This statement calls for leaders to make sound decisions with regard to climate change, and for all people to cherish the Earth for future generations. The following introductory section highlights the sense of urgency:
"As Quakers, we understand anthropogenic climate change (climate change due to human activities) to be a symptom of a greater challenge: how to live sustainable and justly on this Earth.
We recognize that the current rise of greenhouse gas emissions is leading to an unprecedented rate of increase in global average surface temperature of extreme detriment to the Earth’s ecosystems and species, including human beings.
We recognize that catastrophic global climate change is not inevitable if we choose to act urgently."
A Quaker Response to the Crisis of Climate Change discusses how climate change and consumer waste negatively impacts disadvantage populations the most. The first two paragraphs of the introduction are stated below:
"The crisis of global climate change represents a supreme test of humanity’s collective wisdom and courage. Our immoderate use of the Earth’s resources violates the entire biosphere, threatening the lives of millions of people and the habitats of thousands of species. Many of the poorest people are already suffering a changed climate; they are
asking us all to act.
How has humanity produced this crisis? Our faith response is that prevailing social values have obscured what it means to live authentically on this Earth. In rich European countries we consume more than we need within an economic system that divides us as a society; in much that we do, we cause harm to the planet and each other without enriching our lives."