of Atlanta, Georgia, and civil rights leader, will serve as its next board chair.

“After having worked for civil rights for people of color for decades, I became aware that the biggest threat to us today is global warming and environmental devastation,” Rev. Durley said. “There are no civil rights on a dead planet,” he continued.

As an IPL board member for six years, Rev. Durley has become a well-known and sought-after speaker on the connection between social justice movements and global warming. He is passionate about engaging more people of all faiths in the climate movement. “I believe we must continue to grow this vital organization and its critical mission to mobilize a religious response to global warming and to protect God’s Creation,” said Rev. Durley.

“I also believe the environmental movement needs to be bigger and broader, and to reach more communities of color. It’s people of color who tend to be on the front lines of climate change impacts, and who bear the brunt of fossil fuel pollution. Our houses of worship are the natural place to talk with people about this. We need people of faith to understand this issue and to advocate for equitable solutions—such as a rapid transition to renewable energy and more access to clean energy jobs” Rev. Durley continued.

IPL has an unparalleled track record of educating millions of “people in the pews” about the call to care for Creation and mobilizing them to action, achieving clean energy policy wins from the local to international level. Mobilizing people of faith to be advocates for climate protection is more important than ever, as the Trump administration continues its reckless attempts to roll back urgently needed climate policies.

“Rev. Durley has a long history of advocating for justice, and we are honored to have him serve as our board chair. His deeply-held conviction that climate change is a moral issue, and his willingness to connect with people of faith about how caring for our neighbors is intimately connected to how we care for Creation, makes him a champion in working for the lasting changes that we so desperately need,” said IPL President Rev. Susan Hendershot.

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Interfaith Power & Light is mobilizing a religious response to global warming in congregations through the promotion of energy conservation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy.

www.interfaithpowerandlight.org

To set up an interview with Rev. Durley, please contact Susan Stephenson at [email protected] or call (415) 561-4891 ext. 17. Rev. Durley will be in San Francisco September 12-14 for events around the Global Climate Action Summit.

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San Francisco, CA 94104
415-561-4891

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