Washington Wash-Out and the Way Ahead

By Leo Dee

Washington DC just experienced its wettest year EVER with 71 inches of rain in 2018!

Mid-May 2018 Derechos (straight damaging winds) hit hard causing over $1 billion of damage from Pennsylvania to Washington.

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.

So what’s the solution?

Well, part of the solution is making people aware. And that’s just what DC’s religious seminaries are doing. The Catholic University of America is teaching Religion and Ecology and about major religious authors who have addressed environmental degradation. The Howard Divinity School teaches about Creation Care. And, at the Wesley Theological Seminary, students can learn how to green their churches.

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!