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November News |
The leaves are changing color, but in this month’s edition of the Creation Justice Movement’s newsletter and at the Movement Café, we are focusing on GREEN—specifically learning about Green Teams and their important role in caring for God’s Creation and justice. Local churches and their Green Teams can be true powerhouses in this important work. See below for a host of excellent resources for starting, leading, and resourcing new and already-at-work Green Teams. Then join us via Zoom, November 15th, 1:00 pm ET, to hear from Green Team leaders and advocates.
Green Teams—sometimes called by different names, such as a Creation Care Committee—are a group of people in a congregation who are committed to raising awareness about the urgent need to protect God’s Creation. They help the church and the church community in a variety of ways to develop sustainable practices, such as energy efficiency, conservation, and the use of clean energy sources. Their efforts range from replacing styrofoam coffee cups to building community gardens to leading the effort to install a solar roof. They may also encourage advocacy and engagement in policy and environmental justice issues.
These articles and the Café are great opportunities for learning how to start and engage your Green Team, as well as for providing ideas for building and bolstering this important work at the local church level.
As a long time Creation care advocate, Dawn Lewis founded the Green Team at her church and has worked to support other green teams.
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Action Alerts |
The time is NOW! November brings front and center both the US government’s tenuous funding and COP 28’s fragile agreement to provide financial assistance to those already imperiled by climate damage. Even if you have already spoken up, do so again. NOW! |
 | Sign the COP28 Letter
for Bold and Just
Climate Action! Add your voice to the cause. International assistance is both urgent and moral. | |
|  | Tell Congress to
Advance Climate Policies Speak up for crucial climate funding and policies that fulfill our fair share. | |
|  | United States Fair Share Tell Elected Officials to fund the U.S. Fair Share for International Climate Finance Programs & Loss and Damage | |
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Creation Justice News |
 | The UM Creation Justice Movement has joined the Love Your Neighbor Coalition to assist in our shared efforts to promote justice throughout the denomination. |
|  | Announcing the return and revisioning of Fossil Free UMC, a movement to urge United Methodist boards, agencies, churches, and individuals to divest from fossil fuels. |
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Upcoming Events |
| Wondering About Wild Church?November 13 via Zoom
As the Wild Church movement grows around the globe, many are finding renewed hope in the wild. Join Rev. Corey Turnpenny, pastor and planter of Church in the Wild and wild church coach, for an introduction to the movement. This interest meeting will be especially beneficial for anyone who's interested in the Wild Church Training to be offered on Zoom in January 2024.
REGISTER |
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| Unnatural Disasters: Creation Care in the Age of Climate ChangeJanuary 21, February 18, March 17
Floods. Hurricanes. Wildfires. Droughts. This series of three documentaries will take you to places around the country experiencing unnatural disasters in the age of climate change.
Sponsored by the East and West Ohio conferences of The United Methodist Church
REGISTER |
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| Spring 2024 Online Global Ministries EarthKeepers TrainingMarch 1–16, 2024 on Zoom
Global Ministries EarthKeepers is a training program that equips U.S.-based United Methodists to launch and grow environmental projects in their communities. Topics include eco-theology, antiracism, community organizing and project planning. All participants plan a project during the training.
Applications Open This Month! |
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Join a Movement Work TeamThe UM Creation Justice Movement has a variety of active groups that are working to advance particular areas of work within the church.
Green Teams—meets next on Monday, November 13, 1 pm ET to share resources and ideas for promoting local congregational green teams. Contact climate@neumc.org for more details
Congregational Solar—launched in the October 18 Movement Café—will work to develop networks in the denomination to support more solar on more local churches. Contact strategicsolarguy@gmail.com for more information
UM Wild Church Network—Do you lead an outdoor church or worship experience? Join us as we create the UM Wild Church Network to connect and resource wild church leaders across the connection. Contact Rev. Corey Turnpenny pastorcoreyt@gmail.com
If these or any of the other teams working on Advocacy, Worship,
Annual Conference Organizing, or Communications interest you,
reach out to umcreationjustice@gmail.com to get connected.
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Worship Team FeedbackThe UMCJM Worship Team wants to hear about your Season of Creation! If your faith community celebrated the Season this year and especially if you used the worship materials that we designed, we'd love to know what you did and how they worked. Take our short survey and share as much or as little as works for you. |
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Featured Stories:Engaging the Local Church |
Meadow Project Brings
More Than Hope By Cammy Freed
My capstone project was to remove the grass behind the church and create a native plant wildflower meadow, which would serve as a refuge for native wildlife and provide an opportunity for the community to explore and connect with the church.
READ HERE |
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St. Matthews UMC Earns Green Church AwardBy Karlah Y. Burton
The categories chosen for the WNCC Green Church Initiative represent the total life and ministry of a congregation. A Green Church is to understand that everything it does in ministry is connected to God’s creation.
READ MORE |
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Building Momentum Step by StepBy Kim Richmond
The Western North Carolina Conference adopted the Local Church Creation Care Team resolution at its June, 2023, annual conference, with no opposition. Passage of this resolution has provided great exposure and marvelous momentum for the Creation Care Ministry throughout the churches and offices in the conference!
READ MORE |
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Green Team Resolution:
New Video Walkthrough AvailableBy Crys Zinkiewicz
It’s one thing to have a positive vote for forming Green Teams, it’s another to form those teams. Recognizing the need for encouraging and resourcing those beginnings, the Tennessee-Western Kentucky Creation Care Ministry Team has developed a 10-minute video walkthrough of the resolution.
READ MORE |
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More StoriesWake Up, World! Curriculum by Anita and Bob Dygert-Gearheart Creation Care on a Hawaii Beach by United Methodist Communications Minute for Mother Earth: Genesis and Green Teams by Anita and Bob Dygert-Gearheart |
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Resources for Green Teams and Engaging the Local Church in Creation Justice |
| UMCJ Green Team Resources
The UMCJ Communications team has curated this extensive list of resources to help you start and grow your Green Team. More resources will be added as they develop. |
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| Blessed Tomorrow:
One Home One Future Campaign
One Home One Future is a campaign that educates, activates, and supports clergy, congregants, youth, and all spiritual people in meaningful and just solutions locally, regionally, and nationally in ways that are accessible and positive. One Home One Future offers several inspiring resources to engage, to meet you where you are and help your congregation.
| Interfaith Power and Light:
Cool Congregations
Interfaith Power and Light offers the Cool Congregations Challenge, an annual national contest to recognize “Cool Congregations” that are becoming energy efficient and sustainable role models within their communities. There are no fees to enter. Application period opens November 1 each year. Deadline for entries, December 15.
| A Minute for Mother Earth
Being aware that life is complex and there are many other important issues competing for our time and concern, we are developing these short videos, A Minute for Mother Earth, that are based on the information in the Wake Up World curriculum. | Loving People and Planet in God’s Name Update
The Leader’s Guide for this Advanced Lay Servant Course includes lesson plans for five two-hour sessions to help lay servant ministers learn more about climate justice, how to talk about climate justice using a biblical and theological framework, and how to work with their communities to do meaningful ministry around creation care. |
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Stories from the Grassroots |
Global Ministries EarthKeepers, United Women in Faith and more! We would love to hear about your projects and your stories. Use the form below to share your experience with the Movement! |
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Creation Justice Tips |
 | Saying Thank YouIn your every day and holiday choices you can express gratitude to the Creator and Creation. Your actions speak loudest. Here are some suggestions.
Share these Tips with your family, friends, and congregation. Choose any or all. Forward them to someone you care about. Cut-and-paste to put them with your email signature, in your letters and emails, worship bulletins, newsletters, social media, or website. | |
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| Sample Tip
Enjoy your Thanksgiving celebrations, starting with a sustainability mindset: reusable dinnerware, cloth napkins, less meat/more plant-based foods, a plan to use leftovers, a kitchen set up to maximize compostables and minimize trash, even washable rags for cleanup instead of wasting trees with paper towels. Earth will be thankful you did. |
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