The Burke Lectureship Welcomes Bill McKibben: Climate, Faith, and Collective Responsibility
McKibben’s groundbreaking 1989 book argued humanity’s impact, particularly through the greenhouse effect, had fundamentally altered the planet.
“It would help if we had an Old Testament commitment to stewarding creation and a New Testament commitment to loving our neighbors,” he said in response to a question about moral frameworks for the climate movement. This draws on the biblical ideas that humans are entrusted with caring for the Earth, while also extending compassion to others, especially those who will be most vulnerable to climate change’s impacts.
Yet faith and Christian values are not the only frameworks he points to. When asked about other guiding principles, he emphasized the importance of science:
“A shared commitment to the framework of science—which I think is a moral framework—would surely help,” he wrote. “We simply have to be willing to accept physics and chemistry as real even when they point us places we’d prefer not to go, like away from fossil fuels.”
For Andrew Waltz, Director of Arts Management for UC San Diego Division of Extended Studies, this integration of faith, identity and activism is part of what makes McKibben such a compelling choice and representative thought leader for the Burke Lectureship.
“Bill McKibben’s religious identity is deeply interwoven with the practical and moral frameworks he advances,” said Waltz. “That integration of faith and action, particularly in how it shapes his civic engagement and broader social efforts, makes him a natural and compelling choice for the Burke Lectureship.”