Jesuit staff walk to COP26

Dr Ciara Murphy, Environmental Policy Advocate at the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice, arrived in Glasgow on 6 November 2021 after taking part in the Jesuit Missions COP26 Pilgrimage from Edinburgh.

The pilgrimage helped Jesuits and their Partners in Mission to advocate for climate justice, while the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) summit takes place in Glasgow from 1 to 12 November. It culminated in joining the COP26 Global Day of Climate Justice attended by up to 100,000 people. The Jesuit Centre are keeping regular diaries on the COP26 summit events. Click here to read the pilgrimage diary ».

Below, Dr Ciara Murphy and Martina Madden (Communications Coordinator with the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice and IJI) express their hopes and expectations for the COP26 summit. They also look forward to collaborating with other Jesuit organisations and faith groups throughout the world.

The summit’s stated aim is to bring parties together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. According to Murphy and Madden, “The timing of this conference is crucially important, set against all indicators that time is running out for effective climate action”.

The Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice (and Irish Jesuits International) will be in Glasgow during the summit from 3 November where they will participate, observe and report on events there.

“While there, we will collaborate with other Jesuit organisations including Jesuit Missions UK and Ecojesuit, with Stop Climate Chaos, and with other faith groups, and will focus on events of particular interest to the work of the JCFJ and IJI.”

The scale and importance of the summit mean that daily reports from the main events in the ‘Blue Zone’ will be available on all major news outlets, as access is limited to media outlets and organisations who have received UN clearance. Events in the adjacent ‘Green Zone’ by NGOs, activist groups and others are available to view live on the COP26 YouTube Channel.

Murphy and Madden continue: “JCFJ will share a unique perspective of the summit from the events that we attend or are part of, insights from the people we meet, and updates of our work alongside other Jesuit organisations”.

If people are interested in their vignettes from COP26, follow them on Twitter @JCFJustice where they will post all of the updates and links to articles on their website. Irish Jesuits International news will be shared on their Twitter profile @IrishJesuitsInt

“We hope that COP26 will mark a turning point for climate action. We know you do too.”