Our
pilgrimage started in March with a walk from the Church in Kallio to Senate
Square and Helsinki Cathedral. On Sunday the 29th of November, we
walked with People’s Climate March, and gathered again at Senate Square. A lot
has happened in between, as seen on this video, and highlighted by this photo.
Coal free Helsinki written with candles on the steps of Helsinki Cathedral.
Pyhiinvaellus Pariisiin, i.e. Pilgrimage to Paris
The project
was started and mainly organized by the Environmental team of Helsinki Parish
Union. During this year leading to the UN COP21 negotiations in Paris, we’ve
had close to 50 collaborators from and outside the Evangelical Lutheran Church
of Finland. The collaborators have included those from NGOs, different church
groups and interested individuals. So thank you, Heta, Krista, Päivi, Anu,
Tomas, Jessica, Risto, Laura, Suvielise, Heikki, Piia, Ida, Aaro, Paula, Björn,
Marjut, Panu, Tuomo, Ilkka, Ouri, Lea, Mikko, Tarja, Suvi, Sarianna, Sami,
Kaarina, Mira, Iina, Jenni, Katri, Pirjo, Arto, Hilkka, Auli, Kaarina, Marja,
Tuomo, Touko, Kaisa, Tinde, Per Ivar, Eva-Maria, Jean, Helene, Elin, Bernd,
Martin, Kathrin, Dietrich, Peter and many more!
During our
pilgrimage project, our 2 300 pilgrims have walked altogether 10 130
km in 25 legs. Besides the live pilgrims, we have also been a social media
project with more than 330 Facebook followers, more than 240 Twitter followers
and an account in Instagram.
Lessons learned
Our
pilgrimage project was decentralized in a way that anyone was able
to arrange their own pilgrimage. This tactics had its pros and cons. It
enabled us to have pilgrimages all over Finland, although we work in Helsinki.
On the other hand, we were unable to collect signatures or even gather all the
kilometers from all the pilgrimages arranged in Finland. Projects of this scale
would need a full-time coordinator.
Working
together with several partners is exciting and volunteers are a huge help in
organizing events. In the end, everything turns out great. Having said that, be
prepared for conflicts and unresolvable disagreements, inoperative schedules
and doing things at the last minute by yourself. Enthusiasm for the cause is a
lot catchier than yearning for action. Mostly, the things that connect us are
stronger than those that separate us.
Pilgrimage
to Paris was our first contact with social media. Social media is fantastic; it
breaks the boundaries of inner censorship of traditional media. It’s fast and
intensive. It catches up with people that we otherwise wouldn’t reach. At the
same time, it fills our days with nonessential things and eats up our time.
The pros
outweigh the cons, for now.
The future
As the
meeting in Paris in ongoing, and our pilgrimages are nearing their end, we have
decided not to end our project here. Instead, we will continue our Christian mission
of bringing hope for the future. We see the future as having multidirectional,
crossing forces. We see the winds blowing harder, both physically as climate
change affects the weather, and figuratively as we tackle the many, sometimes
contradictory, needs of all of creation. We utilize wind as a source of
renewable energy and in sailing in search of a haven. Sometimes we travel in crosswind,
for which we need the support of a group and an echelon formation. From now on,
we call ourselves Ristituuleen (@ristituuleen, illative of the word Ristituuli, which stands
for Crosswind, Crucem ventus, Kryss vind).
Pyhiinvaellus Pariisiin – Kalliosta Senaatintorille ja eteenpäin
Aloitimme pyhiinvaelluksemme maaliskuussa kulkemalla Kallion
kirkolta Senaatintorille ja Tuomiokirkolle. Marraskuussa, ensimmäisenä
adventtisunnuntaina, marssimme jälleen Tuomiokirkolle yhdessä Ilmastomarssi-ryhmittymän
kanssa. Pyhiinvaellus Pariisiin on kerännyt n. 2 300 vaeltajaa, yli 10 000
kilometriä, yli 330 Facebook-seuraajaa ja yli 240 Twitter-seuraajaa. Haluamme
kiittää teitä kaikkia mukanaolosta, avusta, ideoista ja innostamisesta.
Pariisin ilmastokokous päättyy pian. Sopimuksen
aikaansaaminen on yhä epävarmaa, kuten on myös päästösitoumusten riittävyys
ilmastomme kannalta. Varmaa on kuitenkin, että huoli ilmastonmuutoksesta on
kasvava ja toimet sen hillitsemiseksi vahvistuvat päivä päivältä.
Pyhiinvaellus Pariisiin –projekti haluaa tehdä oman osansa
myös tulevaisuudessa. Jatkamme työtä ympäristötietoisuuden, -kasvatuksen ja
kirkon ympäristötyön esille tuomisen parissa pian uudella nimellä.
”Ristituuleen” kuvaa paitsi tulevaisuuden muuttuvia sääoloja, myös tuulta
voimanlähteenä sekä aktiivista suuntautumista kohti päämäärää, vaikka läpi
tuulen, kantaen mukana toivonristiä.