Bishop Rose Okeno of the Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) Diocese of Butere has urged Christians to commemorate National Mazingira Day by embracing their role as environmental stewards. She highlighted the critical importance of tree planting as a strategy for environmental preservation, encouraging community members to plant trees in parishes, daughter churches, and their homes.
Bishop Okeno delivered these remarks on Thursday morning during a ceremony where she blessed trees donated by the diocese to various parishes. Earlier, the Diocesan Administrative Secretary, Rev. Canon Silas Hopillo, drawing inspiration from Genesis 1:10-12, motivated Christians to continue the divine act of creation as ordained by God.
The ACK Diocese of Butere is actively participating in climate mitigation initiatives, acknowledging climate change as a significant threat to public health. The detrimental impacts of climate change are already apparent, manifesting through air pollution, the spread of diseases, extreme weather events, forced displacement, mental health challenges, and increased hunger and malnutrition in areas where food production and availability are compromised.
Women and young girls are affected by the adverse effects of climate change, facing poverty and food insecurity while experiencing heightened risks of gender-based violence, displacement, and adverse health outcomes. This crisis exacerbates existing inequalities by increasing the burden of domestic labor on women, hindering girls’ access to education, and making them more vulnerable during extreme weather events and subsequent resource shortages.