"Creation Care in Maasailand: How the church in a vulnerable context can respond to the climate crisis" with Beth Elness-Hanson

"Creation Care in Maasailand: How the church in a vulnerable context can respond to the climate crisis"

With Dr. Beth Elness-Hanson (she/her), (PhD), associate professor of Hebrew Bible, Wartburg Theological Seminary. 

What to Expect

It is a perverse irony that those who did the least to create climate change are the most vulnerable to its effects. This includes the pastoralist Maasai of East Africa, who are dependent upon the natural resources for their survival, yet who have been caring for the environment for innumerable generations.

In the upcoming Sunday Forum session, Beth Elness-Hanson will discuss her and Marie Skłodowska-Curie's postdoctoral research project, which is funded by the European Union and integrates biblical creation care, Indigenous environmental knowledge, and climate science in response to climate change. Together, with Maasai church leaders, they collaboratively developed lessons for best practices of climate change mitigation and adaptation for dissemination through the church with positive, evidence-based results. Come and hear the story!

About the Speaker

Dr. Beth E. Elness-Hanson recently completed a Marie Skłodowska-Curie postdoctoral biblical-ecotheology project (2023–2026) in Tanzania, in a project managed by VID Specialized University, Norway. Previously, Beth served as a volunteer ELCA missionary teacher for three years in Tanzania, East Africa, (2002–2004) where she subsequently led several church and university/seminary encounters. She continues teaching and deepening her understanding of the Old Testament, with a focus on intercultural and African biblical interpretations. In her renewal time, she loves to be creative, which includes making relief prints and taking day hikes.

About Sunday Forum

During the months of September — April, people of all ages are invited to hear professors, teachers, and members of our congregation present topics connected to our faith. 

These speakers inspire us in our faith to seek a better understanding of God in today’s ever-changing world. There is time set aside for questions at the end of the presentation.