Ecological justice
“I used to think that the top environmental problems were biodiversity loss,
ecosystem collapse and climate change. I thought that thirty years of good
science could address these problems. I was wrong. The top environmental
problems are selfishness, greed and apathy, and to deal with these we need
a cultural and spiritual transformation. And we scientists don’t know how to do
that.”
— Gus Speth, author and top U.S. advisor on climate change
ecosystem collapse and climate change. I thought that thirty years of good
science could address these problems. I was wrong. The top environmental
problems are selfishness, greed and apathy, and to deal with these we need
a cultural and spiritual transformation. And we scientists don’t know how to do
that.”
— Gus Speth, author and top U.S. advisor on climate change
This quote played a central role in my contribution during a meeting on the
topic of Ecological Justice organized by Kerk in Aktie (Church in Action) from
the PKN (Reformed) Churches. This is a quote from a non-believing scientist,
and it is absolutely true. As Christians, we know this all too well. Jesus
himself had a lot to say about justice, and as followers of Christ, we are called
to uphold and defend justice, including ecological justice.
A delegation from the GKS (Reformed) Churches from Sumba, Indonesia, was present
during our meeting and both speakers from the GKS and from the PKN
(Reformed) Churches in the Netherlands spoke on Ecological Justice in their
respective contexts and how they were dealing with that. Both situations are
complex and in many ways it is hard to compare the situation in Sumba with
that in the Netherlands, yet I saw a few common denominators.
Both situations are about life attitudes, personal choices and an unjust
system in which we all live and work. At its core, it is about greed, selfishness
and apathy. And those who suffer the most from this are ordinary farmers and
citizens and God's creation that we all depend upon.
To change that, you have to start with yourself, with awareness and with
repentance. That is why a call was made from the Sumba churches to “live
simply, live from enough". Beginning with ourselves, we as individuals and as
a church can change the unjust systems in our respective churches and
countries, and this will also bring more ecological justice.
topic of Ecological Justice organized by Kerk in Aktie (Church in Action) from
the PKN (Reformed) Churches. This is a quote from a non-believing scientist,
and it is absolutely true. As Christians, we know this all too well. Jesus
himself had a lot to say about justice, and as followers of Christ, we are called
to uphold and defend justice, including ecological justice.
A delegation from the GKS (Reformed) Churches from Sumba, Indonesia, was present
during our meeting and both speakers from the GKS and from the PKN
(Reformed) Churches in the Netherlands spoke on Ecological Justice in their
respective contexts and how they were dealing with that. Both situations are
complex and in many ways it is hard to compare the situation in Sumba with
that in the Netherlands, yet I saw a few common denominators.
Both situations are about life attitudes, personal choices and an unjust
system in which we all live and work. At its core, it is about greed, selfishness
and apathy. And those who suffer the most from this are ordinary farmers and
citizens and God's creation that we all depend upon.
To change that, you have to start with yourself, with awareness and with
repentance. That is why a call was made from the Sumba churches to “live
simply, live from enough". Beginning with ourselves, we as individuals and as
a church can change the unjust systems in our respective churches and
countries, and this will also bring more ecological justice.
