As the UN climate summit, COP28 (30 Nov – 12 Dec 2023) commenced, Faith for the Climate launched our new workshop series within our Faiths for Climate Justice stream.

The workshops will focus on building and resourcing faith-inspired learning and actions on climate justice. They are online and free to attend, but registration is necessary because of specific participation criteria. They do not need prior or technical knowledge about climate change or climate justice, but they do require full participation, which we explain here.

The seeds for these workshops were planted back when we organised and mobilised numerous faith-inspired actions before, during and after COP26, the UN talks in Glasgow in 2021. The overwhelming feedback we got from partners, supporters and other observers was that interfaith collaboration made a powerful and unique case for a moral and ethical response to the climate crisis.

At the same time, there was growing interest within our network about what exactly climate justice meant, especially from a faith perspective.

That led us to think about offering a new series of workshops, systematically and consistently, in addition to our regular webinars and other online resources. This project has been made possible with grant funding from the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust under their Sustainable Future programme.

The initial phase of this work in late 2022 and early 2023 involved a survey of our members’ and supporters’ needs, and an analysis of other organisations’ or networks’ existing resources. We wanted to make sure we were offering something helpful and relevant that also did not duplicate the good work already being done by others.

We pilot-tested our materials in August 2023 with a diverse range of scholars, campaigners and activists working at the intersections of climate justice and/or interfaith relations.

We’ve now officially launched the workshops after incorporating their feedback. Find out more about these workshops here and spread the word/register here.

We aim to offer the same workshops regularly in 2024 and beyond – the period we have secured funding for. For those who have successfully completed these workshops, there will be opportunities for follow-up collaborations, resources, and joining an alumni community.

We will be announcing more dates in 2024 – check our website if you’re interested. We hope you’re as excited as we are and we’re looking forward to building a community of faith-inspired, grassroots champions of climate justice together.

Dr Shanon Shah, Director, Faith for the Climate, 9 Nov 2023 (updated 4 Dec)