Yesterday I spoke at the launch of the 1 Climate Club at a rally in a stadium in Halle, Germany, organised by the Evangelical Church of Westphalia (see link below). This public event followed a three-day meeting between researchers from the Wupperthal Institute (Germany), Teri and Teri University (India) and the Sustainability Institute (represented by myself, and I was accompanied by Paul Hendler and Morgan Pillay who did the background research). The initiative to establish the 1 Climate Club came from the Evangelical Church of Westphalia because this Church has committed it’s members to living in a way that is compatible with a sustainable world. This means reducing carbon emissions from the German average of 10 tons per capita per annum to 2 tons. However, it also means that its members must ensure that their savings are not invested in fossil fuels and then get invested in funds that invest in renewable energy. The Church has its own bank, and this bank works closely with other ethical banks, namely GLS and Triodos. These three banks have agreed to work with the Wupperthal Institute, Teri and the Sustainability Institute to design a global grassroots fund that will make it possible for any saver to ensure that their money is being used to invest in renewable energy. The 1 Climate Club will be a coalition that mobilizes support for this initiative and conducts research on how it can work in practice. Paul Hendler and Morgan Pillay have written up a scoping report on the South African context to support this initiative. I came away from the meeting realizing that there is plenty of funding of renewable energy, even in South Africa. The real challenge is therefore not money, but finding bankable projects. There is inadequate capacity even in Germany to identify and package viable renewable energy projects that have positive social benefits at the local community level. This confirms our experience at the DBSA. It will, therefore, be necessary to find grant or soft money to cover the costs of project preparation and this is where the 1 Climate Club will play a key role. The Evangelical Church of Westphalia then included the launch of the club into a wider rally involving over 6000 people that focused mainly on the challenge of refugees and how Christians must do whatever they can to support the refugees and oppose policies that prevent refugees from coming into Europe. It was an inspiring event, motivated by a desire to break cycles – Germans do not want to feel responsible for doing to others what they did to the Jews less than a century ago. The Libertas Choir from Stellenbosch conducted by Stellenbosch Professor Johan de Villiers performed during our session and then last night they were joined by 1000 members of Choirs from around Westphalia, plus a symphony orchestra, all conducted by Prof de Villiers, in a moving tribute to the world’s peacemakers – Ghandi, Martin Luther King Jr, Mandela, Dalai Lama and Mother Theresa. It was a deeply inspiring and uplifting choral symphonic experience. Made me proud to see our choir and conductor at the centre of it all.