Josh Richardson
Josh Richardson
Brugsmansia Ministries
St. Louis, MO
Brugmansia Ministries’ mission is to address climate change and climate migration through building physical, relational, and spiritual infrastructure within faith communities. Founder Josh Richardson helps communities identify current vulnerabilities and needs as well as potential future challenges and to proactively prepare for climate driven environmental disasters or other climate change events.
About: Josh Richardson is an environmental geologist, ecological thinker, public theologian, and faith leader. As a scientist, Josh has work and research experience in developing technologies and methods in green energy production, nature-based solutions to environmental challenges, and habitat restoration. As a public religious figure, Josh is a sought after public speaker, preacher, and workshop designer .
Brugmansia Ministries is using climate projections with current physical and social data to identify current community vulnerabilities and needs as well as potential future challenges (like a loss of potable water from flooding, or a need for additional emergency shelters from displacement) and then walking alongside those faith communities as they rethink how they can best address these challenges with their buildings and grounds in ways that are viable, sustainable, and provide healing for their community. ”On a very basic level, we are working to reshape how denominations and individual faith communities are approaching the challenges of climate change by shifting the conversation from a technological approach of carbon reduction to a human and need centered approach that can provide very real community-scale benefits while also addressing CO2 production,” said Richardson.
Richardson explains the mission roots of his work. “This project is entirely grounded in the idea that God is bringing forth a world that is healed and just, which must include caring for not only each person but for our nonhuman brothers and sisters as well. On a very tangible level, we are working with faith communities to heal broken systems in their communities while also preparing for the very real future challenges of climate change. It is our belief in the thriving of individuals and communities, as well as the role that faith communities must play in that healing, that drives this work. We are pushing for new approaches to ministry that are more holistic in their understanding of how communities survive and thrive (for example, instead of promoting the storage of food for natural disasters in warehouses, we’re promoting local regenerative agricultural solutions like permaculture or aquaponics and hydroponics for indoor growing that reduce the harms of extractive agriculture while also being able to meet emergency needs)” writes Richardson.
The work also helps faith communities address deep rooted systems of injustice. “We are identifying how climate change is impacting vulnerable individuals at a community scale, which includes a deep analysis of how injustice manifests on a community-scale, and then working with faith communities to address those challenges. Our work includes having community level and data-driven conversations on things like how racial disparities, or language disparities, are manifesting within a local community and how those disparities can impact access to resources. Then, with privileged faith communities, we are identifying potential community partners that can be engaged to do this resilience work in ways that constructively support vulnerable people. And, for faith communities that are actively being exploited, we are providing tangible solutions and possibilities that can help remove them from the systems that are exploiting them, like a sole reliance on government infrastructure for things like clean water. Essentially, we are working on shifting the baseline physical conditions of injustice within a community to reduce a community’s dependence on systems that exploit and cause harm. And, at the same time, working on reducing potential injustices that may occur in the future if foundational infrastructural, physical, and social systems break down due to climate change.”