Dear Friends,
Earlier this month, Bill McKibben – the author and environmental campaigner who is also a longtime friend of Operation Noah – had an extraordinary essay in The New Yorker called, ‘4.6 Billion Years On, the Sun is Having a Moment’. In it, Bill explores the meteoric rise of solar power and renewable energy around the world, even in unexpected places like Texas – a stronghold of the fossil fuel industry – and Pakistan. Here are some facts from the article:
- It took from the invention of the photovoltaic solar cell, in 1954, until 2022 for the world to install a terawatt of solar power; the second terawatt came just two years later.
- Solar is now growing faster than any power source in history, followed by wind power.
- Texas is now installing renewable energy and batteries faster than California.
- China now installs more than half the world’s renewable energy and storage within its own borders. In the first quarter of the year, total carbon emissions in China decreased.
The tide is turning – and quickly. But as we approach dangerous climate tipping points and risk missing internationally-agreed targets, it’s up to all of us to ensure that the energy transition happens even faster, which is why we’re encouraging Churches to divest from fossil fuels, scale up investments in climate solutions and make better use of Church land. We’re also calling on Christians to take their money out of banks that fund fossil fuels and switch to a greener bank.
