The way we travel can have a big impact on our own carbon footprint, so it makes sense to reduce our dependence on cars whenever we can. If you usually drive to church, have you considered making the occasional journey on foot, or by bike? It can be a healthy, enjoyable and sociable way to travel. Or, if you live too far away, could you share transport with someone else? It’s these little changes that can make all the difference!

If you’re already doing this, if you would like to know more, or if you have any comments or suggestions, please get in touch by emailing us at [email protected]

As well as the “big ticket” items, such as heating, there are lots of smaller ways we can do things more sustainably from day to day in our church life. We try to use re-usable or re-cycled products (including loo rolls, printing paper, etc.) where possible, whilst minimising and re-cycling waste. It sets a good example too.

There may well be more that we can do to reduce our environmental impact at church, and we are always open to new ideas. If you have any questions or suggestions about this, please get in touch by emailing us at [email protected]

The bigger the challenge, and the more inadequate we feel, the more we need to pray. Prayer changes everything. If we care about the world we live in, just imagine how much more our creator God cares for everything (and everyone) he has made. Let’s pray together about this.

Each of us will have different ways, times and places for prayer, but God loves it when we come together in prayer.

Would you like to get involved in praying about the environment and our eco-church work? Do you have ideas about how best to support and encourage prayer? If so, please get in touch by emailing us at [email protected]

Dear Lord,

 We come before you with humble hearts and a desire to heal our planet. We pray for the earth and all its inhabitants, both great and small.

 Forgive us for the mistakes we have made, and our unwillingness to learn from them.

 Guide us to become responsible stewards of this beautiful planet that you have given to us. Help us to see the connection of all living beings and the impact that our actions have on the environment.

 Please bless the earth with your divine love, healing, and protection. May the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the soil that nourishes us be pure and free from pollution.

 We ask for the wisdom to create sustainable solutions that will preserve the earth’s resources for generations to come. May we all be inspired to take actions that will reduce our carbon footprint and safeguard the earth’s delicate ecosystems.

 Finally, we pray for unity, love, and respect among all people and for the healing of any divisions that may hinder our efforts to protect the environment. May we work together as one global community to heal the earth and create a brighter future for all.

 Amen

As a church, we are part of the wider A Rocha Eco-Church movement linking hundreds of churches of all denominations throughout the country. You can find out more, and access all sorts of resources, on https://ecochurch.arocha.org.uk

We also have the support of the Green Team withing the Diocese of Lichfield. You can find out more, and access all sorts of ideas and resources, on https://www.lichfield.anglican.org/find-advice/environment/#:~:text=The%20fifth%20Mark%20of%20Mission,the%20life%20of%20the%20earth

The General Synod voted in February 2020 for the whole of the Church of England to achieve net zero carbon by 2030.  This vote recognised that the global climate emergency is a crisis for God’s creation and a fundamental injustice.

You can find out more about the C of E’s ambitious plans for net zero, and the resources available, on https://www.churchofengland.org/resources/net-zero-carbon-routemap

Trinity Churches have already been awarded a Bronze Eco-Church award from A Rocha (see Partnership and Resources), and our aim is to achieve Silver, then Gold.

You can find out more about the awards scheme on https://ecochurch.arocha.org.uk/how-eco-church-works/

If you would like to know more about our own progress towards the next level, or if you’d like to get involved in the process, please email us on [email protected]

Every day we make choices that affect the wellbeing of God’s world – the things we buy and the things we throw away, the ways we travel and the ways we heat our homes all make a difference.

The good news is that there are things we can all do to reduce our own impact on the climate. Let’s all be part of the solution, not the problem!

We’ve put a few ideas below – are there any that you are already doing, or might be able to try?

We’ll add more ideas later, so watch this space!

Try setting your central heating thermostat to a lower temperature
Even a small reduction reduces the amount of energy you consume, saving you money and reducing emissions of the carbon dioxide that drives climate change

Switch to energy efficient (LED) lightbulbs, and switch lights off
If you still have any old-style light bulbs, changing to modern LED ones will reduce your electricity costs and produce less of the carbon dioxide that drives climate change

Try to use your car less
Try to reduce your annual car mileage by making some of your journeys on foot, bike, bus or train.
This will help to reduce emissions of the greenhouse gases that drive climate change

Try eating less meat
The production of meat (especially beef) is a big source of the greenhouse gases that cause climate change. Having one or two “meat free days” each week will help reduce this. Buying meat produced locally reduces the environmental cost of transport too.

Go electric!
It won’t be for everyone (yet) but if you are thinking of changing your car, why not have a look at the new or used electric or plug-in hybrid options now available. It could help reduce the carbon emissions that drive climate change

Change how you travel to church
If you live near the church, walking or cycling are healthy and enjoyable ways to travel that won’t add to the emissions that drive climate change. If that’s not feasible for you, why not offer to share a lift with a friend?

Use your washing line instead of the tumble dryer!
Tumble driers use a lot of energy! Drying your clothes outside, if you can, produces none of the carbon dioxide that is driving climate change and leaves them lovely and fresh too!

Try to buy local
Buying food and other products that are produced locally means they don’t have to be transported long distances! Check the labels, buy local produce if you can, and help reduce the carbon emissions that are driving climate change!

Fly less
This is a difficult one – especially if we love to travel. But the uncomfortable truth is that airliners inject huge amounts of global warming gases into the upper atmosphere where they do most harm. For the sake of our fragile planet, we all need to fly less often and less far.

Improve your home insulation
Check the insulation in your loft (if you have one). If it’s not up to modern standards you could be wasting energy and money.Insulating your home is one of the easiest ways to reduce your carbon footprint

Change your electricity tariff
You can support sustainable energy generation by switching to a “green” tariff (as we do at church). It’s easy to do!
And if it includes an off-peak rate, you may be able to save money and do even more to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that drive climate change.

Harness solar power at home
If you are fortunate enough to be able to invest for the long term, installing solar panels, a home battery, or air-source or ground-source heating are all worth considering. You could save money in the long term, and seriously reduce your carbon footprint

For a really clear explanation of the science of climate change, check out this link to the BBC news website:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24021772

As Christians, and as a church, we need to respond to the environmental and climate crisis. Specifically, we need to face up to the challenges of:

Climate change – caused mainly by the carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases we put into the atmosphere. We have already seen the impact of this in heatwaves, floods, storms, and melting sea ice. Unless we act now this world will not be safe for our children and grandchildren to live in.

Pollution of the land, the sea, and air – caused by the way we all consume and throw away far more stuff than the earth can produce and absorb. We can already see the impact of this in the degradation of natural habitats. Unless we act now, more and more species will become extinct in our children’s lifetimes.

Injustice – climate change and environmental damage have a disproportionate impact on the poorest people in our world. We have already seen the impacts as drought, crop failure, and loss of homes and livelihoods hurt communities that are already poor and powerless.  Unless we act now, the scramble for scarce resources and mass migrations could affect us all.

As Christians, we believe that:

• God gave us responsibility for the world, to care for it, not to trash it. (Gen 1 v28, Gen 2 v15, Ps 8).
• Jesus warns us against selfishness and greed (Luke 12 v15, Matt 25 v40).
• The Bible tells us to defend the poor (Psalm 82 v3) not ignore or oppress them. (Proverbs 21 v13, James 5 v5)

We all have a choice – to be part of the problem, or part of the solution. For Christians, this should be a “no brainer”! But being part of the solution will mean living sacrificially, putting other people’s interests before our own. And it will mean accepting our responsibilities as stewards of God’s creation – a precious gift, to be loved and looked after.

Discover more on: https://licc.org.uk/ourresources/jesus-died-to-save-the-planet/