The Anglican Consultative Council Passed Unanimous Resolution on Climate Change

The Anglican Consultative Council or ACC is one of the four "Instruments of Communion" of the Anglican Communion. It was created by a resolution of the 1968 Lambeth Conference. The council, which includes Anglican bishops, clergy and laity, meets every two or three years in different parts of the world. The Anglican Consultative Council has a permanent secretariat (the Anglican Communion Office), based at Saint Andrew's House, London, which is responsible for organizing meetings of the "Instruments of Communion". The Archbishop of Canterbury is ex officio the President of the Council.

Resolution 16.08: Response to Global Climate Change
The Anglican Consultative Council

1. receives and commends for study The World Is Our Host: A Call to Urgent Action for Climate Justice, a statement from seventeen Anglican archbishops and bishops who met at Volmoed, South Africa, February 2015;

2. notes the dire consequences of climate change for future generations and for all of God’s creation;

3. recognizes the global urgency of the crisis of climate change and its impact on the well-being of all people, especially the most vulnerable in societies;

4. encourages Anglicans everywhere to join in pastoral, priestly, and prophetic action as we seek together the redemption of all things in Christ by:

· praying and fasting, including special fasts on the first day of each month and a ‘carbon fast’ during Lent;

· designing and taking strategic actions toward sustainability and resilience in our dioceses, communities and congregations, taking into account local ecological and economic contexts and opportunities;

· reviewing and making necessary changes to church investments to ensure these are visibly supportive of a move towards a low carbon economy;

· making energy efficiency and access to renewable energy a priority in all church operations;

· teaching the Fifth Mark of Mission in theological and church-sponsored educational bodies;

· urging political, economic, social, and religious leaders in our various constituencies to address the climate change crisis as the most pressing moral issue of our day consistent with the United Nations’ 21st Climate Change Conference, Paris 2015;

· recognizing and supporting indigenous peoples’ right to free, prior and informed consent in decisions concerning the environment and the well-being of communities; and

· advocating for sustainable water, food, and agricultural practices in our communities consistent with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

5. requests provinces of the Anglican Communion to consider appointing a contact person to the Anglican Communion Environmental Network who will report to the Network on actions taken so that a full report may be made to the next ACC.