Overview
North Carolina Interfaith Power & Light (NCIPL) works with faith communities to identify and implement positive, hope-filled responses to climate change as a moral imperative.
NCIPL is a program of the North Carolina Council of Churches, comprised of 25 distinct judicatories from 17 denominations with 1.5 million congregants across the state. In 2005, NCIPL became the 16th state affiliate of the national Interfaith Power & Light Campaign. There are now Interfaith Power & Light affiliates in 40 states in over 18,000 congregations.
NCIPL is the only NC-based statewide organization that works on addressing the ecological and justice issues of climate change as a faith-based initiative.
Advocacy Goals
It has become increasingly clear that faith-based messages and messengers provide new angles on climate change issues. Our goal is to develop a passionate and educated chorus of faith voices that we can bring to the policy discussion on critical issues related to climate mitigation and adaptation. We work with lay and ordained faith leaders to develop their individual faith voices to apply to appropriate local and state-level energy and climate issues, develop relationships with elected officials, and participate in constructive and collaborative ways to influence energy policy and foster local and state-wide resilience. This dovetails with more standard environmental advocacy, adding a new dimension that is firmly grounded in science while being languaged in faith, ethics and personal terms.
Program Focus
NCIPL core programs promote a variety of solutions to mitigate future climate change, including energy efficiency and conservation, increased renewable energy use, and collective low-carbon lifestyle changes. NCIPL programs encourage congregations, clergy, and judicatories to be educated about and able to articulate the moral dimensions of climate change and energy justice issues from a faith perspective.
Although motivating congregations to implement climate mitigation is NCIPL’s major target, we know that many of our constituents have not yet made the connections between their own lives and how climate change already is affecting daily life. Engaging faith communities in “climate conversations” about local impacts leads people not only to prepare for impending disasters, but also to be inspired to prevent them preemptively.
NCIPL has organized/participated in thousands of statewide, regional, and national events including workshops, presentations, film screenings, media campaigns, and religious events. We emphasize the interfaith nature of our work and the theological call to care for creation and the importance of sharing success stories that can lead the way for others.
NCIPL is a fiscally autonomous program and operates entirely by restricted funds. NC Council of Churches 501c3 Federal ID number is used on IRS tax donation receipts. DONATE TODAY!
