EcoCongregation Action Plan

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Eco-Congregationan environmental toolkit for
churches
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What are your environmental concerns?

• traffic congestion and air pollution ?
• rainforest destruction ?
• decline in song- and sea- birds ?
• storms and floods due to climate change ?
• housing built on green field sites ?
• litter on your streets ?
• Skin cancer and the ozone layer ?

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Christian Perspectives

• Belief in God as Creator
• Stewardship of the good things entrusted to us
• Justice for the poor and the land
• Our mission to proclaim repentance and hope

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Aim

• Eco-Congregation Ireland aims to encourage
  Churches and their members to celebrate the gift
  of creation and care for it in appropriate
  practical and spiritual ways.

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Eco-Congregation - the toolkit

• Resources
• 12 Modules
• 2. Support
• www.ecocongregationireland.org
• 3. Award scheme

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Module 1 The Church Check-Up

• A simple environmental audit to
• identify and affirm current good practice
• prioritise your next initiatives
• In your Churchs prayer life, do you
• ? Praise God the creator ? Say sorry for the
  harm done to the environment
• Give thanks to God ? Pray for the healing for
  the gift of creation of creation
• In your church grounds, do you have native plant
• species and plants that benefit wildlife?
• ? Present ? Potential to develop

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Growing in Faith and Understanding

• Module 2 Celebrating creation
• Resources for worship
• Module 3 Creation and Christianity
• Overview of green theology
• Module 4 Acorns to oaks
• Ideas and suggestions for childrens work
• Module 5 Tread gently go green
• Activities for environmental youth work
• Module 6 How Green is Gods word
• Bible studies for House Groups and leaders

St. Moluas Church, Belfast
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Putting Gods House in Green Order

• Module 7 Greening the Cornerstone
  Guidelines on caring for
• church premises
• Module 8 Greening the purse strings
• Stewardship of financial,
• catering purchasing
• matters
• Module 9 Planting and conserving Eden
• Ideas to care for church grounds and land

Whitechurch Parish, Rathfarnham, Dublin
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Changing Lives Changing Communities

• Module 10 Green choices
• Tips for greening
• personal lifestyles
• Module 11 Community matters
• Ideas to help churches
• work with and through
• their local community
• Module 12 Global neighbours
  Sources and resources for churches to
  think globally and act locally.

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• So, whats happening in participating churches?

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Holding special Creation Care services
? Environmental pledge tree
altar frontal ? St. Moluas Church, Belfast
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Teaching their young people environmental
awareness
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Community Initiative Three Rock Churches
Environment Group
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School posters on Cherishing Creation
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Knocknagoney Parish, Belfast
St. Moluas
Dundrum C.E.
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Follow-up to the Energy Audit - ., using
energy-efficient light bulbs ?

• .

? making the church self-sufficient in renewable
energy!
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Promoting recycling of cans ? Christmas cards ?

• Dundrum Methodist Church, South Dublin

• And also
• paper
• milk cartons
• printer cartridges
• spectacles...

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Cleaning up their neighbourhood
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• Youth Club Litter-pick, Dundrum Methodist

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Improving their grounds for wildlife and community
before and after
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Planting a native Rowan tree Clonakilty
Methodist Church, West Cork
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Bird Box Masterclass, Dundrum Methodist
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Installing environmental notice boards

• .

Dundrum Methodist Church, South Dublin
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Encouraging Green Lifestyles through articles
in the parish magazine and local papers

• .

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Helping countryside rangers with local wildlife
conservation projects

• .

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Promoting and selling Fair Trade goods and
Eco-friendly products
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How to get going

• 1. Get a Green Team together
• 2. Fill in the environmental check-up
• 3. Get the support of a church meeting (policy?)
• 4. Register with ECI (see website for details)
• 5. Download the free resource modules of your
  choice
• 6. Dip into the toolkit and get going!

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Eco-Congregation Ireland the Award

• given in recognition of
• linking environmental issues to the Christian
  faith
• practical work in the church/churchyard
• having a positive impact on the wider community

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Eco-Congregation - the Award

• Clonakilty Methodist Church receives the
  first Eco-Congregation Ireland Award

Rector and parishioners at St Molua's, Stormont
with the Eco-Congregation Award
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