L-R: Princess Michael of Kent, Sara Morrison, Martin Palmer, Rita Ottervik, Berit Lånke and Tor Singsaas. (c) ARC/Katia Marsh

Trondheim joins international environment network.

Norsk versjon

Last autumn (2011) a delegation from Trondheim led by the Mayor, Rita Ottervik, and the Bishop of Nidaros, Tor Singsaas, travelled to Assisi in Italy to attend the "Sacred Land Celebration" conference.

Assisi is one of nine cities which together with Trondheim have joined the network Green Pilgrim Cities which was established during the conference.

More than 100 representatives of various organizations from across the world were present at the founding meeting to discuss how to combine environmental protection activities with the pilgrim efforts.

The Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC) held the conference where representatives of a number of faiths and environmental protection organizations cooperated on developing “green” programmes based on the core beliefs and values of the religions.

The green pilgrim cities are popular pilgrimage destinations for the world's major religions and represent a great diversity. Some of Trondheim's cooperation partners include Amritsar in India, Assisi in Italy, Etchmiadzin in Armenia and Jerusalem in Israel. Trondheim has been invited to join the network because Nidaros Cathedral has an international reputation as a pilgrim destination.

Plans to make pilgrim cities more environmentally friendly will be drawn up by the local authorities in cooperation with religious communities and local stakeholders. "What needs to be done to make our city green and sustainable" is the question asked by those concerned about the environment.

“It’s wonderful that Trondheim can be part of this project, as it ties us closer to an international network of recognized pilgrimage destinations,” says Rita Ottervik, Mayor of Trondheim.

“We’re looking forward to wishing more pilgrims welcome to Trondheim, as we know they are careful travellers as they make their way through the countryside. For us it is vital to make the pilgrim way and the destination environmentally friendly – now and for the coming generations. We are honoured to be a part of this,” concludes Ottervik.
 
“Here we have an excellent opportunity to advance environmentally friendly urban development, where our value base as a pilgrim destination reinforces our work,” adds Geirmund Lykke, Councillor for KrF (Christian People's Party), who represented the initiative Cities of the Future during the conference in Assisi. Lykke also believes that Trondheim's efforts and experiences in the environment field may inspire the other pilgrim cities.
Find out more

Ecology and religion
Eighty-five per cent of the world's seven billion inhabitants are members of a faith or religious tradition. This includes 2.1 billion who may be called Christians, 1.3 billion Moslems, 1 billion Hindus, 70 million Taoists, 24 million Sikhs and 13 million Jews. What these individuals choose to do locally and globally has great impact on the environment. (Source: Earthscan)

Brief facts about the major religions:

• They own 7-8 per cent of the earth's inhabited land areas
• They have a global media network at their disposal
• They organize health services and education on a large scale
• They control more than seven per cent of the world's total economic investments
• They give people hope and inspiration at a time when many are concerned about the large climatic challenges the world is facing

In the words of the General Secretary of ARC, Martin Palmer:
“Religions for centuries have helped energise people and communities for action. They offer stability and resilience in a world where too many initiatives fail through lack of deep roots, and can bring a long-term perspective which will be based more on optimism than fear.”

The alliance of religions for environmental protection was founded by Prince Philip of Great Britain and representatives of 11 of the world's religions at the meeting at Windsor Castle in 1995. The organization cooperates with representatives from Bahi'ism, Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, Taoism, Jainism, Judaism, Sikhism and others.

After the first Assisi conference in 1986, this initiative has contributed to additional environment protection projects involving the WWF, the UN's environmental programme and the Norwegian Government.  ARC has the potential to be the largest ever organized movement against climatic change.

Patron Saint of Ecology
Saint Francis of Assisi – known as the patron saint of animals, environmental protection and ecology – lived in Italy in the 1100s and 1200s. He preached that man must embrace nature with love and respect. Assisi's position as the birthplace of eco-philosophy was the reason that this town was chosen as the location when the international environmental initiative was born 25 years ago.

The pilgrim network was founded on 1 November 2011 in cooperation with the Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC). You can read more about the ARC on www.arcworld.org