Iraq marsh
The marshes of southern Iraq are now cracked and arid because of extreme temperatures, saltwater intrustion and water loss. (John Wreford Getty Images/iStockphoto)
A United Methodist Insight Column
The Bible cautions us against attempting to divine the future, lest we try to take on powers that aren’t rightfully ours. But scripture also urges us to consider the consequences of our actions, which is what faith-based activists also are advocating in the build-up to COP26, the United Nations conference on the worldwide climate emergency slated Oct. 31-Nov. 11 in Glasgow, Scotland.
Conditions in the cradle of civilization, Iraq, offer us a frightening glimpse into the future that is upon us now, according to a feature in The Washington Post (subscription required). From the article by Louisa Loveluck and Mustafa Salim with photos by Emilienne Malfatto:
“Temperatures in Iraq topped a record 125 degrees this summer with aid groups warning that drought was limiting access to food, water and electricity for 12 million people here and in neighboring Syria. With Iraq warming faster than much of the globe, this is a glimpse of the world’s future.”
There’s a poetic tragedy to what’s happening in Iraq, historically known as Mesopotamia, the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers where human civilization is thought to have begun. The ancients located the biblical Garden of Eden here, but now the land is being poisoned by saltwater intrusion and water grows ever scarcer as temperatures rise. If we needed a concrete vision of what life on Earth will be like unless we take immediate action, it can be seen in southern Iraq.
Other accounts of what’s at stake from global scorching:
From NPR: “A new report from the medical journal The Lancet finds that human-caused climate change is worsening human health in just about every measurable way, and world leaders are missing an opportunity to address it,” writes Nathan Rott. Two observations:
“Climate-fueled extreme weather is killing people across the U.S. and around the globe. Climate change is already directly affecting hundreds of millions of people around the planet.
“Urgent action is needed to ‘ensure a more suitable future.’ Without rapid reductions in climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions, the planet is expected to warm to a point where large parts of it become barely habitable, with seas overtaking cities and devastating natural disasters becoming commonplace.”
Frighteningly, NPR also reports, “Despite climate change promises, governments plan to ramp up fossil fuel production”. Jaclyn Diaz writes: “Despite lofty commitments by governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, they are still planning to extract huge amounts of energy from fossil fuels in the coming years, according to a new report from the United Nations.
The report published Wednesday details how the world's largest fossil fuel producers plan to carry on using coal, gas, and oil — despite promises made under the 2015 Paris Agreement to limit global warming.
“The world's governments plan to produce more than double the amount of fossil fuels in 2030, with just a modest decrease in coal production. That's contrary to promises to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, and 45% more than what would be consistent with warming of 2 degrees, according to the report.
A recent study showed the current rate of warning and policies that fail to address needed cuts in pollution, climate events like heat waves will happen more often, be stronger, and last longer — posing a serious risk to younger generations. Other climate events like flooding and wildfires are more likely to happen, as well.”
Pandemic effects compounding
NPR seems to be on top of the game this week in crisis reporting both on climate and the coronavirus pandemic. Two other articles worthy of note for United Methodists’ prayers and actions:
“Pediatricians are urgently warning that the mental health crisis rising among American children has swelled into a national emergency. Three pediatric health organizations say that “soaring” rates of depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation among kids stem from pandemic stress and ongoing struggles for racial justice. As with many health crises, children of color are particularly affected.”
“Helping people pay their rent and avoid eviction helps stop the pandemic from spreading. When people lose housing, they tend to move in with extended family or others. Those crowded living conditions help the coronavirus circulate faster.”
What kind of ministries do these notes inspire in your United Methodist congregation?
Encouragement from United Methodist activist
Although tempted to despair by these reports, United Methodist layman and longtime climate activist Bill McKibben writes this week in The Guardian: It’s easy to feel pessimistic about the climate. But we’ve got two big things on our side. Those two things are the “astonishing” fall in the cost of renewable energy, and equally “astonishing” growth in the size of citizens’ movements demanding action.
United Methodists Cara Fleischer from Florida, Shamiso Mupara from Zimbabwe, and Mel Caraway from Texas are among the faith-based climate activists headed to Glasgow. Cara and Mel have agreed to provide Insight readers with firsthand reports from the event. Watch for their accounts in the future.
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Cynthia B. Astle serves as Editor of United Methodist Insight, which she founded in 2011. “Crisis Watch” is part of Insight’s participation in Covering Climate Now, a worldwide collaboration of some 400-plus news outlets devoted to enhanced reporting on the climate emergency.