At the United Nations climate summit, a new hub for climate scientists, activists, and fossil fuel lobbyists was added this year: a place to pray.
In a video message on Sunday, Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmed Al-Tayeb, inaugurated the first-ever Faith Pavilion, offering a space for meditation, daily prayers, and a chanting session led by Indian mystic and yogi Jaggi Vasudev, who goes by Sadhguru.
The pavilion also serves as a place for spiritual leaders to exchange ideas about guiding people through the effects of climate change.
On a panel in Dubai, Rev. James Bhagwan of the Pacific Conference of Churches spoke about comforting people in the Pacific islands who have been displaced due to rising sea levels and climate disasters.
More than 300 religious leaders representing various faiths are expected to participate in discussions at the pavilion during the two-week climate summit.
The Faith Pavilion also offers counseling services to attendees from nearly 200 nations at the climate talks, known as COP28.
Several mornings and evenings over the coming week, spiritual leaders from different faiths are scheduled to lead sessions of moral support.
At past summits, participants have faced challenges regarding climate change, and the Faith Pavilion offers a refuge from these tensions.
The climate negotiations at COP28 are on ongoing, hitting roadblocks over how to determine whether countries are meeting the shared goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels.
For religious leaders and followers, the Faith Pavilion is a refuge from these tensions.
Amid the atmosphere of the summit, the Faith Pavilion’s message of spirituality stands in contrast.
The experiment at the Faith Pavilion is unusual for the Emirates and other countries, given tight political control.
Meryne Warah, the global organizing director of GreenFaith, said at a panel discussion that “interfaith action” scares governments and corporations.
Athena Peralta, a program executive at the World Council of Churches, emphasized the importance of prayer in climate change negotiations, adding that “prayer without action does not work.”
Vivian Nereim contributed reporting from Dubai.