The Global Summit of Religious Leaders within the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) - BAKU DECLARATION

The Global Summit of Religious Leaders within COP29 was held in Baku on November 5-6, 2024, under the auspices of His Excellency Ilham Aliyev, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The Summit, held under the slogan "World Religions for a Green Planet", was organized by the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations, the Muslim Council of Elders, The UN Environment Program (UNEP) and the Caucasus Muslims Board. The event was attended by approximately 300 prominent world religious leaders, representatives of foreign governments, high-ranking UN officials, heads of international organizations, , scientists and religious figures.

The Participants of the Summit of “World Religions for a Green Planet”,

Expressing their deep concern about global climate change, loss of the biodiversity, desertification, drought, land degradation, forest fires, environmental pollution, food security and water scarcity, and noting the importance of accelerating joint efforts to discuss the causes of these problems, and to create and improve healthy ecosystems;

Welcoming the Abu Dhabi Interfaith Statement, signed in 2023 at the COP28 Global Summit of Religious Leaders in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates;

Emphasizing the importance of the Joint Document "Human Fraternity, World Peace and Coexistence", signed by His Holiness Pope Francis and the His Eminence Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmed Al-Tayyeb in Abu Dhabi on 4 February 2019 for the development of interreligious cooperation;

Expressing gratitude to His Excellency Ilham Aliyev, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan for his patronage and special attention and his meaningful address to the Global Summit of Religious Leaders within the framework of COP29 and wishing the COP29 success in its work;

Emphasizing the importance of strengthening inter-civilizational and interreligious relations, national and cultural values and knowledge, as well as traditions of multiculturalism in fostering mutual trust, unity and harmony, and awareness on climate change;

Emphasizing the Summit's support for the "Religious Pavilion" organized by the Muslim Council of Elders as a global platform for dialogue between religious leaders to find effective solutions to climate issues;

Applauding the Republic of Azerbaijan for taking leadership in fighting climate crisis and addressing environmental issues and in this context, designating the year of 2024 as the "Year of Solidarity for a Green World";

Appreciating the significance of the "Baku Process" initiated by the Head of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and the Global Intercultural Dialogue forums aimed at developing inter-civilizational dialogue, as well as the Baku International Humanitarian Forums, the Summits of World Religious Leaders, the 7th Global Forum of the UN Alliance of Civilizations, the International Baku Conference "Religions and Intercultural Cooperation";

Noting the significance of the other important religious forums, inter alia, the Astana Congresses of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, the Bahrain Dialogue Forum, the G20 Interfaith Forums, the previous COP Global Summit of Religious Leaders on Climate Change, the "Saudi Media Forum" and acknowledging their contribution to mutual trust, unity and harmony;

Emphasizing the need for regularly hold interreligious events of this kind, where representatives of Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist and other faiths and beliefs from different regions of the world, could come together to voice up a unified and unanimous position on the problems threatening the modern world;

Expressing deep concern on ravaging armed conflicts, acts of terrorism, and violence on religious and ethnic grounds, accompanied by human casualties, environmental disasters, plundering and destruction of cultural and religious heritage, as well as the grave consequences of the acts of ecocide and urbicide policies for combatting climate change;

Call upon states, international, regional, religious, public organizations and religious leaders:

• to actively participate in public discussions on combatting climate change and rally global support to make the vision for a greener future reality;
• to recognize the sanctity of human life and nature, to respect the values ​​​​of protecting all living beings and the nature, and to advocate for environmental equality and justice;
• to take a more active role in the process of solving the global environmental crisis and keeping the limit of global temperature increase at 1.5 degrees to protect nature;
• to work together to support the implementation and furthering the long-term goals of the Paris Climate Agreement;
• to foster an inclusive process in combatting climate change with a special focus on the involvement of representatives of different religions and faiths, policy makers, scholars, women, youth, indigenous people, local communities, the civil society and business circles and other stakeholders in joint discussions;
• to contribute into global peace agenda by calling on and actively working for an end of armed conflicts, extreme violence, acts of ecocide and urbicide, which hamper collective efforts to fight climate change by causing food insecurity, violence, arm race for mass destruction, destroying natural sinks and reservoirs and degrading soil and water basins, among others;
• to emphasize the need to take a single common position against attempts of terrorist and extremist groups to use the name of religion for their insidious purposes;
• to expand cooperation in preventing harmful ideologies and calls for hatred that incite racial, religious and ethnic violence, using the media and information technologies;
• to condemn acts of vandalism against religious symbols, shrines and attributes, to counter justification of such actions under the pretext of democracy and freedom of speech;
• to encourage education of young people in the field of equal citizenship, human fraternity, as well as environmental protection and the role of the media in these processes with the aim of more active participation in the fight against xenophobia and discrimination;
• to attach particular importance to ensuring human rights in a clean, healthy, stable and sustainable societies;
• to condemn the irresponsible and overuse of natural sinks and reservoirs highlighting their particular significance in combatting climate change
• to more effectively use the potentials of religions and faiths in solving problems related to climate change.
• to support the protection of religious, cultural and ethnic diversity, respect for it, to promote the eco-ethics based on the spiritual and moral values ​​of world religions.

 Baku city, November 6, 2024