COP26 Pledge in Glasgow, Scotland, UK
By IEF Maureen Sier
Presented at the IEF 29th Annual Conference
Presented at the IEF 29th Annual Conference
Link to Eco-pledge: Eco-Pledge (Glasgow Bahá'Ãs), an online resource to support sustainable action
The project began with the COP26 coming to Glasgow and the Bahá'à community of Glasgow being involved in an Interfaith Service which took place in George Square in Glasgow. This service involved the religious leaders of Scotland sharing spiritual prayers and quotes for the success of the COP. It was during COVID, but despite this, 500 people joined in person at the square and over 5,000 joined online. The event was organised by Interfaith Scotland and Interfaith Glasgow.
In the build up to COP26, the Bahá'à community of Glasgow organised online reflections on the planet and on loving and taking care of it. These reflections were open to everyone. There was a core group of Bahá'Ãs organising these reflections, and they were very well attended on a regular basis for about six months pre-COP.
One of the best outcomes of the reflections was the decision to create an Eco Pledge to encourage the Bahá'Ãs and their friends to implement some of the necessary steps for effective action to support living a sustainable and green lifestyle. There were 19 pledges to reflect the 19 months in a Bahá'à year, each suggesting a practical and achievable action to reduce one's environmental footprint, such as checking whether investments, savings, and pensions are ethical; and, if possible, only buying — in moderation — high-quality durable products (better still if they are repairable and/or second-hand).
It was extremely heart-warming that the Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'Ãs of Glasgow decided that a pledge would be read out at every Feast and that the community would do their best in the following month to implement the eco action/pledge.
The Bahá'à community learned that it can effectively become involved both in public discourse around the climate and in taking simple but effective steps to implement the outcome of the discourse. The reflection space was a safe space for wonderful discussions around climate and sustainability, and it enabled the social action (i.e., Eco Pledge) to be created because a number of those involved were experts or had a deep and genuine interest in the climate crisis. It was also an excellent learning experience showing that when the institutions of the Bahá'à Faith are supportive of a project, the outreach and educational opportunities are much wider than just the sum of the individuals taking part in the initial project.