Spotlight on Solutions: Innovation for Creation

It is no secret that climate change is happening, and happening fast. The past few years have been the hottest on record, with natural disasters occurring at an unrelenting pace. From the recent deadly flash floods in Texas to the devastating Hurricane Helene induced floods in North Carolina, these events “have the fingerprints of climate change all over them”--and it is only going to get worse.

As the climate crisis deepens, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. But faith communities remind us that despair is not the only option—hope, action, and solidarity are also possible. Faith leaders, through their trusted roles in their communities, are educating, mobilizing, and inspiring people to action, helping communities see climate change as both a moral crisis and a solvable one. From congregations going green to chaplains helping people navigate climate grief, spiritual traditions offer both courage and wisdom for this moment. 

Contrary to popular belief, increased religiosity does not necessarily correlate with climate skepticism. The Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) offers a helpful breakdown of how religion shapes Americans’ views on climate change. For more on how faith communities are stepping up, check out this Factoring in Faith panel conversation, where four leaders from different traditions share why the climate movement must broaden to include faith voices. 

Ultimately, many traditions hold a deep ethos of caring for Creation and protecting the most vulnerable among us. That makes faith communities a natural source for activism and innovation on behalf of the environment. Many faith-rooted organizations are building movements, training leaders, and inspiring new approaches to climate justice.

Below is a collection of innovative organizations, resources, and practices–both faith-rooted and secular– that we offer not just as information, but as inspiration, encouraging you to see where your values connect with the climate movement and how you or your community might take part. Whether you’re looking for a place to begin, a partner to collaborate with, or simply a reminder that you are not alone in this work, we hope these examples give you both encouragement and direction.

Faith-Rooted Climate Action

Faith communities are uniquely positioned to play a catalytic role in the climate fight. Across traditions and regions, the work of faith communities on climate is underway in powerful and creative ways. So much so that there are more organizations than we can name here, but below are a few particularly innovative ones. We share them as invitations to spark ideas for how you and your community might step more fully into this movement.

• GreenFaith has pioneered a worldwide, multi-faith climate and environmental movement. Around the globe, they are creating grassroots communities through outreach events, contextualized eco-theology education and organizing/campaigning skills training. These efforts empower people to campaign against new fossil fuel/extractive projects and related financing and in support of a just transition, green jobs, and loss and damage commitments for climate-vulnerable regions.

• Adamah is the largest Jewish environmental organization in North America. They believe in the deep connection between people & planet, adam & adamah. Adamah works to cultivate vibrant Jewish life in deep connection with the earth, catalyzing culture change and systemic change through immersive experiences, Jewish environmental education, leadership development, and climate action.

• GoodLands mobilizes the Catholic Church, as one of the largest private landowners in the world, to use its land for good by providing information and tools to help the Church use its property wisely to enhance all her existing ministries and missions, including to care for creation. 

• Indigenous Climate Action is an Indigenous-led organization centering Indigenous Peoples’ rights and knowledge systems as critical to developing solutions to the climate crisis and achieving climate justice.

• Dayenu: A Jewish Call to Climate Action is a movement of American Jews confronting the climate crisis with spiritual audacity and bold political action. They believe that together, drawing from the Jewish tradition, experience, and faith, we have the power to create real and lasting change. Through campaigns and actions, they are building a movement to confront the climate crisis, rooted in Jewish values, experience, and spirit.

• Interfaith Rainforest Initiative is an international, multi-faith alliance that works to bring moral urgency and faith-based leadership to global efforts to end tropical deforestation. They provide a platform for religious leaders to work hand-in-hand with Indigenous peoples, governments, civil society organizations and businesses on actions that protect rainforests and safeguard the Indigenous peoples that serve as their guardians.

• Young Evangelicals for Climate Action equips, empowers, and catalyzes young Christians to show their love for God and their neighbors through bold, wholehearted, and faithful climate action in their church and community in order to create a more just, equitable, and loving world.

• Land Justice Futures works with religious communities to ground property discernment in the goals of land justice: protecting and regenerating land, while expanding governance, control, and loving relationship to those most harmed by colonization and racism.

Innovation for Climate Equity and Resilience

Many other organizations are also tackling these complex challenges with fresh approaches, bold solutions, and a focus on equity and environmental justice, addressing how climate change disproportionately impacts marginalized communities. Here are a few that are advancing clean energy access, strengthening community resilience, and creating new economic opportunities:

• Earth Guardians is an intergenerational climate justice organization pioneering resilient and regenerative innovation to solve the climate crisis. They train diverse youth to be influential leaders at the forefront of the climate movement across the globe - using art, music, storytelling, on-the-ground projects, civic engagement, and legal action to advance solutions and create grassroots and global impact.

• Resilience Force is working to rewrite the rules of recovery, so that the billions spent after disasters don’t deepen inequality, but become an engine of racial and economic equity. As climate disasters become the new normal, their goal is to build resilience workers into a stable, well-paid, million-strong corps that can do year-round climate adaptation and preparation, as well as rebuild after storms.

• ClimateSalon.org is building connections across sectors, while letting communities lead the way. Climate Salons are discussion-based events, led by experts, geared towards answering questions that will unlock climate innovation. 

• Browning the Green Space (BGS) seeks to facilitate a just energy transition by putting Black and Brown communities first, and enabling systems change at the intersection of social, environmental, and economic justice. BGS is powering a just energy transition by creating jobs, building wealth, and reducing energy burden in Black and Brown communities across Massachusetts and beyond. 

• Emerald Cities Collaborative (ECC) advances racial, economic, and climate justice to build communities that are more equitable, economically just, and sustainable. ECC implements replicable place-based strategies in community and worker powerbuilding, economic inclusion, and equitable implementation, in five regions (Northwest, Northern California, Southern California, Northeast, and D.C./Maryland/Virginia) and select cities throughout the US.

Resources for Your Community

Just as faith-based and secular groups are driving change in their communities, there are many ways you can bring climate awareness, education, and activism into your own context. Below is a curated selection of resources to help individuals and faith communities start conversations, build programs, and deepen engagement around climate change:

• Parliament of the World’s Religions Climate Action Resources

• Sacred Earth: Faith, Climate and the Power of Listening from the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers is a multimedia project elevating the voices of faith communities as they address climate-driven conflicts in their communities.

• Climate Torah and other resources from Dayenu

• Poetry & Environmental Justice: The Poetry Society of America and Greenpeace USA invited eight poets to reflect on a poem that has shaped their understanding of environmental justice, including how it feels to live through the climate crisis, the lived experience of communities in harm’s way, or the power structures that reinforce environmental inequality.

• Climate Changed is a podcast about spiritual leadership in a climate-changed world. Hosted by Nicole Diroff and Ben Yosua-Davis, Climate Changed features guests who deepen the conversation while also stirring the waters.

• Climate Solutions at Work from project Drawdown can show employees how to make any job a climate job. 

Climate Chaplaincy

Engaging with the climate crisis can be deeply emotional, and it’s natural to experience grief, anxiety, or even despair. Just as communities take action through organizations and local initiatives, some are finding support through climate chaplaincy—a growing movement of clergy and spiritual advisors who help individuals and groups navigate the emotional and spiritual impacts of climate change. These “climate chaplains” or “eco-chaplains” come from a variety of faith traditions and work in places ranging from congregations to universities and civic organizations. Here are a few resources in this field: 

• Climate conscious chaplaincy at the BTS Center offers a series of programs, an emerging network, and a collection of resources.

• Hartford International University for Religion & Peace offers Ecology and Eco-Chaplaincy specializations in their master’s programs, as well as a graduate certificate in eco-spirituality. 

• Buddhist Eco-Chaplaincy program at the Sati Center for Buddhist Studies

• Work that Reconnects, originally founded by ecotheology titan Joanna Macy, is for anyone who longs to serve the healing of our world in a more powerful and effective way. It draws on foundational teachings, including Systems Thinking, Deep Ecology and Deep Time, Spiritual Traditions and Undoing Oppression. 

Reading Resources

As the climate crisis continues to unfold, staying grounded in community, creativity, and hope becomes increasingly important. Art, storytelling, and spiritual practices can help us deepen our understanding and imagine new possibilities. Engaging with these mediums offers a way to connect with both the emotional and moral dimensions of the climate crisis, opening doors to reflection and meaningful action. Below are some books we recommend that explore climate change through unique, innovative, and often faith-informed perspectives:

• Laudato si’ by Pope Francis (papal encyclical on the environment that inspired a global movement)

• Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer

• Not Too Late: Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility by by Rebecca Solnit and Thelma Young Lutunatabua 

• The Sacred Depths of Nature by Ursula Goodenough

• Green Deen: What Islam Teaches About Protecting the Planet by Ibrahim Abdul-Matin

• The Mushroom at the End of the World: On the Possibility of Life in Capitalist Ruins by Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing

• The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson

Moving Forward Together

Climate change is not just a scientific or political issue—it is a moral and spiritual crisis of our time, demanding the courage, clarity, and creativity that faith communities can offer. No matter your background, beliefs, or where you live, there is a role for you in innovating for Creation. Every conversation, every initiative, and every act of care strengthens the collective effort to protect our planet and support those most affected. We hope this post encourages you to step into this work with both courage and imagination—because the time to act is now, and together, we can build a future that honors Creation, protects the vulnerable, and sustains life for generations to come.

We welcome you to share your favorite climate innovations and resources in the comments below.