Chapter 8: Engaging Religion in the Quest for a Sustainable World

Gary Gardner

Spiritual traditions--from large, centralized religions to local tribal spiritual authorities--are beginning to devote energy to building just and environmentally healthy societies. Worldwide, the major faiths are issuing declarations, advocating for new national policies, and designing educational activities in support of a sustainable world--sometimes in partnership with the secular environmental community.

Religious institutions bring at least five strong assets to the effort to build a sustainable world: the capacity to shape worldviews, moral authority, a large base of adherents, significant material resources, and community building capacity.

While the religious and scientific communities have historically diverged and have been suspicious of each other, issues like deforestation, climate change, and poverty have led religious and environmental communities to appreciate their common interest in combating such problems. This trend is hopeful and could represent the budding emergence of a powerful new alliance for sustainability.

As many religions begin to show interest in building a sustainable world, secular advocates of sustainability are becoming somewhat more receptive to spiritual appeals. This openness could reintroduce a passionate voice to the environmental movement that would build a spiritual/emotional connection between the public and the natural environment.

• The Potential Power of Engaged Religion
• Cooperation and Caution
• The Environment as Sacred Ground
• Ethical Consumption
• Accelerating Engagement