Jamaica’s churches have become climate activists

illuminem summarises for you the essential news of the day, reviewed by our editorial team. Read the full piece on The Economist or enjoy below:

🗞️ Driving the news: Jamaican churches have emerged as climate advocates, according to The Economist reports
• Jamaica has more churches per square kilometre than anywhere in the world, two-thirds of the population identify as Christian
• About the same share name the church as their most trusted institution, against a fifth who say the same of government, according to a 2025 survey for Jamaicans for Justice

🔭 The context: Hurricane Melissa made landfall on 28 October 2025 as a Category 5 storm, one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes in over a century, killing 45 people and displacing 30,000 households
• Churches functioned as shelters, aid distribution points and counselling services throughout the response
• The government subsequently allocated J$75 million to the Social Development Commission for church rebuilding and formed a Religious and Faith-based Task Force with the Jamaica Umbrella Group of Churches

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Small island states face climate impacts they did not cause and cannot prevent, making trusted domestic institutions central to adaptation
• The trust gap is the substance here: Two-thirds trust churches and a fifth the trust government
• However, congregations reach populations that state climate communication does not, and can mobilise for preparedness and recovery through networks that already exist 

💬 One quote: Climate denial represents a failure of both knowledge and moral responsibility, with stewardship as accountability to future generations — a speaker identified as Taylor, addressing the World Council of Churches Commission on World Mission and Evangelism in Kingston, April 2026, describing scientists and church leaders as "watchmen" responsible for warning of approaching danger

📈 One stat: Two-thirds of Jamaicans name the church as their most trusted institution, against one-fifth for government.

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