We call on world leaders to act urgently and courageously for an ambitious Paris Agreement implementation that protects God’s creation and people. As all of us are impacted, so must we all be responsible for addressing this global challenge.
— U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and Catholic Relief Services COP 30 message
Write Letter to Editor Calling for Action
This week official delegations from 193 countries plus the European Union are gathered in the Amazon rainforest in Brazil for the latest round of negotiations to address the climate crisis. The U.S. government is conspicuously absent.
As you hear news from COP 30, the 30th meeting of countries participating in the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, please consider writing a letter to the editor (LtE) of your local newspaper expressing concern that the federal government has stepped away from engaging on this critical issue on the international stage. Such letters will be especially important later this week when we hear of outcomes from the conference.
You may find talking points attached, and you may find our video guide to writing an LtE from Advocacy Amplified! helpful.
When you write a letter to the editor, please send a copy of what you write to justice@sistersofmercy.org, and let us know where you submitted it for publication. If your letter does get published, please send us a web link or photo/scan of a clipping with the date.
Background
One of President Trump’s first actions of his second term was to announce that he was pulling the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement, the landmark decision by countries around the world in 2015 to aim to keep global warming “well below” 2 degrees Celsius.
While this U.S. withdrawal from the agreement won’t be complete until early next year, the Trump Administration opted not to participate in COP 30, which means we have no official negotiating team at the talks. More than two dozen governors and mayors were registered to attend as observers; some members of Congress had been planning to attend but had to cancel due to government shutdown negotiations and votes.
Mercy Sister Rosita Sidasmed is representing the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas at the talks. As executive secretary of the ecclesial network of the Gran Chaco and Aguani Aquifer in South America, she has been bringing the voices of her region to educational and advocacy forums. You may read about her experience at COP here.
Yeb Sano, chair of the board of the Laudato Si Movement who lives in the Philippines, gave a very moving interview with Democracy Now. He talked about the major typhoons devastating communities in his country and lamented the lack of progress over the years to limit such harms from climate change.
Writing a Letter to the Editor on COP 30
Here are some points for you to consider when responding to news coverage of COP 30. It’s best to reference a specific article in the newspaper, so please write a message that responds to and expands on what you have read. Also, please check your newspaper’s guidelines for length of letters to the editor; typically they are no more than 250 words.
- It’s a shame that the U.S. was not represented in the official negotiations at COP 30
- The U.S., as the largest historic emitter of greenhouse gas, has a moral obligation to work with other countries to limit the harms of climate change on the most vulnerable communities
- The U.S. risks getting left behind as the rest of the world shifts to a renewable energy economy
- Recent devastating storms in Jamaica and the Philippines show the importance of addressing climate change, which has been shown to contribute to the frequency and strength of such disasters
- It is important to provide funding and technical expertise to communities most prone to devastating storms, extreme heat and drought so that they can adapt to a changing climate
- Solutions to climate change must respond to the needs of vulnerable communities, including Indigenous communities located near deposits of minerals sought after for renewable energy technology and military uses
You may find helpful a 30-minute video on writing letters to the editor, with suggestions from the Sisters of Mercy’s communications officer, Cathleen Farrell.