ABSTRACT
There can be little doubt that religious beliefs help structure the way human beings relate to the natural world, and that achieving environmental sustainability will depend in no small part on the degree to which religious groups make the cause their own. This chapter analyzes the intersection between religion, leadership, and the environment, with a focus on American Evangelicalism. Traditional evangelical theology arguably presents special challenges to environmental concern, yet evangelicals are beginning to play a role in the environmental movement, due largely to the efforts of some key evangelical leaders. What are the challenges faced by religious leaders when it comes to concern for the natural world, and by evangelical leaders in particular? Who are these leaders, and what have they done to heighten environmental concern and action among evangelicals? And what is the best way to understand the nature of leadership that is exercised in this context? In order to answer these and other pertinent questions, we must begin by considering the general relationship between religion and nature.
