AFRICA – Climate Change
“…there is an order in the universe which must be respected, and that the human person, endowed with the capability of choosing freely, has a grave responsibility to preserve this order for the well-being of future generations…. the ecological crisis is a moral issue.” Pope John Paul II, World Day of Peace message for 1990
Africa produces less than 4% of the world’s greenhouse gases yet nowhere else are the effects of global warming more visible. Greenhouse gases produced thousands of miles away in the Northern hemisphere are having a detrimental effect on the lives of people in Africa. Lake Chad is half the size it was 35 years ago and the Sahara desert is advancing at the rate of about six kilometers per year, chewing up twelve million hectares of land annually. Added to this is the increasing frequency of extreme weather events and climate related disasters such as floods and droughts with accompanying famine and land degradation. Millions of people are already being effected by Climate Change through the loss of land, livelihoods and homes.
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WHAT CAN WE DO We can: |
Climate change is a problem created by the industrialised, western world but it is Africa and Africans who are paying the price with their land, health and lives – this is a grave injustice.
Global Warming: What is it? What Causes it? What effects does it have? What are the solutions? Clear and brief answers to all of these questions are given on the National Geographic Website – Click here
Africa – Climate Change, SMA Justice Briefing No 22
Climate Change – Overview
Ghana – dealing with climate change
Climate change a Triple Injustice for Africa and poorer nations
Africa Europe Faith and Justice Network (AEFJN) Factsheet
See Also:
Catholic Climate Covenant
Reflection – to ponder
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