COP30 meets this year in Brazil. In the lead up, Anglican News is sharing stories about Anglicans around the world that are working to restore and protect oceans, forests and frozen landscapes - vital ecosystems that operate as 'Lungs of the Earth'. 

Anglican News spoke to two Suffragen Bishops from the Anglican Church of Canada, who live in the Diocese of the Arctic. It is one of the most diverse landscapes on the planet. It is comprised of sea ice, coastal wetlands, tundra, mountains, rivers and oceans which support abundant wildlife as well as around 4 million people. 

This article shares comments from the Rt Revd Ann Martha Keenainak of Iqaluit and the Rt Revd Annie Ittoshat of Salluit, about how climate crisis is impacting them and how their faith and indigenous heritage drive their passion for sustainability and creation care. 

Why are polar regions important to protect as a 'lung of the earth'?

‘This land is the foundation of our way of living. It’s all that we've known. As a nomadic society, being able to follow the seasons for harvesting and hunting animals was crucial to thriving. It is part of our culture and tradition passed from generation to generation.

‘Unlike other parts of the world, we have four seasons and each season gives us different ways of harvesting. The Inuit are collective in sharing what is gathered and caught within the community because of high living costs and because sharing was always part of our way of life. If our grandparents didn't share, they wouldn't have survived. We don’t keep what we catch: we share it. Every part of the animal is used, so there’s no waste and we care for what we hunt. It's a cycle. A balance.’

How has the climate crisis impacted your community in a largely frozen land?

‘Things are changing and not for the better in terms of our cycle of food harvesting. Now there are times in some places berries barely ripen because the sun hasn't properly come out. We see different types of birds and insects we’ve never seen in the north before, because of the warmer climate. We are also concerned for the hunters because of the impact of late ice formation, which makes hunting more dangerous than it used to be. Two or three hunters in the area have fallen through the ice. Some say the ice condition has changed so much that they can no longer see or understand the formation during the fall season.

‘Elders and hunters also used to, and still do today, use the cloud formation and wind direction to tell the weather for days ahead but it is no longer dependable because of the climate and global warming. Our traditional ways of understanding our land, sustaining ourselves and staying safe are becoming less and less reliable.’

How does your faith inspire your relationship with creation care?

‘We have to care for what we have been given; to be good stewards. After all, we reap what we sow.

‘The world is changing and shifting, but God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. We have a solid foundation in him and he calls us to stay true, always being connected with him. Deuteronomy 8:18 says, “You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day.”’

Find out more about the 'Lungs of the Earth' initiative

Anglican communities all over the Communion are affected by climate change, not only through the violence of natural disasters but also, as in the Arctic, through gradual, incremental destruction of ecosystems and indigenous traditions.

The 'Lungs of the Earth' call to environmental action and advocacy seeks to amplify the voices of Anglicans from around the world and celebrate the work of Anglican environmental activist and advocacy groups, such as the Anglican Communion representation at the United Nations, Green Anglicans and the Anglican Communion Environmental Network.

It is also an invitation for Anglican churches and individuals to act to ‘restore and protect the Lungs of the Earth’, focusing on three vital ecosystems: Oceans, Forests and Ice Caps. 

Find out more about the Lungs of the Earth call to advocacy and action here. 

Learn more about the Anglican Diocese of the Arctic here.