Religious groups rally around U.N. climate talks in Warsaw
Eric J. Lyman | Nov 22, 2013
WARSAW, Poland (RNS) The latest United Nations climate summit got off to an unusually emotional start when Yeb Sano, the head delegate from the Philippines, issued a tearful plea at the opening plenary.
With his country ravaged by Typhoon Haiyan — the kind of extreme weather that experts say is becoming more common due to climate change — Sano choked back tears as he announced he would fast in solidarity for his countrymen left without food.
Sano said on Nov. 11 he would refrain from eating during the conference unless important progress was made. Sano’s gesture has so far failed to trigger much of a change in the entrenched negotiations, and with talks expected to stretch into the weekend, he is still on his hunger strike.
Even so, Sano’s act helped galvanize support from religious leaders: former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams; Olaf Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches; Munib A. Younan, president of the Lutheran World Federation; and numerous interfaith groups have all joined the fast and called on their supporters to join as well.
http://www.religionnews.com/2013/11/22/religious-groups-rally-around-u-n-climate-talks-warsaw/
