Many young people are very concerned about our environmental crises. This includes young Christians.
On this page we present some of the evidence for this concern and what young people think of the church's response. We also describe organisations that support young people to respond to our environmental crises and provide a link to information about responses of schools in our Diocese.
On this page we present some of the evidence for this concern and what young people think of the church's response. We also describe organisations that support young people to respond to our environmental crises and provide a link to information about responses of schools in our Diocese.
What young people think about our environmental crises
In 2020 We Are Tearfund and Youthscape surveyed 630 Christians aged 14-19 from across the UK. They also ran four online focus groups with a further 23 16-23-year-olds looking particularly at the experiences of climate activists and young black Christians. The resulting ‘Burning Down the House’ report describes how 92% of those surveyed said they were ‘concerned’, or ‘somewhat concerned’, about climate change but only 1 in 10 thought that their church was doing enough to respond to climate change.
In 2023 we found very similar results when we talked to 35 young people from two youth synods in the Chelmsford Diocese. The young people were extremely well-informed about the climate crisis. They could all cite specific examples of where and how our environment is been damaged. They described the feelings they had when first hearing about the climate crisis as sad, worried, shocked, confused, or angry. They were also frustrated: “There is so much going on but so little we are doing about it,” and disappointed in, for example, political leaders being “all words but no action” and the older generation who some felt had “given up.” They connect their faith to the environment in clear and straightforward ways – it’s about who created the world, about Jesus, about love, about Biblical narratives, about the good examples they see around them of church leaders caring and speaking up. They wanted more to be done but at the same time recognised some of the difficulties. Some felt that adults needed better education about the climate crisis because they are the ones who can change and influence things. They felt they had less influence because of their age, so that when they speak up they are less likely to be listened to, including by politicians.
Supporting young people to respond to our environmental crises
Green Christian lists a wide range of resources and organisations that help support young people of all ages to respond to our environmental crises.
Climate YES (Youth Ecumenical Summit) is a global, ecumenical youth climate movement uniting young Christian activists from the Global North and South in the pursuit of climate justice. Driven by faith, they connect to share environmental concerns and strengthen a collective voice for a just and sustainable future.
Loss and Damage Youth Coalition is a global network of over 1,400 young negotiators, activists, researchers, storytellers, communicators, and trainers from more than 100 countries, united in pushing for ambitious international action on loss & damage. Loss and damage is about the harm caused by climate change and how it should be paid for in the most climate-vulnerable communities who have often contributed the least to the climate emergency and are ill-equipped to mitigate its effects.
News about schools and relevant resources
This Diocesan webpage describes some actions taken by schools, offering resources, inspiration, and practical ideas to support schools in living out their Christian vision through climate action and care for our common home.
