Edmund Rice International

The recognised need for responsible management of chemicals in e-waste has brought together Governments, civil society, the private sector and the chemical industry. Hence, parties to three major chemical Conventions met recently in Geneva to consider the problem of electronic waste in the context of the global environment agenda. The issue raises two critical issues, […]

The specific contributions that faith traditions bring to the international climate debate was highlighted at the recent Interfaith Summit on Climate Change in New York, held in conjunction with the UN Climate Summit convened by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Thirty religious leaders from diverse religious traditions participated in the summit and signed a statement expressing […]

Hundreds of thousands of people recently took to the streets in over 2000 cities around the world to participate in a People’s Climate March to demand action from world leaders to address climate change. The World Day of Climate Action was to coincide with the summit of world leaders convened by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki […]

“The air we breathe, the water we drink and the soil that grows our food are part of a delicate ecosystem that is increasingly under pressure,” said UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon at the closing session of the inaugural UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) which concluded its five-day deliberations in Nairobi recently “We need to act […]

Earth Hour has grown to be the world’s largest mass participation event involving more than 7,000 cities, 7 continents and millions of people. Earth Hour’s mission is three-fold. To bring people together through a symbolic hour-long event. To galvanise people into taking action beyond the hour. And to create an interconnected global community sharing the […]

‘Human influence on the climate system is clear’ and‘Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, and since the 1950s, many of the observed changes are unprecedented over decades to millennia.’ These are two of the headline statements from the recently releasedIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report. Set up in 1988, the IPCC is a UN body based in […]

 “Climate change is the biggest human rights challenge of our time” says former Irish president and UN Human Rights High Commissioner Mary Robinson following the conclusion of the recent UN Climate Summit in Doha. “It’s undermining livelihoods—rights to food and safe water and health and education. It’s having people displaced by climate, and that can […]

The dining assembly of Colaiste Muire, Cobh was a hive of activity on Friday the 30th March from 1-2. There was a sense of anticipation and excitement as the lights were dimmed, electricity was unplugged and Mrs Bilginer and Miss Ormond addressed the crowd. The community of Colaiste Muire, Cobh decided to present an ’Unplugged […]

So disturbed by ruin of the region, Alberta’s Catholic bishop has written a lengthy letter arguing that the tar sands development “cannot be morally justified.” David Ebner, January 27, 2009, The Globe and Mail — The oil sands, hated by environmentalists and buffeted by plunging oil prices, now face the opposition of a representative of […]

  One of the most frightening things I have heard this year, the Year of the Forests, was a statement by Brian Swimme, at the District Assembly of our Brothers in Zambia. The African Province Renewal Team, who facilitated the Assembly, showed a video clip of Brian saying that, “Every wild cheetah is now in […]