By Leo Dee
May 2019 was the hottest May on record in Atlanta, Georgia. And in 2017, Hurricaine Irma caused 1.5 million businesses in Georgia and Florida to lose power.
Human caused climate change is behind this strange weather pattern as carbon dioxide released from fossil fuels insulates the earth and prevents natural cooling. The excessive heat also powers a much stronger water cycle, with more water evaporating from the oceans and being dropped on land. This means that some parts of the US are experiencing excessive heat, and some are experiencing record storms and rainfall and some are experiencing both!
So, what’s the solution?
Well, part of the solution is making people aware. And that’s just what Atlanta’s religious seminaries are doing. Columbia Theological Seminary is teaching its students about sustainability and has dedicated half of its campus garden to immigrants who are invited to grow their crops there! And the Candler School of Theology teaches “The Bible and Care of the Earth” and about the ecological dimensions of a Christian life.
Training religious leaders who will inspire their communities, in the future, with the importance of living a life that respects the world and climate, is an important step towards solving the climate crisis.
We are grateful for their initiative!
