“Many Christians sacrifice a personal pleasure such as chocolate, liquor, or cigarettes to mark Lent, the period of penance and prayer before Easter. This year, Nina Scott is giving up carbon.
“Religious environmentalism–slowly growing since the 1990s–has exploded along with awareness of human-made climate change. Many faith communities now see the release of heat-trapping gases from power plants and vehicles as the destruction of a precious gift from God. Others see global warming intersecting with a fundamental calling: helping the poor. Because climate change will disproportionately hurt the most vulnerable–in places such as Bangladesh that are more prone to flooding as sea levels rise–religious leaders are embracing emissions reductions as their duty.”
