Thanks to all of you who have contributed thoughtful comments about our response to climate change. An important aspect of the problem that we Christians have to be aware of is that its fundamentally a matter of social justice. The rich, industrialised countries, who have contributed the most to global warming, will be the last to feel its effects. The poorest, least industrialised countries, are already experiencing devastating effects from relatively minor increases in temperature and sea levels. The most obvious example is Bangladesh. The world's most densely populated country (155 million people in an area two thirds the size of Victoria)is also one of the world's poorest and is extremely vulnerable to global warming. Bangladesh is under siege from all sides. Increased ice-melt from the Himalayas is causing massive erosion of its soil, every centimetre increase in sea level means salt creeping into its underground water and rice paddies as well as making low-lying areas more susceptible to inundation by storm surges. On top of this global warming is increasing the frequency and intensity of tropical storms making such inundations more likely. Climate change is not just an issue for us and our grandchildren. We have to see it as an immediate threat to the poorest and most vulnerable people of the world. What is required of Christian people at such a time?
P.S. A quick net search will reveal plenty of information on these issues. You might like to check out
http://www.theage.com.au/world/bangladeshs-global-warning-20081010-4yb8.html?page=-1
or http://politics.usnews.com/news/energy/articles/2009/03/26/how-global-warming-threatens-millions-in-bangladesh.html
