Rachel Mash

On the 10th and the 11th February 2024 , the Anglican Youth Fellowship (AYF) in the Diocese of George  held is annual opening at St Monica ( Kwanokuthula) Plettenberg. The theme for this years opening was Care for Creations ( Green Anglican ), were young people wore green clothes which not only symbolized creation but also livelihood. AYF believes that they is no livelihood if we do not do justice and act with care towards all God’s creation . By : Vincent Pye ( AYF Diocesan President )  

On Sunday 28th January 2024 the Parish of St Patrick’s Anglican Church  in Diocese of Free State held a Green Anglicans day for their Sunday School children .  On the day Dr Mofokeng (Medical Practioner) gave a talk on the Creation Story ( Gen 1-3) followed by Ms Fifi Morite ( Eco-Champion)- Teaching the children why is it important not to pollute Land, Water and Air as their the source of life. Mrs Keba Sepato ( Eco-Champion)- spoke on sustainability and Conservation of Land, Air and Water so as to meet future generational needs.  The day ended with Mr Mogorosi Molisapoli ( Diocesan environmental coordinator) – explaining the  purpose of Green Anglican Movement and its work in striving to safeguard Creation and Sustain the life of the earth.   The day was filled with great laughter and joy as the kids not only sat and learned but also got to enjoy themselves by playing and singing   

This Lent we will do our part in helping to heal the Earth, and reduce the damage we are doing. Through reducing your personal use of single use plastic, inspiring and educating others, and getting involved in clean ups, we can make a difference We will also learn about some of the important global changes taking place such as the UN Plastic Treaty  Join the Forty day clean up – you can download the calendar here;  

The Diocesan youth Conference for the Diocese of Kimberly and Kuruman took place from the 1-3rd December at St Luke’s Prieska, Gariep There was a presentation about Climate Yes! on the topic of Climate Change and caring for the environment. We encouraged the young people that they should stand up and speak out. We need to the be the change that we want to see. We planted a tree to mark the event and encouraged the young people of the parish to take care of the tree with faith that the tree will grow and the youth in their archdeaconry also grow by Kaone Gaetsewe Photo credit: Kamogelo Mosinki

As we reach the end of 2023 you may feel that it has been all doom and gloom with so many climate disasters and devastating wars. But there a was  A LOT of progress on climate action which often the news doesn’t focus on So here are twelve gifts for you ! ON THE FIRST DAY OF CHRISTMAS  MY TRUE LOVE GAVE TO ME –   CARBON EMISSIONS ARE PEAKING Peaking global emissions : there is a 70 percent chance that emissions from energy will begin to  drop in 2024 ON THE SECOND DAY MY TRUE LOVE GAVE TO ME : AN ELECTRIC CAR In 2023 18 percent of new car sales were Electric.  A total of 14% of all new cars sold were electric in 2022, up from around 9% in 2021 and less than 5% in 2020. ON THE THIRD DAY –  MY TRUE LOVE GAVE TO  ME:   SOLAR ENERGY! Solar is now the cheapest form of energy , the prices have dropped 90 percenhttps://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-19/solar-energy-has-crossed-a-global-tipping-point-study-finds ON THE FOURTH DAY – MY TRUE LOVE GAVE ME WIND ENERGY Wind energy costs  also fell by 56 percent in the last decade ON THE FIFTH DAY – THE BEGINNING OF THE END FOR COALCoal use is predicted to have peaked and to  begin dropping next year ON THE SIXTH DAY – CLIMATE COURT CASES Successful climate litigation cases are growing ON THE SEVENTH DAY –  A LOSS AND DAMAGE FUND After years of campaigning it was a agreed that a Loss and damage fund would be set up to help countries most impacted by climate change ON THE EIGHTH DAY – A TRANSITION AWAY FROM FOSSIL FUELS COP28 also agreed to begin to transition away from fossil fuels – given how strong the oil lobby at COP28 was this is significant as will make investors consider potential future stranded assets ON THE NINTH DAY – DROP IN DEFORESTATION IN THE BRAZILIAN AMAZON Deforestation dropped by 22 percent as President Lula reversed President Bolsanaros’ policies ON THE TENTH DAY- A TREATY TO PROTECT THE HIGH SEAS A historic agreement was signed with the goal of protecting 30 percent of the oceans  by 2030 – The treaty addresses a blaring gap in ocean protection, as only about 1% of the high seas is currently protected. ON THE ELEVENTH DAY – BATTERY STORAGE The challenge of intermittent energy from renewables is solved by battery storage.  This is being solved by massive growth in battery storage – set to grow 15 fold by 2030.  The price has also plummeted ON THE TWELFTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS MY TRUE LOVE GAVE TO ME FOREST PROTECTION BY EU The European Union has passed regulations to stop import of products grown on land which has been deforested since 2020

The journey began as I came across a call for applications to become part of the Christian Climate Observers Program for the COP28 held in Dubai, UAE. Upon applying I chose to attend the first week, got approved then started preparing towards that life changing journey.  As a climate activist and a Creation Carer this was one of the most important conventions as it exposes one to many people working in the ‘climate change space’. This year’s COP was an important one because of the conversation around phasing out fossil fuels, therefore we all went there with a goal in mind, to deliberate around issues surrounding fossil fuels and the impact  it has on disadvantaged communities,  I say because I carried the badge of Houghton College which I am grateful for and also under the banner of Climate Yes, Renew our World, Green Anglicans, Anglican Communion Environmental Network and Christian Aid. Ours has been and remains a call towards a just transition on renewable energy and phasing out of fossil fuels.  Being in EXPO 2023 in Dubai expanded my horizon when it comes to the work, we do towards elimination (adaptation and mitigation to top the list) of climate anxiety and all it brings to the people we work with as a Christian community when it comes to natural disasters, some not so natural. As an Observer my task was to be visible in conversations that happened in different hubs, to contribute by sharing or caring (signing up petitions and or statements), by networking with likeminded people doing the same kind of ministry I am involved with but most importantly to also document whatever I felt was important for the people not attending physically. I was fortunate enough to share about South Africa and the work I am doing through Green Anglicans and Climate YES in the Faith Pavilion. The session was organised by Renew our World and the topic was the role of young people in adaptation. Observations: Highlights: Convictions and commitment: Outcomes: I am grateful to the CCOP team for choosing me as one of the Observers to be part of COP28, also to Climate YES for financing my flight tickets to and from South Africa to Dubai. Thank you to the Anglican Communion for their generosity on providing meals for the duration of my stay. To the UAE for hosting us, we felt safe throughout our stay, the assisting staff at EXPO 2023 went all out to make sure we find places we needed to find. To the Green Anglicans team of ACSA and Africa, ENKOSI!