CHURCH leaders in Latin America have delivered an urgent message to the Brazilian government on the plight of the Amazon rainforest. The COP30 climate talks are to be held in Brazil this year.
Nearly 50 church leaders met in Brasilia last week to draw up a “Call to Action towards COP30”, which was presented to the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, Marina Silva.
“Our territories, understood by us as sacred, are being destroyed,” the Call to Action reads. “We witness the destruction of the Amazon, other ecosystems, and the people who live there, caused by large-scale agriculture, mining, and fossil-fuel extraction.”
Brazil has recently been criticised for bulldozing parts of the rainforest as part of road-building plans to ensure that the Amazon city of Belém can host the summit. The Brazilian President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has also recently approved new oil exploration at the mouth of the Amazon river.
The call refers to the persecution of environmental and human-rights defenders, and urges governments to bring concrete plans to the November summit. The text reads: “We call for commitments at COP30 for the transition to 100% renewable energy and the progressive elimination of fossil-fuel subsidies, repurposing them towards sustainable development.”
The Presiding Bishop of the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil, the Most Revd Marinez Bassotto, speaking at the opening service in the Cathedral of the Resurrection, Brasilia, emphasised the part played by hope in mobilising faith communities to combat the climate crisis.
“This hope is alive, keeps us moving, and compels us to act today. Waiting for tomorrow drives us to fight now. For those who believe, hope is a verb — it becomes action,” she said. “It should awaken in us an awareness of the deep interconnectedness of all creation, a reciprocal interdependence. This, in turn, must inspire us to an attitude of solidarity and care — a stance that reveals us as children of God.”
Representatives of Indigenous Amazon communities also participated. Jocabed Solano, who serves on the World Council of Churches’ Commission on Climate Justice and Sustainability, said that the Church had a duty to speak up for them.
He said: “We especially recognise the role of Indigenous peoples, who have lived in the Amazon for millennia, caring for the ecosystem and passing down knowledge through generations to preserve their home. The Church, in its commitment to environmental and social justice, must firmly support these communities in their struggle to defend their territories, and acknowledge their invaluable contribution to the planet.”