Amritsar to Join Worldwide Movement to Green Religious Cities
Pictures: the Golden Temple, Amritsar by Ravneet Pal Singh (EcoSikh), the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, Italy Dome of the Rock,
Jerusalem by Rina Castelnuov
Washington, October 26, 2011: The city of Amritsar will formally join the Green Pilgrim Cities Network, the first global network aimed at greening pilgrimage to be launched in Assisi, Italy, from October 31 to November 2, 2011. The event is organised by the Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC) in association with WWF and it will be chaired by His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh , husband of Queen Elizabeth, who is also the head of World Wildllife Fund (WWF)
The Green Pilgrimage Network will help the faiths make their holy cities and sacred sites as environmentally sustainable as possible according to their own theologies and understanding. Pilgrimage is the world’s biggest travel event, with millions of people becoming pilgrims every year, whether for a few hours, days or even weeks.
Ten faith traditions have nominated pilgrim cities or sacred sites to become founding members of the Green Pilgrimage Network, ranging as far afield as Louguan in the People’s Republic of China for Daoists to St Albans in the UK for Anglicans and Amritsar for the Sikhs. The city authorities of Jerusalem, a major pilgrimage destination for three faiths – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – will join the network to green the city for all pilgrims. In addition, Dwarka is also joining from India. Washington based EcoSikh has coordinated the Sikh participation in the upcoming summit and has worked with SGPC and the Punjab Government to make Sikh commitment to make Amritsar an environmentally friendly city.
The initiative was started when Bandana Kaur from EcoSikh and Victoria Finlay from ARC, the two organizations working with Sikh community on environmental issues, met with City officials in Amritsar to discuss the plans. With the strong relationship between Sikh teachings and the environment, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee President Avtar Singh Makkar and Punjab Pollution Control Board Chairman Kahn Singh Pannu readily agreed that Amritsar would be a great addition to the Green Pilgrim Cities Network.
At Assisi, PPCB Chairman, K.S. Pannu along with the Secretary of SGPC, Dalmegh Singh, will announce the Sikh commitment. Mr Pannu said, “This is major step to bring together faith and environment in a concrete manner. I am very excited to be part of this initiative.”
Dalmegh Singh said, “SGPC has taken major steps to make environment as an important agenda in its operation and is committed to make the city of Guru Ram Dass ji a place of inspiration for nature preservation.”
Dr. Rajwant Singh, President of EcoSikh, said, “this is a great opportunity for Sikhs to show to the world that we are committed to save mother earth and this will start with our concerted action in Amritsar. The idea is to improve the environmental practices through eco-friendly planning, and at the heart is the hope that devotees will be encouraged to be respectful to nature and the environment throughout their pilgrimage by minimizing waste.
Martin Palmer, Secretary General of ARC, said, “With over 300 million followers worldwide visiting religious cities each year, the potential is tremendous to connect people to the ecological principles of their faith during their journeys.” The network will also bring partners together to create sustainable cities worldwide through sustainable infrastructure, recycling and better waste management, introducing more low-carbon transport, increasing green cover and open spaces, and also sharing information on greening strategies between cities that join the network.
Through the leadership of K.S. Pannu, the head of the Punjab Pollution Control Board, Amritsar has already taken big steps towards protecting the environment by increasing the forest cover by planting over 130,000 trees in the district in remembrance of Guru Har Rai Ji and also by introducing eco-rickshaws to reduce pollution in the city. Of all districts in Punjab, Amritsar District has had the largest increase in forest cover and is providing better options for pedestrians to travel by foot around the city. Ravneet Pal Singh, Project Manager for EcoSikh, who planned the first Sikh environment day this year on March 14 said, “This is a huge step forward for Sikhs as environmental issues take on more importance for this century. With Amritsar’s leadership, cities across Punjab can move forward to create a greener, more beautiful environment for us all.”
The 2011 Assisi event will begin on the evening of Monday October 31 with a dazzling celebration in the 13th century Palazzo Monte Frumentario. The ceremony will bring together music, dance, ritual and teaching from many religions and cultures, illustrating their common sacred mission to care for the natural world with examples of projects worldwide.
Following this inspirational opening, some 90 delegates from around the world, representing all the major faiths, will attend a two-day conference. The delegates will look at the way forward for religion and environmentalism in the light of their long-term plans and the challenges they face.
Rajwant Singh from Washington and Ravneet Singh from India are also joining the conference.
For more information: Ravneet Singh - [email protected] - Phone 99883 73268 (in India)