Over the weekend I had the privilege of preaching at the Oxford Service, and seeing as we are in the ‘Season of Creation’ I explored this theme and the importance of looking after creation.
In the days since, I have seen a significant number of articles and news reports touching on climate issues. And a new report that has recently been released shows that the key indicators of Earth’s health are ‘outside the safe operating space’ as climate disaster looms.
The thing is, there seems to be many conversations happening around the world;
✪ Baku Climate Week was held between the 7th-11th of September in Baku, Azerbaijan, serving as a regional milestone under United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) climate week initiatives.
✪ Climate Change & Business Conference 2026 which was held on the 7th & 8th of September at the Viaduct Events Centre in Auckland, New Zealand. Focusing on energy security, adaptation costs, and sustainable economic growth ahead of local elections.
✪ The Climate Action Summit which took place on the 16th of September was hosted by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) brought together global leaders, community voices, and climate innovators to explore how locally led action can help the world get ahead of climate disasters.
✪ UN Climate Summit 2026 was held on the 23rd of September at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, convened by UN Secretary-General António Guterres alongside the 81st UN General Assembly high-level week.
It featured multi-stakeholder ‘Solutions Dialogues’ focusing on climate finance, scaling the energy transition, and advancing climate justice ten years after the Paris Agreement.
… to name just a few.
Currently the U.S. Climate Week NYC is being held – this conference was set up to connect the people and ideas shaping how we live, work and build a low-carbon economy and a more secure future. In coordination with the UN General Assembly, this event brings together the decision-makers and experts shaping capital, policy and markets across sectors and regions.
All these conversations seem to be in preparation for ‘The 2026 UN Climate Change Conference’, which will convene from the 9th-20th of November in Antalya, Türkiye. Which originated from the original UNFCCC established in 1994. This conference has evolved significantly over the years, with landmark agreements such as the Kyoto Protocol adopted in 1997 and the Paris Agreement in 2015.
Now, unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years or so, I’m sure we have all seen images of mass destruction caused by wildfires, floods and droughts in the news, or on social media.
Maybe the gremlins in my phone have been listening to me and flooded my social media platforms with information that they think may be of interest to me, or possibly the algorithm’s have simply been working overtime to fill my feeds with anything and everything associated with climate change.
Irregardless, the following news article certainly caught my eye: ‘Planetary boundaries’ necessary for flourishing of life have been massively breached, scientists warn.
The article was written by Oliver Milman and published in The Guardian on Monday.
He writes:
“Of the nine “planetary boundaries” that help determine whether life can flourish on Earth, seven are being breached at their highest ever levels of transgression, according to the latest planetary health check, a process that was established in 2009.
The seven key indicators in the danger zone include climate change, change in biosphere integrity, land system change, freshwater change, modification of biogeochemical flows, introduction of novel entities and, for the first time last year, ocean acidification.
Only two of the assessed areas, stratospheric ozone depletion and atmospheric aerosol loading, have shown improvement over the last decade, although researchers warn that atmospheric aerosols, which can form air pollution, are still a problem in several regions of the world.“
He goes on to say that: “The coalition of 60 scientists who conducted the analysis of the key guardrails for human life under the auspices of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research warned that the consequences of breaching these planetary boundaries is “becoming increasingly clear all around us”.
The report comes on the heels of a series of extreme events around the world in the past year that scientists say have been made far more likely by the upending of our environment.
Huge floods hit Pakistan last year, while this year has seen record heat and wildfires across Europe, the hottest ever summer in the US, and a disastrous flood on the Tibet-Nepal border.
The oceans, which are absorbing much of this extra generated heat, have hit new temperature records.
The report was released on Monday shortly after the start of Climate Week, a major gathering of politicians, business leaders and activists in New York City that leads up to the UN general assembly.“
Regardless of what some people may say about the validity of climate change, if we pay attention to what is happening around us we can certainly recognise that things are not what they once were.
Even here in the South Island of God’s Zone (Aotearoa New Zealand) the spring season seems to be all over the place. One week it looks like we are heading in to summer-like conditions, the next we are gripped by a blanket of low cloud and freezing temperatures – it certainly messes with my raynaud’s that’s for sure 😦
As I shared in my message on Sunday evening – “carelessly destroying nature by polluting the water and air, destroying wildlife and animal habitats, or wastefully using resources however we please – is not exactly in keeping with God’s character, or the dominion mandate that God gave to mankind.“
“In the past month we have seen the devastation that can be caused through our potential mismanagement of the world – the glaciers are melting at an ever-increasing pace. Rivers are drying up and wildfires rage. Even the temperature of the oceans are rising. All of which can be attributed to climate change due to big companies and governments raping and pillaging the world in which we live.“
And, “I’m pretty sure that we are not exactly leaving this world in a better position than when we inherited it. We all have a part to play in making this world a better place not only for us, but also for our children, and our children’s children.”
The late evangelist Billy Graham wrote that “When we see the world as a gift from God, we will do our best to take care of it and use it wisely, instead of poisoning or destroying it.”
Helen Clarkson, chief executive of the Climate Group, said that “The world is standing on the edge of the abyss, and people are seeking change.”
Queen drummer Roger Taylor has recently released his seventh solo studio album, ‘Violence Insane in a Beautiful World‘.
The first track entitled ‘A Beautiful World’ features the Ndlovu Youth Choir, the song reflects on the wonders of nature, humanity, and existence – celebrating everything from the stars, galaxies, and elements to human romance, knowledge, and the family of man, while concluding with a poignant message about preserving our planet.
Sir David Attenborough has described climate change as “a man-made disaster of global scale” and our “greatest threat in thousands of years“. He goes on to share that “Our planet hangs in the balance. The only way to operate is to believe we can do something about it, and I truly believe we can.”
“The future of humanity and indeed, all life on earth, now depends on us.“
Climate Change is real!
We are so lucky to live in a beautiful world – so don’t screw it up!
Blessings ’til next time 🙂
