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BIC New York: Recasting humanity’s relationship with natural world


6 images are shown of nature and people in nature
Released on the occasion of Stockholm+50, the BIC explores root causes of escalating environmental breakdown and highlights principles and proposals for action.

BIC NEW YORK — “Will humanity act on the truth that its own destiny and that of the planet are irrevocably intertwined? Or will still greater calamities be required to move it to action?” asks the Bahá’í International Community (BIC) in a statement it recently released on the occasion of Stockholm+50.

“Climate change and other major crises in the world are compelling humanity to recognize its singular existence as a species, and therefore, its need for new patterns of organization that are commensurate with today's needs,” said Daniel Perell, a representative of the BIC, at a discussion forum held at the Swedish Parliament and co-hosted by the BIC with two Swedish MPs, and other civil society organizations.

an image is shown of a book cover
This major statement by the Bahá’í International Community (BIC) offers a Bahá’í perspective on recasting humanity’s relationship with the natural world.

The statement presents a thought-provoking reading of the root causes of escalating environmental breakdown and highlights principles and proposals for action that draw on experiences over many decades “where the international community not only imagined a better world, but attempted action along paths previously untraveled.”


At its heart, the statement underlines the gap between intention and action as one of the central challenges facing humanity. This gap, says the BIC, can be bridged by efforts of individuals, communities, and nations who are contributing their share toward this goal every day. However, the pace of transformation has not yet risen to the demands of the moment.


“For action to rise to the scales required, far stronger consensus and collective will among the nations is needed around the values demanded by the current stage of humanity’s development,” reads the statement.

an image is shown of a very green forest, with an article shown next to it about the beauty of the natural world
Some of the themes explored by the BIC in “One Planet, One Habitation” include: the essential principle of humanity’s oneness as the only foundation on which sustainable societies can be raised; justice as process and outcome; consultation and fostering consensus in action; and redefining notions of progress and development.

Some of the themes explored by the BIC in One Planet, One Habitation include: the essential principle of humanity’s oneness as the only foundation on which sustainable societies can be raised; justice as process and outcome; consultation and fostering consensus in action; and redefining notions of progress and development.


Among the proposals offered in the statement are some concerning the important role of government in building a more sustainable world. For example, the BIC suggests that a mechanism to ensure global tax coordination and a framework for regulating illicit financial flows could reduce the disparities of wealth between nations, allowing them to raise resources to address pressing and future requirements.

an image is shown of a discussion forum with lots of people sitting at tables, and a few people up at the front talking
Pictured here is a discussion forum associated with Stockholm+50, held at the Swedish Parliament and co-hosted by the BIC with two Swedish MPs, and other civil society organizations. The panel was moderated by Anders Österberg and Mattias Vepsä, Swedish Members of Parliament. Panel participants, left to right: Daniel Perell, representative of the BIC; Augusto Lopez Claros, Executive Director of the Global Governance Forum; Sylvia Karlsson-Vinkhuyzen, Governing Board member of the International Environment Forum; and Peter Aburi, representative of the BIC. Maria Fernanda Espinosa, former President of the United Nations General Assembly and member of Global Women Leaders: Voices for Change and Inclusion; and Maja Groff, Convener of the Climate Governance Commission, joined virtually.

Maria Fernanda Espinosa, former President of the United Nations General Assembly, expressed her appreciation for these ideas, stating that “a new pact for the future requires a values-based multilateral system.”


She added: “This is not an abstract statement. It requires the redistribution of wealth and power and a transition from greed to solidarity, from prejudice to empathy and kindness, from indifference and hate to radical love for humankind and nature.”


One Planet, One Habitation is among the latest of the BIC’s ongoing contribution to the discourse on the environment. Other significant statements include those submitted to the 21st meeting of the UNFCCC Conference of Parties in Paris in 2015, to the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development or “Earth Summit”, and to the original 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment.

4 images are shown of various events involving the importance of unity and nature
“One Planet, One Habitation” is among the latest of the BIC’s ongoing contribution to the discourse on the environment. Seen here are some of the many international forums in which BIC representatives contribute to thinking about climate change and other related issues.

Originally published on the Baha'i World News Service

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