Calling for effective global governance to protect the climate

As part of COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, Globethics was represented at a Faith Pavilion session entitled "Encouraging Sustainable Lifestyles through Faith." Organised by the Faith for Earth Coalition and GO4SDGs, the panel focused on exploring the ethics underpinning sustainable lifestyles, featuring discussions with distinguished speakers from various faith-based and sustainability-focused organisations, including Globethics Vice President and East Asia Pacific Regional Consul Dicky Sofjan.

A key takeaway from the session was the need to allow nature to heal, drawing parallels to the COVID-19 pandemic when the planet showed signs of regeneration in the absence of human activity.

Running from 12 to 22 November 2024, the Faith Pavilion built on the momentum of its inaugural edition at COP28, hosted last year in the United Arab Emirates, where Globethics organised a panel on water ethics.

In the midst of the more than 40 discussion sessions on diverse themes around climate justice, sustainability and interfaith collaboration, on 18 November, a coalition of over 400 faith-based organisations presented an interfaith appeal for global climate governance entitled: "Protecting Our Common Climate System: Earth Governance for a Sustainable Future".

Commenting on the appeal, Dicky Sofjan, who is Core Doctoral Faculty at the Indonesian Consortium for Religious Studies (ICRS) in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, emphasised the spiritual and ethical dimensions of the multidimensional ecological crisis that we are experiencing. He highlighted humanity’s duty as stewards of the Earth, warning that current unsustainable practices threaten environmental collapse and stressing the urgency for collaborative action across borders to counter "hubris and mayhem" and restore balance. His statement underscored how faith traditions call for stewardship and responsibility towards the planet.

The appeal urges actions such as adopting a Fossil Fuel Treaty, recognising ecocide as an international crime, and creating a UN Earth System Council. It emphasises shared spiritual principles like justice, equity, and guardianship, essential for addressing the climate emergency.

This interfaith call to action at COP 29 seeks to inspire global leaders and communities to prioritise collective environmental stewardship over short-term political and economic goals.