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Society, Religion and Technology Project Church of Scotland Looking at the ethics of technology for a New Millennium

Tel. 0131-240 2250, Fax 0131-240 2239 Email: srtp@srtp.org.uk http://www.srtp.org.uk

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First Minister Jack McConnell has invited a Scottish churches representative as part of a six person delegation representing Scottish civic society to the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg later this month. Dr Donald Bruce, Director of the Church of Scotland's Society Religion and Technology Project will represent both Action of Churches Together in Scotland and the various overseas aid and development organisations in Scotland.

"This is an exciting opportunity for churches and civil society generally in Scotland to play an active role in this crucial international summit," says Dr Bruce. "Sustainable Development is the biggest long term issue on the planet. In the 10 years since the Earth Summit in Rio put it on the international agenda, we have seen sustainable development too often playing second fiddle to economics, vested powers and to our own human natures - as the 2001 fuel price protests showed. Jo'burg represents a chance for Governments and people to push the global environment and social justice back up the political and personal agenda, where it belongs."

The UK is well placed and the Scottish voice is important. We are a small nation with a big environmental impact, and in the churches and aid agencies we have links throughout the developing world. In Johannesburg Dr Bruce will have three roles:

• looking to feed concerns of Scottish civic society into the negotiations at appropriate levels;
• seeing insights, initiatives and ideas to bring back to Scotland and put into practice;
• working with a World Council of Churches' team and development groups from across the globe, lobbying for justice for the poor, care for God's creation, and continuing to challenge underlying values which hold back achieving sustainable communities in our countries.

"Sustainable development affects everyone and it starts at home," says Dr Bruce. "We're all in it together. The churches are in a better position than most to make the links internationally and at home." The churches together can make a difference. UK Church leaders are urging churches throughout the UK to promote the issues of concern at Johannesburg; see the UK Churches' Briefing Materials for the World Summit. Scottish churches are putting their own house in order through the Scottish Eco-Congregation Programme begun last year with the Government's environmental campaigns organisation EnCams, as part of the UK-wide Eco-Congregation Programme. Many churches are now exploring what can be done in our own places and lives to put more emphasis on care for our environment. In June SRT appointed an Assistant Director, Victoria Beale, who will help carry the scheme forward in the churches, together with Margaret Warnock of Forth Environment Link and Keep Scotland Beautiful.

But Jo'burg is equally about what Governments and corporations can do. There are some serious clashes of interests and very real dilemmas. One of the top issues at the Summit is the urgent need to establish a fairer system of world trade between rich and poor nations. Any agreements made over environment and social issues risk being overruled by global trade rules if proper safeguards are not put in place. Scottish development agencies and the churches are also calling for just ways to be found to allow nations of the south a fair entry to world markets without disabling our own fragile Scottish rural economy. After the Summit, these global issues need translating more into Scottish life, promoting corporate responsibility, putting international perspectives more centrally in the education system. "Let sustainability change our lives for good." concludes Dr Bruce.

For More Information

The Society, Religion and Technology Project of the Church of Scotland has been engaged with a broad range of environmental and social issues since it was set up in 1970. It is in the forefront of ethical issues in agricultural and human biotechnology at national and international levels, and is also involved with energy policy and climate change, globalisation and agriculture, risk and patenting. including environment and biotechnology. SRT's Director Dr Bruce is also a member of the newly formed Scottish Science Advisory Committee and is an official observer to the Global Summit of National Bioethics Committees.

This page was produced on 10 August 2002.