"Priests, pastors and ministers nationwide are spreading the gospel of climate change — as are imams and rabbis.

In recent years, faith-based advocacy has emerged as a powerful tool in the environmental movement. By reframing climate change and sustainability as moral issues, religious leaders hope to advance environmentalism by elevating it above the political fray.

“I believe that all religions, all faiths share a common goodness,” said Zerqa Abid, founder of My Project USA, a Muslim youth organization in Columbus. “All of us have to look within our houses, within our cities, in our everyday lives."

Marion Renault reports for the Columbus Dispatch January 13, 2017.