National Faith + Climate Forum 2026

11:00 am ET
Eastern + Central
In-Person Open Networking

For in-person participants in the Eastern and Central time zones, engage with fellow participants in this networking session before the livestream programming begins. Connect with others, exchange ideas, and prepare for a day of insightful discussions and meaningful action.

12:00 pm ET
Opening Prayer + Welcome

Begin the forum with an opening prayer, a land acknowledgment, and reflections on the spiritual call to imagine and build a thriving future for our congregations and communities. We will open our hearts to the possibilities of restoration, justice, and collective action as we step into this shared work.

Speaker(s): Rev. Carol Devine, Director, Blessed Tomorrow

12:15 pm ET
Opening Keynote

Envision a restored creation in balance, a world where communities flourish because faith and climate action are deeply intertwined. Drawing on What If We Get It Right?, the session explores how collective wisdom, justice, and creativity can shape a hopeful future. Participants will be inspired to imagine what congregations can build spiritually, socially, and environmentally when people of faith lead with courage, compassion, and clarity.

Speaker(s): Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, Author of What If We Get It Right?, co-founder of Urban Ocean Lab, co-editor of All We Can Save, and co-creator How to Save a Planet

12:30 pm ET
The Pastor’s Call: Preaching
That Moves People to Act

Congregations look to spiritual leaders for guidance on the challenges shaping their lives and communities, yet climate and creation care are rarely addressed in preaching. Research shows that when clergy speak about these issues, congregations are more likely to engage in solutions. This session offers practical tools to help faith leaders integrate creation care into sermons in ways that inspire hope, clarity, and action.

12:50 pm ET
Break + Musical Interlude

Take a brief pause and enjoy music that nurtures reflection and renewal.

1:00 pm ET
Caring for the Earth: Stories from Faith Communities

Join us for the launch of Caring for the Earth: Stories from Faith Communities, a new seven-part film series designed to spark meaningful conversations, strengthen relationships, and inspire collective climate action within congregations and communities. This special session will feature a screening of “Called by Faith: How Will You Answer?”, a film that explores how faith and values call people to respond to the climate crisis with courage, compassion, and hope. Participants will learn how the Caring for the Earth series can be used in congregations and community settings to deepen dialogue, inspire leadership, and move from concern to action.

Speaker(s): Rev. Margaret Brack, Rector, St. Alban’s Episcopal Church in Salisbury, Maryland; Rabbi Seth Goldstein, Temple Beth Hatfiloh; Rev. Dr. Carmelo Santos-Rolón, Director for Theological Diversity, Ecumenical + Interreligious Engagement, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

1:30 pm ET
Youth Visions 2050:
Imagining What’s Possible

Young leaders from diverse traditions share bold visions for the world they hope to inherit and the future they are already helping to shape. This three-part session features youth advocates lifting up justice and climate leadership, a segment on how teaching young people to grow food builds agency, resilience, and a grounded faith through connection with the soil, and a lively Climate at the Dinner Table Skit that uses humor to model how climate conversations can unfold with courage, compassion, and joy.

Speaker(s): Vic Collins, MDiv Student, Princeton Theological Seminary; Brooke Elness, Youth Activist, EcoFaith Network NE-MN Synod ELCA; Addie Flesch, ELCA Climate Leader, St. Olaf College; Raphaela Gold, Student, Princeton University; Ruby Martinez, Program Coordinator, Eden Village Camp; Paavo Rundman, ELCA Climate Leader, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

2:00 pm ET
Engagement Activity – Finding Your Climate Calling: What Can I Do?

Our faith calls each of us to play a role in caring for creation and supporting the wellbeing of our communities. What role can you personally play in addressing the climate crisis? Together, we will complete the Climate Action Venn Diagram activity to identify meaningful climate actions aligned with your skills, community needs, and sense of purpose.

2:20 pm ET
Stories of Renewal:
Faith Communities Rising After Climate Disaster

Hear powerful updates from congregations impacted by the LA fires and Hurricane Helene, and the faith leaders who have guided their communities through recovery, healing, and rebuilding. These stories show how spiritual leadership, compassion, and community connection create pathways to resilience in the wake of devastating climate events. Participants will witness what renewal looks like when congregations lean into faith, hope, and collective care.

Speaker(s): Rev. Mary Ann Harrison, Pastor, Christ the Shepherd Lutheran Church; Julie Lehman, Engagement Manager, Creation Care Alliance of WNC; Rev. Phoebe Presson, Executive Assistant Bishop Teresa E. Snorton, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church

2:40 pm ET
Break + Musical Interlude

Enjoy a musical interlude to reset and reflect.

2:50 pm ET
Ambassador Spotlight:
Leading Change in Your Congregation

Hear directly from Blessed Tomorrow Climate Ambassadors who are helping their congregations turn faith into action through creation care and community leadership. Their stories offer a glimpse of what becomes possible when local leadership, shared purpose, and faithful action come together to inspire meaningful change. Participants will learn how to take the training, host a session in their own community, and join a growing network of faith leaders driving climate action nationwide.

3:00 pm ET
Faith in Practice: Building Resilient Congregations Today

Congregations are taking meaningful climate action right now. Learn from communities leading in renewable energy, land stewardship, local food security, and carbon-neutral initiatives. Featuring replicable models to build resilience through solar projects, land stewardship, and more, this session equips participants with actionable ideas and tools to bring home to their own communities, strengthening resilience and creation care from the ground up.

Speaker(s): Bishop Michael L. Mitchell, 134th Elected + Consecrated Bishop, Presiding Prelate of the 6th Episcopal District, African Methodist Episcopal Church; Rev. Ryan Pryor, Lead Pastor, Mission Hills Christian Church

3:40 pm ET
Break + Musical Interlude

A short break accompanied by music to ground and uplift the spirit.

3:50 pm ET
Reconsidering Our Relationship with Creation

Explore how Indigenous wisdom offers a deeper understanding of our relationship with creation, emphasizing harmony, interconnectedness, and mutual care within the whole community of life. Drawing from Indigenous perspectives and lived practice, reflect on how faith communities might reexamine their relationship with land, water, and the natural world, and how these perspectives can shape more compassionate, sustainable ways of living together. Through this lens, we will consider how faith, justice, and care for creation are inseparable in the work of sustaining both communities and the Earth.

Speaker(s): Sue Ernster, FSPA, FSPA President, Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration; Rev. Dr. Randy Woodley, Founder + Co-sustainer, Eloheh Indigenous Center for Earth Justice/Eagle’s Wings

4:20 pm ET
Faith, Democracy, and the 2026 Midterms: Protecting Our Communities

As the 2026 midterms approach, faith communities play a crucial role in supporting safe, accessible, and nonpartisan civic participation. This two-part session explores why voting and civic participation are expressions of faith and moral responsibility, offering a theological grounding for the role people of faith play in sustaining a just democracy. It then provides guidance on voter access, removing barriers for marginalized communities, legal 501(c)(3) engagement, and tools for congregational voter education.

Speaker(s): Rev. Dr. Jim Antal, Special Advisor on Climate Justice to the General Minister + President, United Church of Christ; Rabbi Jennie Rosenn, Founder + CEO, Dayenu: A Jewish Call to Climate Action; Rev. Dr. Da’Henri R. Thurmond, Sr., Senior Pastor, St. Paul C.M.E. Church in Savannah, Georgia

4:50 pm ET
Building the Future Together

Explore how collaboration among congregations, community organizations, interfaith coalitions, and climate justice movements accelerates progress.

Speaker(s): Rev. Dr. Rosetta Robinson Battle, Founder, The Heartsing Table; Rev. Carol Devine, Senior Director, Blessed Tomorrow; Ben Fulgencio-Turner, Senior Director, Climate for Health; Kathy Martin, Creation Care Co-chair, Camp Chapel United Methodist Church; Brett Matulis, Director, Communities Program; Stephen Tickner, Pastor, North Chevy Chase Christian Church; Mary Triandafilou, Co-chair, Green Team, Saint Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church; Dr. Rebecca Wiese, Physician, retired ELCA Deacon, Quad Cities Interfaith Creation Care

*SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT*: Grant money is available to support your congregation’s climate action efforts. This funding is aimed at enhancing collaboration and partnerships in your local community, empowering faith-based organizations to make a significant impact on climate action. Don’t miss this incredible opportunity!

5:10 pm ET
Closing: Faith for a Thriving Tomorrow

A final blessing calling us to claim the future we choose, one rooted in thriving congregations, just communities, and a restored creation. Rev.Carol Devine will offer concluding reflections to send participants forward with clarity, courage, and hope.

Speaker(s): Rev. Carol Devine, Director, Blessed Tomorrow

5:30 pm ET
Closing Ritual: Collective
Blessing + Song

Sing along to ‘One Home One Future Hymn,’ celebrating our shared commitment to building a thriving and just future for all. This closing song serves as a powerful reminder of the unity and purpose that drive our climate action.

5:30 pm ET
Pacific + Mountain In Person
Gatherings Open Networking

For in-person participants in the Pacific and Mountain time zones, engage with fellow participants in this networking session before the livestream programming begins. Connect with others, exchange ideas, and prepare for a day of insightful discussions and meaningful action.