Advocacy
Action Alerts
The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provided for renewable energy tax incentives, to support the country’s transition to a clean energy economy. The incentives included tax credits for clean vehicles, and for investment and production for clean energy sources. However, the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act phased out those incentives.
Good news, though! The Energy Independence and Affordability Act (EIAA, HR 5862), introduced in October, would restore the incentives. It has been referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
If you have a little time: The UMCJM Advocacy Working Group encourages you to phone or write your Representative in the US House, asking them to learn about the benefits of the EIAA. Republican Representatives are likely to be most interested in how the bill would spur growth in jobs, wages and economic activity. Most Democratic Representatives would like to hear about the bill’s economic as well as environmental benefits, including reducing air and water pollution and preserving the planet for future generations. Independent Representatives are often interested in all benefits. And don’t forget to mention that you’re contacting them because your Christian faith calls you to care for your neighbor and for God’s creation, the planet we all depend on.
If you have more time, and your Representative is in the House Ways and Means Committee:
Please ask your Representative to prioritize a full restoration of the tax credits of the IRA, as the Committee considers, possibly amends, and votes on the EIAA.
Guiding Principles for Public Policy Advocacy
The following principles were written to provide guidance for the Coordinating Team of the United Methodist Creation Justice Movement in deciding what creation justice public policies to support or oppose. It was approved by the Coordinating Team in August of 2021.
See also these two resources from General Board of Church and Society
“Affirmation of Faith” (United Methodist Creation Justice Movement)
“As disciples of Jesus Christ seeking the transformation of the world through the resurrecting power of the Holy Spirit, we are called to the healing of the earth and its many creatures and biosystems, of which human beings are a part, as we strive in hope for the earthly fulfillment of God’s reign of righteousness and justice. With the scriptures, we believe that “the earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it” (Psalm 24:1). The New Testament witnesses to the reconciling ministry of Christ in whom “all things” in heaven and on earth are held together in peace (Colossians 1:15-20). God’s own Spirit, the source of life, groans through the whole of creation in eager longing for redemption (Romans 8:22). We affirm, therefore, that the vocation given by God to humans to “till and keep” the garden of creation (Genesis 2:15) is a call not to “dominion” (Genesis 1:28) understood as domination but to a reverent earthkeeping lived out in loving stewardship of the good earth in anticipation of the coming new creation of “all things” (Revelation 21:5). As heirs of John Wesley, we embrace anew the call to holy living – the loving of God, neighbor, and all creatures – in the whole of life. We acknowledge the interconnectedness of ecological well-being with social justice for all, heeding both the warnings from the scientific community regarding the environmental calamities we face and the cries of the poor and oppressed for political, economic, and cultural equity. Amidst the ecological crises of climate disruption, biodiversity loss, and more, we know that those of us already burdened by poverty, racism, colonial violence, and related forms of social injustice are already suffering the worst effects. We believe, therefore, that the going on to Christian perfection today must include an ever deepening and expanding growth in holiness expressed through concrete acts of personal, congregational, denominational, and public transformation for the sake of the world God so loves.”
In light of the foregoing scriptural/theological foundation, it is clear that love of neighbor (including just treatment of the most vulnerable) and care for all of creation are inextricably linked. The following principles for evaluating public policy flow from that basic recognition. The official stances of the United Methodist Church expressed in the 2016 Social Principles, the proposed Revised Social Principles (for next General Conference), and the 2016 Book of Resolutions were sources in their formulation. They are divided into categories for ease of reference, but are all interrelated and complementary.
Public policy principles of care for the whole community of creation:
Policies should:
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- Affirm the goodness, intrinsic worth, and interrelatedness of all of creation by prioritizing “the protection of all forms of life and natural ecosystems, while supporting human beings to live in a healthy balance with the earth.” (Proposed Revised Social Principles)
- Encourage changes in personal behavior while recognizing that threats to creation are systemic and require a systemic response at all levels of domestic governing bodies and through international cooperation.
- Align with our Wesleyan tradition that affirms the place of reason in the life of faith by supporting the scientific community in its work of identifying the causes of harm to creation and helping shape solutions to undo that harm.
Public policy principles of creation justice for the most vulnerable of our human brothers and sisters:
As ones who have been and continue to be harmed most by the degradation of creation, communities of color, indigenous peoples, and low-wealth communities (environmental justice communities) must not be harmed by but should instead benefit from and have a central role in shaping creation care/justice policies. Such policies should:
- Address past environmental harm and mitigate against future harm to these communities.
- Acknowledge the role that racism has played in environmental injustice and affirm protection from environmental harm as both a civil and a human right.
- Look to the wisdom of indigenous peoples who have a culture of profound respect for the natural world and uphold their rights under treaties and laws to protect their land, air, and water.
- End “sacrifice zones” defined as communities (often low-wealth and/or of color) chronically exposed to lethally-high levels of pollution.
- Provide opportunities for environmental justice communities to participate fully in and benefit from the emerging global clean energy economy through job training and other economic development strategies.
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- Provide redress to communities that are located near or are economically dependent on the extraction, refinement, production, or combustion of fossil fuels, aiding them with cleanup from legacy pollution related to that industry (including fossil fuel waste) and with transition to a clean energy economy.
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- Support poorer nations and indigenous people globally with financial, technical, and other assistance to repair environmental harm.
Public policy principles related to combating climate change and its impacts:
Recognizing that climate change is one of the most urgent threats to creation as a whole, with disproportionate and worsening impacts on communities of color, indigenous peoples, low-wealth communities, and countries around the world least responsible for the climate crisis, and confessing that the United States and other wealthy nations have historically been and continue to be a major emitters of greenhouse gases, these are additional principles related specifically to climate policy. Policies should:
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- Support the rapid reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and enhance carbon sequestration to keep global temperature rise to no more than 1.5C.
- Mitigate the harms of climate change to environmental justice communities and seek solutions that do not negatively impact those already disproportionately harmed communities.
- Provide aid to particularly vulnerable communities with adaptation to climate change that has already occurred or is now unavoidable.
Notes regarding application of these principles
- Depending upon the focus and scope of the policy being assessed, not all policies will need to fulfill all of these principles. It is, however, critically important that policies advocated for are in harmony with both the letter and the spirit of these principles where they apply.
- Knowing that we live in an imperfect world and that the UMCJM will very rarely, if ever, be the author of specific public policies, judgements will have to be prayerfully made on a case-by-case basis about when to support policies that align with most but not all of these principles.
UMCJ Faith Advocacy Webinar Series
Partners in Creation Justice Advocacy*
Interfaith or Christian Interdenominational Groups
The Evangelical Environmental Network
Interfaith Power and Light (Many states have IPL chapters.)
*This list is just a sampling of U.S. organizations. Most Christian denominations and major world religions have Earth care organizations.
Resources
Reflections from COP30
By Rev. Mel Caraway United Methodists were well represented at COP30, both in person and virtually. Rev. Dr. Becca Edwards, Climate Fellow at the General Board of Church and Society and Texas Impact was on the ground in Belém, Brazil during the first week of this...
December 2025 Movement Café: Advent Worship
December 2025 Movement Café: Advent WorshipDecember 17, 2025 10am PT / 11am MT / 12pm CT / 1pm ETSponsored by the United Methodist Creation Justice Movement, the informal, virtual space of the Café facilitates conversation, connection, and community focused on...
December 2025 Tips: Gift Giving
Gift giving started with God, who gave God’s only Son… Wise persons today give their gifts to honor that first Gift.December 2025 Give light. Christmas lights are symbols of the Light that came into the world with the birth of Christ. Enjoy them and use LEDs to take...