MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release: January 20, 2021
Contact: Susan Stephenson, susan@interfaithpowerandlight.org, 510.484.7198
Interfaith Power & Light Applauds Biden Executive Order to Rejoin Paris Climate Accord
Oakland, CA– On Day One of his administration, President Biden issued an Executive Order to take immediate steps to get the U.S. back on track to address the climate crisis and protect us from its most catastrophic impacts.
On January 20, 2021, the Biden administration signed an Executive Order to re-join the rest of the world in the Paris Climate Accord, reversing President Trump’s withdrawal that was completed on November 4, 2020.
“Interfaith Power & Light and our network of 22,000 congregations around the country are grateful that President Biden has listened to people of faith and conscience and followed through with his promise to rejoin the Paris Climate Accord on his first day in office,” said Rev. Susan Hendershot, president of Interfaith Power & Light. “We look forward to supporting the administration in preparing the U.S. to play a constructive role in the COP26 UN Climate Change Conference this November.”
Rev. Hendershot goes on to say, “We are ready for a new era of faithful collaboration, and a commitment to climate action and caring for Creation. As people of faith, we are tasked with building a more just world—one that is in line with our moral values of justice, peace, and love for our neighbors and all of Creation. Today’s executive actions represent a new beginning of policies that align with these core faith values. We hope the Biden Administration will continue to advance ambitious and durable climate action that centers environmental justice and care for the most vulnerable in our communities and our common home.”
President Biden stated in his inaugural address that “a cry for survival comes from the planet itself.” Interfaith Power & Light, our congregations, and our supporters hear that cry, and also the cry of the poor, the vulnerable, and communities of color on the front lines of climate impacts.
People of faith and conscience view the climate crisis as one of the defining moral issues of our time. A recent poll commissioned by Interfaith Power & Light found that more than 8 in 10 faith voters see their responsibility to care for God’s creation as a reason to act on the climate crisis.
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Interfaith Power & Light is a national nonprofit organization with 40 state affiliates and 22,000 congregations in all 50 states. IPL inspires and mobilizes people of faith and conscience to take bold and just action on climate change.
