wfn.org | Moderator Adds Her Name to Church Leaders' Letter in Copenhagen

["Broadhurst, Tom" <tbroadhu@united-church.ca>]

News Release -- Thursday, December 17, 2009

Moderator Adds Her Name to Church Leaders' Letter in Co penhagen

Toronto: On Tuesday evening, The United Church of Canada' s Moderator,
Mardi Tindal, joined with other leaders of churches and  international
church organizations in sending a message to climate chan ge negotiators
in Copenhagen, imploring them to "not be afraid."

The letter, which was signed by Archbishop Desmond Tutu,  the incoming
and outgoing general secretaries of the World Council of  Churches, as
well as church leaders from Europe, North America, and  the Pacific, says
the negotiations are at a crucial stage and negotiators  need to be
steadfast to "act now."

The message also called on the negotiators to keep in  mind the
historical responsibility of the industrialized countries in  climate
justice. "At this crucial stage in the negotiations we  would like to
reiterate our firm conviction that there is an undeniable  historical
responsibility on the part of the industrialized countries  for the
climate change crisis that we currently face."

Commenting on the church leaders' call for initiatives to  be taken by
both developed and developing countries, Tindal said. "We  are, as Tutu
said in the city square at noon on Sunday, all member s of the same
family-and the whole family is feeling the effects of c limate
change-though some more dramatically than others."

The complete text of the church leaders' letter can be  found at:

http://www.oikoumene.org/en/resources/documents/wcc-programmes/justice-d
iakonia-and-responsibility-for-creation/climate-change-water/message-to-
unfccc-cop-15-negotiators.html

>For more information:
>Mary-Frances Denis
>Program Coordinator, Media and Public Relations
>The United Church of Canada
>Tel: 416-231-7680 ext. 2016
>Toll-free: 1-800-268-3781 ext. 2016
>E-mail: mdenis@united-church.ca

>-30-