Climate change a moral issue

To the editor:

The week of Sept. 20-26 has been called “A Week of Moral Action” for real action on climate change. Interfaith gatherings are taking place at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., at the United Nations here in New York and in many houses of worship. We agree that the call for action on the climate is an urgent moral issue.

Global greenhouse gas emissions from industry and our modern lifestyles are causing rapid global warming and threatening life on Earth as we know it. It’s a worldwide problem. So it will take worldwide agreement to control and reduce these emissions. Without decisive intervention now, scientists forecast catastrophic consequences. For years, the U.N. has been playing a vital role in bringing governments together to agree how to tackle climate change. But so far, reaching agreement has been unsuccessful; politicians have overlooked our shared responsibility to protect our children, our most vulnerable global neighbors and ensure sustainability for life on earth.  Senior U.N. Climate Change Official Christiana Figueres believes there still is hope to reach meaningful agreement for climate action if the moral call for action is loud enough. By adding your name at www.ourvoices.net, you can show your love and concern for our children and grandchildren’s futures… for the most vulnerable who are already suffering under climate change…

Ms. Figueres said, “The latest science urges us to act decisively and speedily to avert the worst impacts of climate change. It is a window of opportunity we cannot afford to ignore.” 

Together we can urge our leaders to take vital action to implement the solutions that already exist before it’s too late. 

Rabbi Linda Shriner-Cahn of Congregation Tehillah, Marcella L. Bulmaster-Day, Anita Dutt, Alisa Eilenberg, Diane Farrell, Jack Gorman, Myra Joyce, Lynda Paull, Emily Peterson and Rachel Jacoby Rosenfield