Media CenterCRS Joins Public-Private Alliance to Address Climate Change

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:
Kim Pozniak
Catholic Relief Services
[email protected]
(410) 951-7281

Innovative Partnership Seeks to Give
World’s Poor Access to Critical Climate Information

WASHINGTON, DC, Sept. 23, 2015 -- Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is becoming a contributing partner to the Climate Services for Resilient Development (CSRD) partnership, an alliance of public, private and non-governmental organizations, launched at the White House.

The Administration announced CRS’ participation in the partnership on September 23, the day the White House welcomed Pope Francis to the United States with an arrival ceremony. 

Formed in June, 2015, CSRD seeks to provide needed climate information – data, tools, services – to end-users in developing countries. Founding partners include the U.S. Government, the United Kingdom government, the American Red Cross, Asian Development Bank, the mapping software company Esri, Google, Inter-American Development Bank, and the Skoll Global Threats Fund.

“CRS is excited by this initiative’s goal to reach across borders and across public and private sectors to develop concrete, practical solutions for climate change adaptation,” wrote Carolyn Woo, CRS president, in a letter accepting the invitation to join the group.

Having participated in the launch of the recent papal encyclical, Laudato Si, Woo noted that the goals of CSRD reflect the values Pope Francis expressed in his teaching on the environment.

As a 70-year-old agency dedicated to helping the poor around the world, CRS has been actively working with the most vulnerable populations as they adapt to the very real impacts of the world’s changing climate.  The focus on practical, usable data for end-users aligns well with CRS’ mission to empower vulnerable people to address their own problems and build a brighter future.

“As a member of this innovative partnership, CRS [can] play a special role in ensuring that information, tools and services reach those on the front lines of climate change,” Woo stated. “CRS is particularly well placed to bridge the gap in the kinds of data collected, and how data is interpreted, disseminated and used.”

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Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. The agency alleviates suffering and provides assistance to people in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding. For more information, please visit crs.org or crsespanol.org and follow CRS on social media: Facebook, @CatholicRelief, @CRSnews, YouTube, Instagram and Pinterest.