Stewardship, Integrity of Creation and Climate Justice: Religious Ethics Insights - Earth Stewardship: Linking Ecology and Ethics in Theory and Practice - page 375

include an option for the most threatened beings and species: the poorest human
beings, those whose ways of life are threatened with extinction, such as the Kaiapo,
the Yanomami, and other indigenous peoples, as well as animal species, such as the
golden lion tamarin ( Leontopithecus rosalia ), the musician wren or uirapuro
( Cyphorhinus arada ), and the panda ( Ailuropoda melanoleuca ). Without forgetting
these species, Boff recalls that the most threatened being in creation is planet Earth
itself as a whole (Boff 1997 ).
In summary, for Boff, an articulation between creation and salvation is necessary,
owing to the new paradigm, the paradigm of the 're-ligation' (connectedness) of all
with all. A new paradigm, he declares, calls for a new language, a new imagination, a
new politics, a new pedagogy, a new ethics, a new discovery of the sacred, and a new
process of self-understanding (spirituality). The cry of the poor should be listened to
together with the cry of the Earth, and all humanity should respond effectively to
them (Kerber 2012 ). Earth stewardship should be understood from this perspective.

25.2 Earth Stewardship and Climate Change

For more than two decades, this consideration of the integrity of creation and justice
for the poor and the vulnerable especially has been emphasized in the WCC`s work
on climate change. This emphasis has a scientifi c basis. Since the reports of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the scientifi c community
increasingly recognizes the fact of climate change and that there is a relationship
between human action and climate change, particularly regarding CO 2 emissions
and, in general terms, the other so-called greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gases trap
heat in the earth's atmosphere and tend to heat the planet. The Fourth and Fifth
Assessment Reports of the IPCC ( 2014 ) recognized the most vulnerable groups and
regions are already suffering and will suffer the most the consequences of climate
change. These groups include indigenous peoples, the poor, and communities living
in low-lying islands. To respond to the challenges of climate change means to look
particularly at these communities and act responsibly and audaciously.
Climate change is seen as one of the major threats to the integrity of creation and
to justice. It is affecting nature and communities in different parts of the world.
In the WCC's understanding, human induced climate change is being precipitated
primarily by the current development pattern. The prevailing economic strategy
promotes endless growth and production of goods and high consumption life-styles
in the richer industrialized countries and among wealthy elites throughout the world.
Such patterns of development and consumption, through the increase of CO 2
emissions, deforestation, extractive industries and other means are leading to the
depletion of critical natural resources, with life-threatening consequences for
impoverished nations, and future generations. At the Conference of Parties (COP)
of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in
December 2007, in Bali, Indonesia (COP 13), the statement of the WCC “This far
and no further: Act fast and act now,” called for a change of paradigm “in the