Duke Divinity School hosts interfaith retreat to address 'global moral crisis' of climate change
Duke collaborated with a group called Faith For Our Planet to combine faith and environmental activism.
Sessions included 'Incorporating climate narratives in religious sermons,' 'Sikh Action on Climate Change,' and 'Championing youth inclusion on environmental decision making.'
Duke University in Durham, North Carolina recently held a week-long retreat that focused on incorporating spiritual communities to combat climate change.
Duke Divinity School, in collaboration with an organization specializing in faith-based climate activism, taught attendees how to use “their faith traditions to address the challenges of Earth’s changing climate” during the social justice conference.
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“Climate change is a global moral crisis at heart and should be studied and imagined as such by those who are working to make significant sustained solutions to this monumental challenge that humanity faces,“ event co-organizer and Duke Divinity School Professor Abdullah Antepli told Duke Today.
“Through a series of individual and group activities, more than two dozen fellows from around the world shared their thoughts and their sacred texts, prayed together, and learned from others who have brought faith into environmental activism,” according to Duke Today.
Faith For Our Planet (FFOP) partnered with the school to facilitate the event from Jan. 8 - 14. The organization “bridges the gap among religious leaders, policy experts, environmentalists, and scientists from various backgrounds to fight climate change together.”
According to its website, FFOP is “is seeded by Muslim World League, one of of [sic] the largest non-governmental Islamic organizations in the world.”
Selected fellows from around the globe “met with Duke faculty from divinity and policy, nursing and medicine, the Nicholas School and Institute, and the Fuqua School of Business and received prayers from their fellows of the Buddhist, Taoist, Hindu and Sikh faiths.”
Fellows reportedly attended event sessions like, “Incorporating climate narratives in religious sermons,” “Sikh Action on Climate Change,” “Championing youth inclusion on environmental decision making,” and “E-Advocacy Training by the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers.” The fellows included “elected representatives, faith leaders, eco-activists, climate entrepreneurs, sustainability experts, researchers, and policy advocates.”
The Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers, an organization that participated in the conference, hosted the E-Advocacy Training to “support fellows in utilizing online platforms to effectively disseminate advocacy messages and engage with audiences on topics relating to climate change,” according to its event recap.
In “Breaking the Climate Silence: Effective Practices for Climate Change Communication in Faith Communities,” attendees interacted with “research about climate-focused preaching and experience working with theologically-diverse faith communities” to learn “effective ways of communicating the urgent need to address climate change in our communities.”
During “Leveraging Behavioral Science for Environmental Change,” fellows also applied behavioral sciences to garner “pro-environmental attitudes.” For over two hours, they learned how to frame messages and design climate initiatives.
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In July 2023, Campus Reform reported that Duke offered workshops provided by the Center for Sexual and Gender Diversity, including “Trans 101,” “P.R.I.D.E. Training,” “Asexuality 101,” and a “Pronouns Workshop.”
Campus Reform contacted Duke University and FFOP for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
