Challenge for 2010 Challenge for 2010
Keep climate top Keep climate top

Ring the bells

If your church has bells, it would be great if you could coordinate to ring them one Saturday in the run up to the UN climate negotiations which begin in Copenhagen on 7 December 2009. We suggest you ring them at a time when people will hear them and when they will not be expecting them. The middle of the afternoon on a Saturday might work well.
- You could ring one bell 15 times because the UN climate summit in Copenhagen will be the 15th of its kind.
- Or you might prefer to ring bells for 2 minutes to symbolize the 2 degrees limit (it is vital that we keep global temperature rise as far below 2 degrees as possible to avoid catastrophic climate change).

Whatever you choose, this is a great way to make some noise in your community that raises awareness about climate change and your church’s commitment to climate justice. Please share your plans with us by emailing campaigning@tearfund.org
 
Maximising your impact 

Here are a few suggestions of how you might publicise the event and make sure people know why you're ringing the bells for climate justice:
- put a notice in your church notice sheet, parish newsletter or magazine before the event
- Make a poster and display it somewhere prominent
- Contact local newspapers and radio stations with a short press release, explaining what you are doing and why. Include a short quote and contact details of a spokesperson. If you are happy to, offer a date, time and location for a photo opportunity (if appropriate, the bell tower would be ideal)
- Take a photo of the bell ringing moment and send it to your local paper with a short press release telling them what you have done and why
- Write a short letter to local press explaining the bell ringing event and use it as an opportunity to call on the UK government to work for a strong and fair climate deal in Copenhagen. Consider using the specific policy points found here.
Bell free? 
If you don’t have any bells to ring it needn’t stop you. Think about whether you could use musical instruments, voices or even street theatre to make an impact where you are.

This page was last updated on 17 February 2010

Climate Justice Fund is the Church of England’s national environmental fund, run in partnership with Tearfund. Email: climate.justice@c-of-e.org.uk

About the Church of England: The Church of England provides a Christian presence in every community. It plays a vital role in the life of the nation, proclaiming the Christian gospel in words and actions and providing services of Christian worship and praise.

The Church of England’s Archbishops’ Council is a registered charity No. 1074857.       Email: enquiries@c-of-e.org.uk       Tel: 020 7898 1200

About Tearfund: We are Christians passionate about the local church bringing justice and transforming lives - overcoming global poverty.
So our ten-year vision is to see 50 million people released from material and spiritual poverty through a worldwide network of 100,000 local churches.

Tearfund is a registered charity No. 265464 (England and Wales) No. SC037624 (Scotland)      Email: enquiries@tearfund.org      Tel: 0845 355 8355