Spring Day, 1 September, saw the Southern African Faith Communities' Environment Institute start a new wave of activism centred on the Season of Creation, a worldwide movement aimed at sanctifying and protecting the environment and its inhabitants.

The Southern African Faith Communities' Environment Institute's patron and founder, Bishop Geoff Davies, launched the organisation in 2005 after a multi-faith environmental conference. Members adhere to a number of different spiritual traditions and range from African traditional healers to Quakers, but all are united in their diversity through a shared commitment to the planet.

Last month, Davies wrote a letter to fellow clergy, describing this season as "an opportunity for us to spring-clean our lifestyles and participate in campaigns like the youth-led global climate strike".

Davies cited the importance of withdrawing investments from fossil fuel companies. He also rallied against the cultivation and use of palm oil, which causes massive amounts of deforestation and is in a wide array of processed foods and cosmetics.

"No longer can we deny the fact that climate change is the greatest threat to every living being who shares our common home," Davies wrote. "No longer. The time for action is now."

Since its launch in 2005, Safcei...