Join us this year to mark Earth Overshoot Day
Monday 29th July 2019 11.45am-12.15pm
St John'a Anglican Cathedral,Ann Street Brisbane
Safeguarding the integrity of the Creation requires us to walk lightly on the earth in more ways than simply reducing our carbon footprint. Our need to do this is highlighted by the marking of what is known as Overshoot Day.
Overshoot Day is the day when humanity's demands for ecological resources (fish, forests, fresh water etc), exceeds what the Earth can renew in a year.
It is driven by our attitudes and disconnect towards the Earth, our common home. We are collectively over consuming and overexploiting our resources.
Last October the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warned that we have just 12 years to avoid catastrophic climate. In May, another United Nations report suggested we are heading towards the extinction of one million species.
Climate change and biodiversity loss are the tragic warning signs of our broken relationship with God's Creation, of our loss of understanding our interrelationship with all living things.
And Australians are some of the biggest contributors. If everyone behaved like us, humanity would consume the equivalent of 5.2 earths a year.
As Christians, we want to mark this event, to raise it in the public consciousness and create a call for transformation. Ultimately, as both Pope Francis and Rowan Williams have said, we need an 'ecological conversion.'
To mark Overshoot Day, one of the Cathedral’s bells will toll from 11.48am, for 12 minutes until midday, Monday 29 July. At Noon we will hold a short service.
Other actions you might like to consider:
Pray - for people to see the ecological crises in our midst and for 'ecological conversion'.
Tell - others in the community why Overshoot Day is important.
Act - as Christians we need to examine and commit to how we Live the Change that we proclaim in the world.
Will you declare what you want to see (and possibly help make) happen in order to #MoveTheDate of Earth Overshoot Day to December 31 or later before 2050? It’s as easy as posting your 15-second video selfie on your favorite social media! See details here.
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