222
R. Gard
response to Tropical Cyclone Winston (Gard and Veitayaki 2017; Nunn 2017). Religious leaders can and do profoundly influence community engagement and response
to climate change adaptation initiatives. Thus, I maintain the greatest chance for a
sustainable and successful climate change response lies in rowing on both sides of
our canoe—which is to say that response efforts that are both scientifically rigorous
and spiritually informed, while simultaneously being locally integrated and culturally meaningful (i.e. bottom-up), as well as being a part of a wider international (i.e.
top-down) strategy are a critical area for future cultivation.
Opportunities for Future Research
There is considerable opportunity for future research in this area. As Hagevi notes,
“[in] the future, it is essential to conduct more comparative research regarding the
elusive relationship between religiosity and environmental opinion” (2014: 105).
As part of this elusive relationship between religiosity and environmental opinion,
there are two opportunities that immediately come to mind, though in truth there are
numerous opportunities in this area. The first being to further explore the success of
the Polynesian Voyaging Society, most especially the M¯ alama Honua (“to care for
our Earth”) Worldwide Voyage, where the traditional voyaging vaka H¯ ok¯ ule‘a (“Star
of Gladness”) without the aid of any modern instrumentation circumnavigated the
globe from 2013 through 2017. In many ways, the Polynesian Voyaging Society has
successfully integrated scientific principles, spiritual and religious beliefs and longheld traditional Hawaiian knowledge in a synthesis of climate change leadership that
has inspired communities around the world to now take action in their own right.
Whilst the second and more broad opportunity, explores the overlaps and interface
of religious stakeholders and environmental campaigners in Oceania, such as with
350.org and the Pacific Climate Warriors, the Pacific Conference of Churches and
World Conference of Churches.
References
Alan ver Beek K (2000) Spirituality: a development taboo, Dev Pract 10(1): 31–43
Andrew NL, Bright P, de la Rua L, Teoh SJ, Vickers M (2019) Coastal proximity of populations in
22 Pacific Island countries and territories. PLoS ONE 14(9):e0223249
Appadurai A (1990) Disjuncture and difference in the global cultural economy. Theory, Culture &
Society. 7:295–310
Bolatagici L (2016) Food supply runs short. The Fiji Times, 21 May 2016. Online. Accessed 15
December 2016
Carr ME, Rubenstein M, Graff A, Villarreal D (2014) Sea level rise in a changing climate: what
do we know? In: Gerrard MB, Wannier G (eds) Threatened island nations: legal implications of
rising seas and a changing climate. Cambridge University Press, pp 15–54
Charlton J (2000) Nothing about us without us. Disability oppression and empowerment. University
of California Press, CA
R. Gard
response to Tropical Cyclone Winston (Gard and Veitayaki 2017; Nunn 2017). Religious leaders can and do profoundly influence community engagement and response
to climate change adaptation initiatives. Thus, I maintain the greatest chance for a
sustainable and successful climate change response lies in rowing on both sides of
our canoe—which is to say that response efforts that are both scientifically rigorous
and spiritually informed, while simultaneously being locally integrated and culturally meaningful (i.e. bottom-up), as well as being a part of a wider international (i.e.
top-down) strategy are a critical area for future cultivation.
Opportunities for Future Research
There is considerable opportunity for future research in this area. As Hagevi notes,
“[in] the future, it is essential to conduct more comparative research regarding the
elusive relationship between religiosity and environmental opinion” (2014: 105).
As part of this elusive relationship between religiosity and environmental opinion,
there are two opportunities that immediately come to mind, though in truth there are
numerous opportunities in this area. The first being to further explore the success of
the Polynesian Voyaging Society, most especially the M¯ alama Honua (“to care for
our Earth”) Worldwide Voyage, where the traditional voyaging vaka H¯ ok¯ ule‘a (“Star
of Gladness”) without the aid of any modern instrumentation circumnavigated the
globe from 2013 through 2017. In many ways, the Polynesian Voyaging Society has
successfully integrated scientific principles, spiritual and religious beliefs and longheld traditional Hawaiian knowledge in a synthesis of climate change leadership that
has inspired communities around the world to now take action in their own right.
Whilst the second and more broad opportunity, explores the overlaps and interface
of religious stakeholders and environmental campaigners in Oceania, such as with
350.org and the Pacific Climate Warriors, the Pacific Conference of Churches and
World Conference of Churches.
References
Alan ver Beek K (2000) Spirituality: a development taboo, Dev Pract 10(1): 31–43
Andrew NL, Bright P, de la Rua L, Teoh SJ, Vickers M (2019) Coastal proximity of populations in
22 Pacific Island countries and territories. PLoS ONE 14(9):e0223249
Appadurai A (1990) Disjuncture and difference in the global cultural economy. Theory, Culture &
Society. 7:295–310
Bolatagici L (2016) Food supply runs short. The Fiji Times, 21 May 2016. Online. Accessed 15
December 2016
Carr ME, Rubenstein M, Graff A, Villarreal D (2014) Sea level rise in a changing climate: what
do we know? In: Gerrard MB, Wannier G (eds) Threatened island nations: legal implications of
rising seas and a changing climate. Cambridge University Press, pp 15–54
Charlton J (2000) Nothing about us without us. Disability oppression and empowerment. University
of California Press, CA