Insights

CEE and Beyond Plastics Host Workshop on Plastics Pollution and Community-Based Response

Ned Joyner March 25, 2025

“Plastic is not just a waste and oceans issue, a climate change issue, an environmental justice issue—it’s also a public health issue. And the only way to stop plastic pollution is to stop plastic production. We need policy that holds industry accountable to accomplish that,” said Rev. Kathryn Beilke at a workshop co-hosted by the Center for Earth Ethics and Beyond Plastics at Union Theological Seminary on March 4. The

Love in Deed: Judging the Law by the Needs of the Neighbor

Erin Lothes February 21, 2025

Pope Francis recently released a “Letter to the Bishops of the United States of America,” addressing the “major crisis taking place.” In this rare direct message, possibly prompted by Vice President J.D. Vance’s remarks justifying suspension of U.S. foreign aid programs by reference to the Catholic notion of an “order of love,” Pope Francis speaks about the “drama of migration” as a crisis also experienced by Jesus and his family—at

Finding Common Ground on “Holy Ground” with Catherine Flowers

Ned Joyner February 13, 2025

“Know that people can be transformed. I try, in each and every essay in “Holy Ground,” to talk about the power of transformation.” World-renowned environmental and climate justice activist Catherine Coleman Flowers upheld the “power of transformation” as a central theme of her new book—“Holy Ground: On Activism, Environmental Justice, and Finding Hope”—at an event celebrating its release. The official book launch, hosted by the Center for Earth Ethics at Union Theological Seminary’s

A Message from Karenna Gore

Karenna Gore January 24, 2025

Image: August 13, 2018 in Belews Creek, North Carolina, standing with communities suffering lethal effects of coal ash pollution. Dear CEE Community, As this is our first newsletter of 2025, our 10th anniversary year, I want to convey greetings and thanks to each of you. I also want to acknowledge that we are in an unusual time, which for many involves a pervasive sense of dissonance, if not alienation. And

COP29 Report: Progress on Climate Finance

Allegra Lovejoy December 18, 2024

At the United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP29, which met in November in Baku, Azerbaijan, climate finance took center stage. Climate finance has been a significant focus of international climate negotiations since 2009. As a virtual delegate to COP29 representing the Episcopal Church, I paid close attention to the dialogues on this topic. Climate Finance Explained Climate finance refers to financial resources given as grants, loans and investments to support

Tim Guinee Webinar Explores Health and Justice Costs of Gas Stove Emissions

Ned Joyner December 17, 2024

“Character is defined not in moments of ease, but in moments of hardship. The mettle of a sailor isn’t defined when his ship is calm and at anchor—it’s in the maelstrom. And we know there are frightening clouds on the horizon.” Actor and climate activist Tim Guinee made this observation at the beginning of a December 5 webinar, organized by the Center for Earth Ethics, that explored the often-overlooked health