Climate march to raise awareness of environment

Friday, Apr. 21, 2017

SALT LAKE CITY — The People’s Climate March in Utah on April 29 will be held in conjunction with similar events across the nation to raise awareness of environmental issues in the United States.

The Diocese of Salt Lake City is co-sponsoring the local march in conjunction with Interfaith Power and Light, an ecumenical organization with the goal of engaging in discussions about climate change and supporting changes that will reduce CO2 emissions, according to the Interfaith Power and Light website. 

Supporting environmentally friendly actions will make “a big impact for ensuring a livable planet for our children and future generations,” the website reads.

Jean Hill, chairperson of the diocesan Peace and Justice Commission, said that she was pleased to be extended an opportunity to support a push for better treatment of the environment in Utah and in the country as a whole. 

“With the pope’s emphasis on climate change, it’s something we need to be involved in … (we need) to be more aware just who suffers from our use of resources,” she said. “As Pope Francis said, ‘This is our common home.’ All of us, regardless of religious persuasion, are impacted by our changing climate.”

Pope Francis has spoken often on the topic of climate change. “The Earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an immense pile of filth. In many parts of the planet, the elderly lament that once beautiful landscapes are now covered with rubbish,” he said in “Laudato Si’’’ (“On Care for our Common Home”), his 2015 encyclical on the environment. 

But Pope Francis offered hope for the environment as well. “Human beings, while capable of the worst, are also capable of rising above themselves, choosing again what is good, and making a new start,” he wrote. “The climate is a common good, belonging to all and meant for all.”

Hill agrees that Catholics worldwide should be concerned and involved with the climate and environment of our planet. It is the duty of every person, Catholic or not, to take care of the home to which they have been entrusted, she said.

WHAT: Utah People’s Climate March

WHEN: April 29, 1-3 p.m.

WHERE: From the Salt Lake City Public Library to the Governor’s Mansion

For information or to RSVP, visit https://actionnetwork.org/events/utah-peoples-climate-march?source=org-signup&referrer=sierra-club.