Why I campaigned to have my church sign the Fossil Fuel Treaty

I’m a mom. I have 2 teenagers. I love canoe tripping and gardening, spending time in the Forest. My day job for the last 3 years has been working as Climate Action Coordinator for Mennonite Church Canada.

As many of you know, and have probably known for much longer than I have, working at climate means having your eyes open, and sometimes having your eyes open is just really exhausting. Often, actually. I often feel overwhelmed by the hugeness of it all.  It’s easy to get discouraged and to wonder how my small efforts matter at all.  

There’s one thing that consistently lightens the load for me, and it’s not watching a show (at least that’s not a lasting fix!). What makes it possible for me to keep working at this is doing this together with others.  

One of my justice heroes, Sarah Augustine, says: “How will we stop this freight train? Together, or not at all."

And I’m convinced that she’s right. Together. Our individual actions are something important. They shape who we are, they demonstrate our convictions. And hopefully if we’re doing our own household stuff right, there’s a ripple effect and broader impact.  

However, in togetherness there is strength. In Collective action there is energy. And in the long, slow global work of moving the needle towards ending the extraction and dependence on fossil fuel, there is impact. 

Let me share one example of one step on the journey of the long slow work. Years ago Tzeporah Berman along with other climate activists launched an initiative to create a global agreement to stop extraction and use of fossil fuels. They called it The Fossil Fuel Non Proliferation Treaty (FFNPT). To get a sense for what this is, check out Kairos’s short version explanation here:  https://kairoscanada.org/what-we-do/ecological-justice/fossil-fuel-non-proliferation-treaty

By 2026, there are over a million endorsements for this treaty initiative.  

So, what’s the impact? So far the world has not ended fossil fuel use and extraction. But the movement is gaining momentum. As you saw, hundreds of thousands of individuals, organizations , politicians, faith bodies and many countries are taking this call seriously and pushing for implementation. 

This is not campaign work, this is long work that will be done over generations, working at deep systems change.  

But here’s the thing, adding our voices to the call is in itself a significant action. Here’s my story regarding the Treaty.

In 2021 I joined a group with Mennonite Church Manitoba (MCM) called Climate Action Working Group (CAWG). After CAWG learned about the FFNPT, we decided we wanted to ask MCM to sign the open letter from Faith Communities endorsing the Treaty. It was not straightforward. Here’s what happened:

• -In Spring of 2023 CAWG formally asked MCM Board to sign. They said no, but invited us to go to the churches and start the discussion with them.
• -CAWG met with the Board to clarify what this meant.
• -In Fall of 2023 CAWG wrote a Resolution to be presented at the MCM Annual Delegate Session (ADS) in March of 2024.  
• -In Winter of 2023 this resolution went out to churches to be discussed, and churches were invited to ask a CAWG member to come visit and discuss. The message included this video https://youtu.be/-OKlllt9Iyw
• -Between Fall 2023 and March 2024 CAWG offered to visit churches through announcements and cold calls and invitations
  • -CAWG visited at least 8 churches in person, offered sermons, sunday school classes and discussions
• -In March 2024 CAWG hosted a conversation in a breakout session at the Annual Delegate Session 
• -The Delegates voted in favour at the ADS (2 opposed)
• -CAWG wrote and mailed a follow up letter to all the churches in the region.
• -After the vote, we were invited to talk with one of the 2 churches that voted against.  There was good conversation and potluck. 🙂
• -CAWG continues to invite conversation, and many more people know about the FFNPT.

Our signing didn’t tip the Treaty into worldwide implementation, but the process we went through impacted us in many ways. We learned, we grew in patience and understanding, we built relationships of trust in congregations, and we added our weight to that long list of faith leaders and groups. And when I remember each of these groups is working in their own sphere, as we are – and each signatory in all the other categories (Elected Officials, Health Institutions, 101 Nobel Laureates, Civil Society Organizations, Academics and Scientists, Youth Leaders and Individuals, not to mention entire Countries!) are working hard in their spheres as well, I realize that we’re in good company for this long work. It is worth doing. For the love of our children, and for the love of Creation.

By Sandy Plett