WCC News: Environmental destruction contributes to child labour, says interreligious roundtable

Churches and faith-based organizations have a significant role in helping victims of child labour, and interreligious collaboration is essential to tackle its systemic drivers, participants stated during a roundtable discussion at a side event of the ILO Sixth Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour in Marrakech on 12 February. Participamts of the roundtable session at the side-event of the ILO Sixth Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour, organized by the Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue (KAICIID) in Marrakech on 12 February 2026. Photo: KAICIID 16 February 2026 Organized by the Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue (KAICIID), the event, titled “Faith, Dignity, and Shared Responsibility: Harnessing Interreligious Dialogue to End Child Labour,” was part of the KAICIID Reflective Roundtables initiative. The event gathered leaders from both secular and religious decision-making institutions to promote inclusive alliances and highlight the ethical urgency of acting together to foster global solidarity and uphold human dignity. “Interreligious collaboration is not only possible but a necessity to tackle the systemic drivers of child labour,” said Frederique Seidel, World Council of Churches (WCC) senior programme lead for Children and Climate, one of the speakers at the roundtable. The discussion invited religious leaders to reflect on how their teachings and ethical guidance can contribute to ending child labour. Seidel highlighted one example of interfaith collaboration: the joint statement “Climate-Responsible Finance – A Moral Imperative towards Children,” adopted in 2022 by the WCC, UN Environment Programme, Muslim Council of Elders, and The New York Board of Rabbis. She noted that more than 38% of global divestment originates from faith-based institutions. “The current number of 138 million victims of child labour can only be reduced if the root causes of the climate emergency are addressed,” said Seidel, referring to UNICEF and ILO research that identifies environmental destruction as one of the two strongest predictors of increasing child labour. Seidel also presented the handbook “Hope for Children through Climate Justice,” produced by the WCC as part of an initiative to support churches engaged in climate litigation. The Cerrejón coal mine in Colombia was highlighted as a case where children are exploited in mining, and where churches from both the Global North and South are working to hold key financiers of the coal mine accountable. During the meeting it was also proposed to include faith-based leaders in the Alliance 8.7, the world’s leading global initiative that focuses on Target 8.7 of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, working for the eradication of forced labour, modern slavery, human trafficking, and child labour. Climate-Responsible Finance - a Moral Imperative towards Children Hope for Children Through Climate Justice: Legal Tools to Hold Financiers Accountable Learn more about Churches’ Commitments to Children and Climate-Responsible Banking See more

The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 356 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 580 million Christians in over 120 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay from the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa. Media contact: +41 79 507 6363; www.oikoumene.org/press Our visiting address is: World Council of Churches Chemin du Pommier 42 Kyoto Building Le Grand-Saconnex CH-1218 Switzerland