Quakers act in witness of G7 summit

'Friends attended the vigil to urge G7 leaders to take decisive action on climate justice, restore the cuts to the aid budget, and to cancel the debt burden on poorer countries.'

Quakers came together last week to pay witness to the G7 (Group of Seven) summit in Cornwall. As world leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the United States gathered at the Carbis Bay resort, Friends walked from Falmouth to the venue, holding the leaders in their thoughts. Meanwhile, as Friends and other campaigners engaged in a range of action, hundreds of young people from Young Christian Climate Network (YCCN) and Christian Aid walked nearly 1,000 miles from Cornwall to Glasgow, dragging a boat behind them.

The acts of witness followed a Meeting for Worship held by Quakers in Cornwall on the Marazion beach at the end of last month. Alison Meaton, from Penzance Meeting, said: ‘I welcomed this opportunity to bear witness to our testimonies of Equality and Peace. We held in our hearts the need for the leaders at G7 to show true responsibility for reducing all subsidies for fossil fuels and for helping people already suffering from the climate crisis as it unfolds.’

Quaker Jackie Carpenter also spoke on BBC Radio Cornwall about why the effects of fossil fuel should be addressed.

Roger Wade, a trustee Cornwall Area Meeting, said: ‘It is amazing that the leaders of the world are coming to our doorstep, and we feel that it is important to show a strong message from Quakers, who have been striving for truth, justice and peace for over 350 years. We urge the leaders to be bold in their proposals to address the climate emergency and ensure that they are fair to lower income families and marginalised people throughout the world, some of whom are already suffering from climate change.’

Many Friends were disappointed with the summit, however, like other campaigners. Both Oxfam’s head of inequality policy, Max Lawson, and former prime minister Gordon Brown branded it ‘a colossal failure’. Criticisms included: no early timetable to eradicate coal-fired emissions; only one billion extra offered for coronavirus vaccines to the world’s poor over the next twelve months; and no new binding commitments to challenge China’s human rights abuses.

Jonathan Dale, from Manchester and Warrington Area Meeting, which held a vigil for G7 on 4 and 5 June, told the Friend that their banners would stay up until COP26 in November. Friends attended the vigil to urge G7 leaders to take decisive action on climate justice, restore the cuts to the aid budget, and to cancel the debt burden on poorer countries. ‘About forty cards were written [to Boris Johnson on climate justice] by passers-by as well as a good number by those on the vigil,’ he said. ‘We were pleasantly surprised that so many were keen to write a card, and that there was little hesitation about taking a leaflet. We had an interview on Salford City Radio [and] we are trying to use social media to extend the impact of the event. And the banners are staying up for the present, hopefully until COP26.’

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