A month or so again, we were having our weekly staff meeting at Iowa Interfaith Power & Light (Iowa IPL) where we were starting to dream about how we could build hope for what the future could be.
Our mission is to empower Iowans of faith and conscience to take bold and just action on the climate crisis, and a common thread of all of our focus areas is sharing our climate stories. “What’s your climate story?” began to take shape as a way we could engage our supporters and those in our environmental community to heal and have hope through asking the question.
Below are several responses on hope that we’ve received from individuals across Iowa who are guided by faith and conscience:
- “My faith has led me to realize that we have a duty to be good stewards of the earth that God has given us. We should be kind to it!”
- “My grandkids bring me hope.”
- “Hearing people’s appreciation and love for one another and the planet is what gives me hope for the future—there is always something that connects us and with that the good for each other and the planet will prevail.”
- “My emerging spring flowers renew my hope every year.”
To find hope in the midst of a crisis is hard, yet it is what sustains us to continue to take the action that is needed. Hope is radical climate action in a world that trends towards scarcity instead of the hope of abundance. Hope is countercultural.
As individuals who hold faith close, irrespective of our particular religious background, we unite in a shared sense of what the world could be. Whether we follow Judaism, Islam, Sikhism, Christianity, Indigenous spiritual paths, or any other faith, hope serves as a unifying principle. People like you are turning to faith for inspiration and as a catalyst for positive change.
I strongly believe that spirituality in the 21st century should be firmly anchored in active hope. A crucial aspect of this grounding is our commitment to pursue justice, particularly climate justice. I’m thrilled that my friend, the Rev. Veronica M. Johnson, will be one of the keynote speakers at this year’s event. She will infuse hope with action, guiding us from a mindset of scarcity to embracing something greater than ourselves.
And as we approach Earth Day on April 22, take some time to think about “What’s your climate story?” and how you can infuse it with hope that invites people to join you in climate action.
Furthermore, I encourage you to join Iowa IPL in our efforts to cultivate hope through action, particularly in advocating for climate justice and sharing our personal narratives. To learn more about our mission and to stay updated, please visit iowaipl.org and sign up for our newsletter.
—Deaconess Irene R. DeMaris, M.Div. | Executive Director
Irene DeMaris is a friend of Prairiewoods and the executive director of Iowa Interfaith Power & Light. She looks forward to attending Prairiewoods’ Spirituality in the 21st Century: Hope in Action April 26–27. This year’s event features Susan Bauer-Wu, Rev. Veronica M. Johnson, Leah Rampy and musician Sara Thomsen. Learn more at prairiewoods.org/spirituality-in-the-21st-century.