Perriello foresees jobs in climate change

An effort to combat climate change and its effects on the poorest and most vulnerable people on the planet has attracted support from an unusual coalition of religious and retired military leaders.

While they view the issue from different perspectives, be it protecting God's creation or bolstering national security, they all want climate-change legislation being negotiated on Capitol Hill to provide protections for the less fortunate.

For one of Virginia's newest congressmen, Tom Perriello, D-5th, the legislation would ideally fill an obligation not only to the planet but also to its inhabitants. And in his district, he hopes combating climate change will translate into putting people back to work.

"I believe the new energy and energy efficiency [industry] is one of our greatest chances to bring jobs back to Southside Virginia," he said. "I see this as a great opportunity to create jobs and rebuild some of the manufacturing bases in this country."

Job creation is high on the mind of Perriello, who represents some of the state's most economically depressed areas, including Martinsville, which registers the highest unemployment rate in Virginia.

The devout Catholic has the added perspective of having worked in some of the world's hot spots, including Darfur and Afghanistan. He describes the struggles there as easily as he does those of an 86-year-old woman he met in Southside Virginia who spent half of her Social Security check on energy costs.

He wants any climate-change bill to include direct rebates to help offset increased energy costs and to encourage spending on energy efficiency, among other things. Weatherizing homes could save families money on energy bills and spur new jobs, he said.

Democrats have favored environmental protections as a political cause, and religious leaders back such protections through a sense of moral responsibility to protect God's creation.

Other advocates, including a dozen high-ranking military officers, now retired, see climate change as a national-security threat because of the potentially destabilizing effects of droughts, famine and floods.

The message appears to be gaining in popularity in other quarters, at least according to a recent poll showing nearly seven in 10 Americans think climate change is making it harder for poor families through increased drought and crop failure.

The poll was conducted March 20-27 by Public Religion Research on behalf of Faith in Public Life and Oxfam America. It included 1,200 adults and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

The survey showed that 63 percent of white evangelicals and 69 percent of Catholics agree that climate change is adversely affecting the poorest communities in the world.

Trying to ride momentum from talks in Washington and results of that poll, the faith-based nonprofit American Values Network is running radio spots on Christian stations in Raleigh, N.C.; Roanoke; Norfolk; and southern Virginia markets, urging listeners to contact their congressional representatives.

John Carr, director of the Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, said the tie that binds the coalition is a commitment to caring for creation. For them, he said, it starts with Genesis.

"We think the moral measure of climate legislation is how it treats the least of these in our own country and around the world," he said.

Contact Olympia Meola at (804) 649-6812 or .