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How Can I Become Involved?
Environmental Service Project Resources for Congregations
Concern for the health and well being of creation cannot be limited to houses of worship and their members' households. Every congregation can demonstrate what it means to care for the earth and its inhabitants through acts of outreach and service to the wider community, from their local neighborhoods to distant countries.
Whether it is providing community gardens for low-income people and refugees, supporting sustainable development projects locally or overseas, hosting a public forum on a local environmental issue, restoring a stream or "adopting" a highway, or helping local farmers through community-supported agriculture, there are many opportunities for direct involvement in bringing justice and healing to the community of life.
Resources for Service from the Partnership Groups
- Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life:
- The Program Bankon COEJL's website contains community service activities, including:
- "Adopting" Parks, Streams, Roadsides
- Starting an Urban Garden: Peah Gardens/Corner Plots
- Sponsoring a Household Hazards Pickup Day
- The Program Bankon COEJL's website contains community service activities, including:
- U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Environmental Justice Program:
- Partners in the Environmental Justice Program include major Catholic social justice organizations that address domestic and international needs.
- The National Catholic Rural Life Conference serves the rural Church in the United States, promoting family farms, a healthy environment, and strong rural communities.
- Catholic Campaign For Human Development, the U.S. Catholic Bishops' domestic antipoverty program, which seeks to eliminate the root causes of poverty in America by supporting and promoting community controlled self-help organizations of the poor.
- Catholic Relief Services provides relief to people needing immediate assistance and carries on development and nutrition programs in developing countries.
- National Council of Catholic Women is a federation of Catholic women's organizations that carries out a number of programs in response to the needs of Church and society.
- "Practical Ways to make the International Connection Work for You" in the parish resource kit, Let the Earth Bless the Lord, shows how parishes can address international environmental concerns.
- Partners in the Environmental Justice Program include major Catholic social justice organizations that address domestic and international needs.
- National Council of Churches of Christ Eco-Justice Programs:
- "Community Economic Development" in the resource kit, God's Earth, Our Home, suggests ways congregations can become involved in such issues as housing, job development and training, community investment and supporting local farmers.
- Living Waters: How to Save Your Local Stream by Owen Owens of the American Baptist Church, draws on twenty years of work to restore and preserve cold water streams.
- Evangelical Environmental Network:
- Ideas for how churches can promote the health of their neighborhoods and communities can be found on the ENN website.
Other Resources
- Catholic Climate Covenant has resources about the connection between Catholic values and environmental stewardship.
- "Congregation-Supported Agriculture" and "Community Involvement" are discussed in Practically Green With Love, by Christina Scheidt Schuller, on the Web of Creation.
- "Hands-On Conservation and Restoration" and "Community Education and Safe Dialogue Forums" are included in the "Community Outreach" section of the Greening Congregations Handbook produced by Earth Ministry.
- The "Food and Farming" section of Earth Ministry's website includes links for locating Community Supported Agriculture opportunities and other sustainable food sources throughout the country.
Events: Jewish Energy Covenant Campaign
50 Jewish leaders commit to reduce energy use, advocate for energy security: leaders across the political and religious spectrum celebrate Tu B'shvat by setting goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 14% by 2014. Read the declaration... List of signatories...
St. Francis Pledge
Take the St. Francis Pledge to Care for Creation and the Poor. Join Catholics taking action in our families, parishes, schools, and communities to reduce our carbon footprint, care for the "least of these" (Mt 25) and raise our voice on behalf of Creation and the poor.
Events: Upcoming NCCC Eco-Justice Events
Ecumenical Advocacy Days 2013 The 11th annual Ecumencial Advocacy Days will be held April 5th-8th, 2013. Join the NCC and other Christian advocates in Washington DC to seek Food Justice for a Healthy World. To register, click here.
Mission 4/1 Earth The United Church of Christ has announced an all-church initiative to complete 1 million hours of earth care, 100,000 tree plantings, and 100,000 advocacy letters on environmental issues during the 50 days between Easter and Pentecost (April 1st-May 19th). To learn more and get involved, click here.
Events: The Creation Care Teaching Institute
The Teaching Institute is for Christians who are passionate about their care for God's creation, and are looking for ways to become further equipped and engaged on their area of passion. Click here for more information.
Partners Encourage Congress to Take On Climate Change
NRPE's four partners have all written individual letters to the Bicameral Task Force on Climate Change.
Please click on the partners to read the individual statements:
- Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life
- Evangelical Environmental Network
- National Council of Churches
- United States Conference of Catholic Bishops