ARC Launches 7 Year Plan for Generational Change

Our allies at the Alliance of Religion and Conservation have launched, in partnership with the United Nations, the "Seven Year Plan for Generational Change." This is an amazing initiative that all faith communities and institutions should join. We here at FUSE look forward to partnering with the ARC in this great effort. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about this initiative please email jesseg@fusenow.org.

To read the entire plan and learn more about the ARC click here:

UN/ARC: The Seven Year Plan

Why? Increasing destruction of the natural environment and climate change are probably the biggest global challenges to human development and to the welfare of all life on earth. They both threaten developing communities’ economic, social and physical well-being and put at risk the diversity and wonder of nature itself – through destruction of forests, pollution of the waters and loss of habitats.

For many, this has created fear and anxiety about the future. We believe it is therefore a time when the major religions of the world must take a lead - sharing their wisdom, their insights and their hopes, and working through their faithful to address these issues in a holistic and comprehensive way.

This is why we have launched The Seven Year Plan with the UN as cosponsor.

The heart of this ARC/UN Programme is to assist the major organisations and traditions within the world’s faiths to draw up their own Seven Year Plan of action designed to create generational changes. This will help faith communities respond practically and effectively, offering programmes and models of constructive engagement with these great global issues.

As a guide, there are Seven Key Areas the faiths can explore:


"The key contribution the faiths can make to the environmental issues of today is to develop programmes based not on fear, guilt or apprehension but on doing what is right" A Muslim fisherman in Africa explains why he has stopped fishing with dynamite... because it is right to do so.
The Seven Key Areas are:

1. Assets: land, investments, purchasing and property

2. Education and Young People

3. Pastoral Care and Theological Education

4. Lifestyles

5. Media and Advocacy

6. Partnerships, Eco-twinning and Creating your own Environment Department

7. Celebration

The Plans
We are therefore asking that faiths consider how they can develop Plans which will shape the behaviour and outlook of the faithful for generations to come - and to assist them we have produced some guidelines (note that this is a 2MB file) full of creative ideas and examples: there are some things that many faith groups are already working on: others that they might not have thought about.

The guide offers various ideas and models of constructive engagement with these great global issues. Not all areas will be relevant to all faiths. The Seven Year Plans should reflect particular strengths and interests of each faith community. Each Plan will be unique. The guide will be updated and expanded as faiths send us their stories and examples.
Announce Your Plans by November 2009
We invite faith groups to create Seven Year Plans to be announced in local, provincial, country and international celebrations in November 2009.

We will be linking faith communities worldwide on that day, through internet and radio and TV as community after community, country after country announce their Seven Year Plans.

The results of all these Plans will contribute directly to the Climate Change meeting in Copenhagen at the end of November 2009, which will determine the shape of the next stage of the ‘Kyoto Protocol’, considered by many to be a crucial event for the future of the planet.