November 2014
The President
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
Thank you for all you do for us and for our country. Yours must be one of the most difficult jobs in the world! We are aware that varying pressures are brought upon you, especially in relation to the issue of this letter - climate change, or global warming.
Many of us have children and, like you, we are concerned about their future. We hope theirs will be at least as good - full of wonderment and the beauty of creation - as ours has been.
While we recognize the enormous power of hope and prayer, we also understand that bold action is essential if we are to avert unfathomable climate chaos. We know from observing the climate changes happening around us, and by reading scientific reports and global assessments, that we are already in trouble, with even greater trouble for the planet looming ahead if we don’t act now.
We therefore urge you, Mr. President, to honor your campaign commitment to make climate change one of the top three priorities of your second term. Specifically, we call upon you to take the following actions:
At The G20 Summit in Brisbane, Australia (November 15 - 16, 2014), insist that major climate change initiatives be on the agenda. The United States must impress upon all nations the need to move toward clean, renewable energy – with Australia urged to end its export of cheap coal and, as has been suggested by Australian religious leaders in their open letter to Prime Minister Tony Abbott, there must be full support for carbon pricing.
As you prepare for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Lima, Peru (December 1-12, 2014), we urge you to open discussion and negotiate to:
At the 2015 UN Climate Change Conference in Paris, offer a dramatic United States proposal requiring:
Time is short, but global momentum and pressure support our request for bold US action, as evidenced by the more than 400,000 people who participated in the People’s Climate March on September 21st in New York City, and the thousands who participated in actions world-wide.
We look to you, Mr. President to provide courageous leadership - both at home and abroad - in dealing with the climate crisis. If we in the United States will act quickly to reverse our climate-change producing practices - by leaving fossilized carbon in the ground, encouraging the technology sector to maximize energy efficiency, and ensuring we all live more sustainably – then other countries will surely follow.
Thank you for bringing to bear the enormous power of your office to effect the change so urgently needed to protect all life on our beloved planet. Our fervent, hope-filled prayers are with you, and we pledge our full support in working with you to achieve that end.
Most Respectfully,
The Steering Committee
Interfaith Moral Action on Climate
And on behalf others appealing for climate justice
The President
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
Thank you for all you do for us and for our country. Yours must be one of the most difficult jobs in the world! We are aware that varying pressures are brought upon you, especially in relation to the issue of this letter - climate change, or global warming.
Many of us have children and, like you, we are concerned about their future. We hope theirs will be at least as good - full of wonderment and the beauty of creation - as ours has been.
While we recognize the enormous power of hope and prayer, we also understand that bold action is essential if we are to avert unfathomable climate chaos. We know from observing the climate changes happening around us, and by reading scientific reports and global assessments, that we are already in trouble, with even greater trouble for the planet looming ahead if we don’t act now.
We therefore urge you, Mr. President, to honor your campaign commitment to make climate change one of the top three priorities of your second term. Specifically, we call upon you to take the following actions:
At The G20 Summit in Brisbane, Australia (November 15 - 16, 2014), insist that major climate change initiatives be on the agenda. The United States must impress upon all nations the need to move toward clean, renewable energy – with Australia urged to end its export of cheap coal and, as has been suggested by Australian religious leaders in their open letter to Prime Minister Tony Abbott, there must be full support for carbon pricing.
As you prepare for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Lima, Peru (December 1-12, 2014), we urge you to open discussion and negotiate to:
- Implement drastic reductions in fossil fuel usage, including natural gas, and end nuclear power
- Provide funding for incentives and technology transfer to developing, least -developed and the Small Island Developing States for the installation of renewable energy
- Enact substantial, effective and enforceable penalties on countries that continue to burn fossil fuels, putting us all at risk and threatening our health by causing loss of species, destruction of habitats, ocean acidification, drought, flooding, forest fires, melting ocean and land ice, rising sea levels, loss of potable water, degradation of agricultural lands, melting of permafrost and destruction of forests.
At the 2015 UN Climate Change Conference in Paris, offer a dramatic United States proposal requiring:
- Reductions in greenhouse gas emissions to levels needed in order to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees C or less
- Adaptation and resilience funding to vulnerable communities
- Penalties for violators of the legally binding agreement.
Time is short, but global momentum and pressure support our request for bold US action, as evidenced by the more than 400,000 people who participated in the People’s Climate March on September 21st in New York City, and the thousands who participated in actions world-wide.
We look to you, Mr. President to provide courageous leadership - both at home and abroad - in dealing with the climate crisis. If we in the United States will act quickly to reverse our climate-change producing practices - by leaving fossilized carbon in the ground, encouraging the technology sector to maximize energy efficiency, and ensuring we all live more sustainably – then other countries will surely follow.
Thank you for bringing to bear the enormous power of your office to effect the change so urgently needed to protect all life on our beloved planet. Our fervent, hope-filled prayers are with you, and we pledge our full support in working with you to achieve that end.
Most Respectfully,
The Steering Committee
Interfaith Moral Action on Climate
And on behalf others appealing for climate justice