Feature story
The training provided the opportunity to share and lift the experience of communities facing the health impacts of climate change, and to help them learn about climate litigation as a tool for pursuing justice.
Over 2,000 cases of climate litigation have been recorded by the UN Environment Programme. “And the large majority of those cases have been inspired by children,” said Neshan Gunasekera, international lawyer, CEO of World Future Council, and legacy holder for the Right Livelihood Award Laureate Judge C.G. Weeramantry, former vice-president of the International Court of Justice.
“I think it's a turning point that we look into the faith-based traditions to ensure that the rich jurisprudence, born within our faith systems, influences principles of international law today,” said Gunasekera.
Participants learned about the newly published resource from World Council of Churches (WCC), "Hope for Children Through Climate Justice,” which provides churches and communities with essential legal tools designed to hold financial actors accountable for their role in perpetuating the climate crisis.
“We have received a lot of encouragement and support from all sides, stressing that the churches and people of other faiths are best placed to implement the moral imperative for legal action in response to global warming,” said Frederique Seidel, WCC senior programme lead for Children and Climate.
“This project is also inspired by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who said that people of conscience need to break their ties with those corporations which are financing the injustice of climate change.”
Participants discussed and learned about the consequences of the intersection of the climate emergency and public health, and how to advocate for and implement climate-resilient health initiatives. The event, which incorporated two national one-and-a-half-day consultations held simultaneously in Chad and the Philippines, connected both communities to share insights across continents, and also fostered community partnerships to build resilience against climate-related health challenges.
“We don't have all the answers, but it helps us to look into possible avenues for holding financiers, companies, our nations, and our international communities accountable. The fact that we are joining hands in this event across the oceans reminds us that we are not in this alone,” said Dr Manoj Kurian, director of the WCC Commission of the Churches on Health and Healing. “We are suffering and burdened, yet we will rejoice together when progress is made. So when we think of strategies for our response, we need to join across borders throughout the world.”
We also have to hold ourselves accountable, added Kurian. “To ensure that we are good stewards of the creation and the resources we have access to, we are accountable to God—and to each other,” he said.
The event was convened by the World Council of Churches, Africa Christian Health Associations Platform, National Council of churches in the Philippines, and the Association évangélique pour la santé au Tchad.
Among the participants were church leaders from Philippines and Chad, member churches of the WCC, National Council of Churches in the Philippines, All Africa Conference of Churches, members of the WCC Commission of Churches on Health and Healing, and Ecumenical Pharmaceutical Network.
The meeting discussed how to tackle root causes of the health challenges attributed to the climate emergency crisis on a global and country-level, in light of the threats it causes, noting that climate change presents a fundamental risk to human health, for example, through heatwaves, wildfires, floods, storms and hurricanes, and an increase of vector-born diseases.
The wealthiest 10% of the global population contributes about 50% of annual global emissions. Yet it is the most vulnerable, who contribute least to climate change, who are most impacted - including children, and older people.
Churches and partners who would like to join the World Council of Churches project on climate litigation are invited to send a note to [email protected].
WCC’s new climate justice tools bring hope for children (WCC news release, 10 April 2025)
Publication "Hope for Children Through Climate Justice: Legal Tools to Hold Financiers Accountable"
Learn more about Churches’ Commitments to Children and Climate-Responsible Banking
