An upside-down world amidst focused minds. At Global Vision 2020, our experience was anything but ordinary, and nothing could’ve shown with greater emphasis the importance of intellectual forethought and empathy for others in times of turmoil.
Our theme this year was “God’s Globe…al Warning” centered on the growing concern of the climate crisis throughout the earth. The week featured seminars from the Global Board of Church & Society, environmental and faith groups on Capitol Hill, and even a lecture from Nobel Prize Winner Joel Scheraga at the Environmental Protection Agency. The seminars created space for conversations regarding the environmental, economic, and social consequences of climate change, from environmental racism to the depletion of entire cities and ecosystems. We were provided an opportunity to shift our perceptions from looking at climate change from a strictly scientific perspective to one fully encapsulating the interdisciplinary effects of a warming world. 
Though most of our time in Washington D.C was spent in our educational seminars, our time was also filled with sightseeing and exploring. We saw monuments at night on a bus tour, wandered the National Portrait Gallery after having a group meal, and went to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, our trip had to be cut short. We had planned to worship at Foundry United Methodist Church on Sunday, but the majority of the city was closing and we decided to leave on Saturday instead. Being in D.C during this pandemic was really eye-opening for us, as we got to see some of the direct effects of climate change happening before our eyes as we were learning them in our seminars.
We now can see that the environment is healing and becoming safer as people continue to quarantine, like with the Venice canals and the air in China. Had we not urged people to stay in their homes and for businesses to close, this healing would not have happened. One of our seminars focused on carbon pricing and carbon’s vast ecological impact, and now that factories and industries have slowed, or even closed, carbon emissions are down, and the environment’s health is improving. After seeing the drastic response the world has undertaken to challenge the COVID-19 pandemic, we can only hope our upside-down world takes the same precautions in regards to climate change.
It is nearly impossible that a revamped desire to care for God’s creation would be regarded in history as occurring “too soon.”
Written by:
Cooper Sykes, Conference Youth President 2019-2020
Freya Dahlgren, Conference Youth Legislative Affairs Person 2019-2020