Baha'i News: Network aims to make pilgrimage a greener experience

From Baha’i World News Service - Subscribe <bwns-subscribe@bwc.org>
Date Thu, 24 Nov 2011 08:58:17 +0000

Baha'i World News Service
http://news.bahai.org
For further information, contact news@bahai.org


Network aims to make pilgrimage a greener experience
http://news.bahai.org/story/868


ASSISI, Italy, 24 November 2011 (BWNS) – An estimated 100 million people make 
some kind of pilgrimage every year, some for a few hours, others for days or 
months. 

To address the environmental impact of these journeys – and to assist the 
world's holy places to become as environmentally sustainable as possible – a 
new network has been launched which brings together pilgrim sites from 10 faith 
traditions.

They range from the Sikh Golden Temple in Amritsar, India, and the Armenian 
Orthodox holy city of Etchmiadzin, to Jerusalem – a major pilgrimage 
destination for the Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths. 

The Baha'i World Centre – and the city of Haifa, Israel, where it is located – 
have also become founding members of the Green Pilgrimage Network. Last year 
alone, the Baha'i holy places attracted around 750,000 pilgrims and visitors.

"The Green Pilgrimage Network will ask the faithful to live, during the most 
intense of religious experiences, in a faith-consistent way," said Martin 
Palmer, Secretary-General of the Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC), 
which has established the Network in association with WWF.

"To travel to a holy place in such a way as to treat the whole world as sacred 
is to be a true pilgrim," said Mr. Palmer.

The Network was launched in the presence of Her Royal Highness Princess Michael 
of Kent at the Sacred Land celebration, held in Assisi from 31 October to 2 
November. The event also marked 25 years of religious action on the environment 
since the first Assisi gathering in 1986 when faith leaders were invited to 
consider how their beliefs, practices and teachings could help protect the 
environment. 

This year, some 90 delegates from around the world – representing all the major 
faiths – took part in a two-day conference which examined the way forward for 
religion and environmentalism, and the Green Pilgrimage Network.

The Baha'i International Community was represented at the event by Jalal 
Hatami, its Deputy Secretary-General. 

"The Baha'i World Centre is discussing with the authorities in Haifa how to 
make the city more ecological," said Mr. Hatami. "This includes promoting the 
use of public transport among all citizens and greener practices in the 
hospitality sector, improving the management of energy and water, and 
encouraging more recycling and waste reduction."

Mr. Hatami described hearing about the various initiatives already under way in 
various holy cities as "very inspiring."

"It demonstrated that the faith communities have much to say about the 
environment and can really make an impact if they work towards common goals," 
he said.









To read the article online and view photographs, go to:
http://news.bahai.org/story/868

________________________________________________

Copyright 2011 by the Baha'i World News Service. Stories and photographs 
produced by the Baha'i World News Service may be freely reprinted, re-emailed, 
re-posted to the World Wide Web and otherwise reproduced by any individual or 
organization as long as they are attributed to the Baha'i World News Service. 
For more information, go to http://news.bahai.org/terms-of-use/