tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57824962801701434092024-02-19T12:56:26.776+00:00Greening St. JohnsSt John and St Stephen's Church EcoChurch journeyJoannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.comBlogger270125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-28020553179738457192023-08-19T17:39:00.002+01:002023-08-19T17:40:40.997+01:00Creation conscious crafts<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeUTbuj8hwAdrazGTqXX4_jrI7fxg6wrpdBLVofJtJATeyJMbrkezsCLTke9pxSLLhBINp5IHLnQM09Lb1stkrSyCWq1SSOfyQrDvp0SUv58D7J30LyGLELX1IAncOjAm7WaDg5cteq9Ov3PSau0fukYbGjuAhVc-3TSPTFOWqiDhRQf_xGQ_vmGsBLc_1/s2067/butterworth%20image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2067" data-original-width="1938" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeUTbuj8hwAdrazGTqXX4_jrI7fxg6wrpdBLVofJtJATeyJMbrkezsCLTke9pxSLLhBINp5IHLnQM09Lb1stkrSyCWq1SSOfyQrDvp0SUv58D7J30LyGLELX1IAncOjAm7WaDg5cteq9Ov3PSau0fukYbGjuAhVc-3TSPTFOWqiDhRQf_xGQ_vmGsBLc_1/s320/butterworth%20image.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>One of the most difficult things to be rigorously environmentally sensitive about often seems to be craft work with the children - it is so tempting to potter round Hobbycraft and return with lots of plastic packaged, foam-based stuff. I've been trying to resist the sparkly jewels, stickers etc that I used to add to the Godly Play craft boxes, sticking to the dolly pegs, and lolly sticks and trying to encourage more use of junk modelling, but conscious that all these become difficult to recycle or compost afterwards. Over the summer I was tasked with coming up with more structured crafts to go with stories from Nick Butterworth's retellings of the parables. The results are by no means perfectly sustainable, but hopefully heading in the right, reduced-plastic, direction:<p></p><p>The Lost Coin - coins made out of yellow icing; coins of cardboard and foil</p><p>The Two Sons - 'Mr Potato Head' style apples (using bits of coloured icing I had left over from a birthday cake as if they were plasticine); decorated paper baskets for carrying - either origami boxes or the easier option of a sealed envelope with the two top corners cut away into a basket shape</p><p>The House on the Rock - stone painting, sand pictures, plastic bottle rain gauges</p><p>The Lost Sheep - sheep fridge magnets (magnetic tape a bit of a fail here, as was resorting to buying cottonwool from the chemist instead of a more sustainable brand); found sheep party crowns - more cottonwool as the sheep with which the crowns are decorated.</p><p>The Good Stranger - my predecessor as administrator bought huge stocks of coloured paper and extra large paper so no purchasing needed for 1) neighbour chains - paper chains with names of everyone who might count as our neighbour and 2) road pictures - large pictures of Bible road stories that can be joined up together as one giant road.<br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-22760444641595141802023-06-20T14:31:00.005+01:002023-06-20T14:31:36.821+01:00School Fair and Churches Count on Nature<p>Last Friday was St John's school summer fair and we again ran an EcoChurch stall. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinukJVTFt2NvEp2Kdp4zUg4bDZpKHyBPZMNE-HHL6MxFkbN1Qsa_-h7JNzXmgCvvZo5MhijyHRk9KXxqVtiZUehXJ7jHWrxrOU2N6r86rl9wYHkM_bkTlqBF30JC1e7pdQ70DXiICsGAcAExxx_PdoBADkO_beEFzuOfNgZhmYFf2YJGvjFRm4izhgv5xx/s5760/summer%20fair%201.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="5760" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinukJVTFt2NvEp2Kdp4zUg4bDZpKHyBPZMNE-HHL6MxFkbN1Qsa_-h7JNzXmgCvvZo5MhijyHRk9KXxqVtiZUehXJ7jHWrxrOU2N6r86rl9wYHkM_bkTlqBF30JC1e7pdQ70DXiICsGAcAExxx_PdoBADkO_beEFzuOfNgZhmYFf2YJGvjFRm4izhgv5xx/s320/summer%20fair%201.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>This time we had plants for sale, courtesy of Lawrence (plus some extra sunflowers that had germinated in the pots children's church planted. Richard C re-potted these for me while I made a mad return cycle ride home at 3.30 on discovering I was missing all the prizes. Had I been in a car I would never have made it back in time through the school pick-up traffic!). We also had two games - one downloaded from the <a href="https://www.climatestewards.org/resources/footprint-card-game/">Climate Stewards'</a> website which was a real eye-opener; and one involving a bran tub of jenga bricks with names of plants and animals on - the children had to draw one and then match it to a <a href="https://www.thelostwords.org/">Wild Cards</a> image in order to win a sticker (appropriately themed with wildflowers or eco messages). We had a lot of takers for the games which was great.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4aHfBowIk5hSZVtOwnqm2_6HPhjHC8gw6YJENev25g7MsVfgvTFKBv5sHwhlb6BDM6J-jp1L33l7FbQWhEdocrBMylJtWL-tA_VlgYVxv_w1oUyL9PFsAw9wm63aHNcicQ6eD18n9Upqbhbq69iVdGfSdDInw-ims52Q49M-J_9ftu4-RSlU4TZPvJ6ym/s3707/summer%20fair%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2515" data-original-width="3707" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4aHfBowIk5hSZVtOwnqm2_6HPhjHC8gw6YJENev25g7MsVfgvTFKBv5sHwhlb6BDM6J-jp1L33l7FbQWhEdocrBMylJtWL-tA_VlgYVxv_w1oUyL9PFsAw9wm63aHNcicQ6eD18n9Upqbhbq69iVdGfSdDInw-ims52Q49M-J_9ftu4-RSlU4TZPvJ6ym/s320/summer%20fair%202.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p>This Sunday I took the children out for our first ever 'Churches Count on Nature' - inevitably it was pretty small scale (and I'll add a few extra creatures spotted during the previous couple of weeks). The duck was of course our star find and there were some lovely damselflies. We also ended up picking a good bowl of strawberries.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiECCO9rIzYWPFXcg4CikmnN1MY9AGO8jXGwy0_k2txXKU1rH-jxET9rWWj1F-vKXRNzXzo1BwA1Mv6RXe6pD3DDdhlzO5wra1BB4mIcBlsVRfSCXaWWwObaRfN8oGlj-W0119LoMaHJ-0w4ntFysHW-6dp8Lny4hJcnb_EM3dc4ir1-O7opAaJvHUc0N0W/s3087/duck%20and%20eggs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2323" data-original-width="3087" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiECCO9rIzYWPFXcg4CikmnN1MY9AGO8jXGwy0_k2txXKU1rH-jxET9rWWj1F-vKXRNzXzo1BwA1Mv6RXe6pD3DDdhlzO5wra1BB4mIcBlsVRfSCXaWWwObaRfN8oGlj-W0119LoMaHJ-0w4ntFysHW-6dp8Lny4hJcnb_EM3dc4ir1-O7opAaJvHUc0N0W/s320/duck%20and%20eggs.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-6872237971722574232023-06-10T22:18:00.001+01:002023-06-10T22:18:58.266+01:00Equipping Churches to Care for Creation<p>On a day when any sane person would be taking a flask of iced tea and a good book to the nearest shady bench, I chose to take the green travel option to Wokingham (bike/bus/more bike) and so arrived looking slightly roasted at Oxford Diocese's Creation Care event this afternoon. I counted at least 45 delegates from Berkshire churches, and soon learned that across the diocese 184 churches have registered for EcoChurch, which feels very heartening. </p><p>The key note speech was both sobering and inspiring as Bishop Olivia drew on her personal experiences of living in drought prone parts of Africa and encouraged us all, in Marianne Williamson's words 'to make manifest the glory of God that is within us' to make a difference in the face of the plethora of environmental issues we face. There were inspiring stories from around the diocese - I kicked off, sharing something of St John and St Stephen's campaigning, and plugging Hamish Preston's still very relevant and useful <a href="https://www.engagingthepowers.org/">engagingthepowers</a> website. Peter from All Saints Dedworth spoke about their impressive reductions in energy use (I need to get us some data loggers it seems - data is key!). Then Deborah reported on the wonderful opportunities for local engagement at the Lambourn Benefice's four day big green weekend. Finally Fr David of All Saints Ascot traced his church's recent engagement with the EcoChurch programme. </p><p>There was plenty of opportunity for meeting up with others and sharing experiences in between the more formal sessions, the final of which looked at changing cultures to achieve the radical realignment we need. This was led by Hannah Mann (Diocesan Environmental Programme Manager), Rev Hannah Higginson of the host church - All Saints Wokingham - and Bishop Olivia. Suggestions ranged from getting the PCC to agree an environmental policy and using the church's seasons to structure action, to a multi-faceted approach to engage people of different temperaments, gifts and prejudices. Hannah Mann concluded proceedings with an impressive summary of the resources available, starting with the Diocese's <a href="https://www.oxford.anglican.org/xdb/ecohub">EcoHub</a>.</p><p>I came away buzzing with encouragement and throughout was much too focussed to take any photos of the day, but luckily I'd stopped off on my way to the station to look in at the Erleigh Road Community Garden at St Luke's - the first time I've popped my head in since before Covid I'm sure - and it is a glorious oasis there. So here are a few photos from that:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO-SFx_P_dQ8nEVXxgWzx-vfKxzSanSYamhaN4Nhk6XJ7OricZ8EB1vovK_lCTRFycGVmlqZwyDxrRB4M0_z5mzuqiHZiMPTPzBPbWF0hgVbTCLs9zpZGuftWX0EMH7_Bw7Q9jCDd2XyMXWwImrH8iDEZnC322Rn4hkgM5dSnUykjMcLy8gxnXFkL77Q/s5760/community%20garden%20again.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5760" data-original-width="3240" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO-SFx_P_dQ8nEVXxgWzx-vfKxzSanSYamhaN4Nhk6XJ7OricZ8EB1vovK_lCTRFycGVmlqZwyDxrRB4M0_z5mzuqiHZiMPTPzBPbWF0hgVbTCLs9zpZGuftWX0EMH7_Bw7Q9jCDd2XyMXWwImrH8iDEZnC322Rn4hkgM5dSnUykjMcLy8gxnXFkL77Q/s320/community%20garden%20again.jpg" width="180" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfdpR16StCZjWeC0n4ZQUnaNUrjxdZRGk1S8asR1tztl5jbr1MWd_xBdU2YLaZqu9eM9ftgBp4saGhDiqRKzZbZnuSTBxdDyMhv4dxi1ZLS8IrjKWB0LfSH6Mr8vvQVl80T7C1ipfd12HO_OA8YlzBkhpl9TQckmJNcsi7_kHGZTnIEJ5YMONTb77n5w/s5237/community%20garden%20grapes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5237" data-original-width="3240" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfdpR16StCZjWeC0n4ZQUnaNUrjxdZRGk1S8asR1tztl5jbr1MWd_xBdU2YLaZqu9eM9ftgBp4saGhDiqRKzZbZnuSTBxdDyMhv4dxi1ZLS8IrjKWB0LfSH6Mr8vvQVl80T7C1ipfd12HO_OA8YlzBkhpl9TQckmJNcsi7_kHGZTnIEJ5YMONTb77n5w/s320/community%20garden%20grapes.jpg" width="198" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga6RIoGzR6GZb-inNs-awxR6bVzgqiIPfVWj-jklyCdmWGKutFCby4v1T3MEKNaKEw-gHXYoERSllUpWh1NsgDF2q_MSgogJKsB0PXc9k5mwYyDWMprwSQKaY9c6lQ1d_jcF2vsOjM0iHT1TkXuGT7iU5ukijNFNwivprv71qWtZzT_krmJiVu0bq_Rw/s5068/community%20garden%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5068" data-original-width="3240" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga6RIoGzR6GZb-inNs-awxR6bVzgqiIPfVWj-jklyCdmWGKutFCby4v1T3MEKNaKEw-gHXYoERSllUpWh1NsgDF2q_MSgogJKsB0PXc9k5mwYyDWMprwSQKaY9c6lQ1d_jcF2vsOjM0iHT1TkXuGT7iU5ukijNFNwivprv71qWtZzT_krmJiVu0bq_Rw/s320/community%20garden%202.jpg" width="205" /></a></div><br /><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-25004230268390177372023-06-04T19:12:00.001+01:002023-06-04T19:13:36.524+01:00Environment Sunday<p>Today was both Trinity Sunday and Environment Sunday and our focus was on the former, but we were outside in the glorious sunshine and the sermon slot talk - which involved a scavenger hunt and much flag waving - made frequent reference to God as Creator as well as to our blue planet. So it felt very apt for Environment Sunday nonetheless. The EcoChurch team had invited Tricia Marcouse of Reading Climate Action Network to give us a talk over coffee - for those who missed it or couldn't hear well, my notes on the talk are at the bottom of this post.</p><p>Afterwards we enjoyed a delicious lunch which (with a few tiny fishy exceptions) was vegetarian - a range of quiches, tarts and pizzas with salads plus puddings galore. The proceeds from the lunch will be going to <a href="https://rippleeffect.org/gifts/twin-my-church-garden/">Ripple Effect</a> (previously Send A Cow) to "twin" our garden with one in rural Kenya. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC8-kQymR-633hB0ZZ7uJMSgazBbTtjgj2D134rtmXVcepCdCo4PEMwqJhRIzstqMWvTYptLIF-hHpbh_wDzPc6mT35JZXK6YvSsdDT75meDKzVnvbN3oezZ5D8L6kwWyogY_Eov4PX7XSqcnE8ZpIFQiZAbyzP2_D0u1cVi2oq8GeREllVFMpDMN9ZQ/s3343/duck.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2105" data-original-width="3343" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC8-kQymR-633hB0ZZ7uJMSgazBbTtjgj2D134rtmXVcepCdCo4PEMwqJhRIzstqMWvTYptLIF-hHpbh_wDzPc6mT35JZXK6YvSsdDT75meDKzVnvbN3oezZ5D8L6kwWyogY_Eov4PX7XSqcnE8ZpIFQiZAbyzP2_D0u1cVi2oq8GeREllVFMpDMN9ZQ/s320/duck.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Throughout lunch we took it in turns to check on Jemima - the crazy duck who has decided to nest in our courtyard even though she won't be able to get her ducklings to water from there. Nikki, who keeps ducks, has ordered us some appropriate food and a proper water container for her to drink from while she's nesting (she's had to make do with a plant tray of water and bird seeds since I found her on Wednesday) and we're probably going to have to install a temporary pond.<p></p><p>As we were cycling home, I made a last minute decision to cycle left instead of right to join the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/724191215892355">Wildlife and Conservation group of the Friends of Reading Old Cemetery</a> - they meet on the first Sunday of the month at 2pm, and to be honest my introvert brain is usually so fried after a church lunch that I've been putting off going since I found out about them last year. Realising it was 1.55, and knowing they'd advertised a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/724191215892355">Love Your Burial Ground</a> week event, this felt like the moment to fight off the urge to slide into the hammock with an icecream at home and find out what was going on. It was not the biodiversity survey I had been expecting, but a working party building up habitat piles from the many fallen branches (I was very poorly dressed for the job), but it was such a lovely couple of hours. Wonderfully friendly people, tea provided half way through, plenty of scope for quietly getting on with the job or chatting to others as suited - we were working in the shade and kept catching sight of speckled wood butterflies in the dappled sunshine. Three of us were new and were given a tour of the cemetery part way through (caught sight of lots of holly blue butterflies there, as well as damsel flies, and the telltale remains of a sparrowhawk meal) - just a tiny glimpse of <a href="https://readingoldcemetery.uk/">its fascinating history</a>. I can see that finding out more about it could get quite addictive and am looking forward to going back soon.</p><p><i>Notes from Reading CAN talk:</i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">Tricia began by explaining that <a href="https://readingcan.org.uk/">Reading Climate Action Network</a> consists
of the same people as <a href="https://readingcan.org.uk/about-us/">Reading
Climate Change Partnership</a> – ranging across many sectors of Reading
including the hospital, council and university. While some of the sector leads,
eg transport, do so as part of their paid work, others, such as herself heading
up nature, are volunteers. Their budget is very small.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">She began with an introduction to <a href="https://readinguk.org/draughtbusters/">draughtbusters</a> who help people
in fuel poverty, referred to them from various routes. If we know of anyone in
this situation, she recommends referring them either to the <a href="https://www.reading.gov.uk/housing/benefits-and-assistance/winter-watch/">Council’s
Winter Watch</a> programme or the Citizens Advice Bureau. </span><span lang="EN">They are also keen to train up more volunteers
if anyone is interested – she assured us it is “remarkably not complicated” and
suggested we could host a workshop in our community to advise local people what
can be done. </span>They are trying to link up with housing
associations to train them, but so far have only been linked with one in
Oxfordshire, and they have started 8 other groups doing the same work.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">Then she moved on to talk about protecting and
<a href="https://www.reading.gov.uk/leisure/outdoors/rewilding-reading/">promoting
biodiversity in Reading</a>. There are </span>lots of little voluntary groups around town
looking after plots of land belonging to council to increase biodiversity and
carbon storage along with its existing use (our nearest is probably <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/954172832101909/">Newtown Community Garden</a>).</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">They are also trying to future proof Reading for
a future hotter climate – more shade will be needed in public open spaces so we
need to plant now for the future. </span><span lang="EN">One plot they have worked on is <a href="https://www.reading.gov.uk/leisure/outdoors/parks-outdoor-facilities-open-spaces/shinfield-road-recreation-ground/">Shinfield
Road Recreation Ground</a>. She showed us posters from this of children’s designs
for nature projects for home and school. So far all the trees they planted there are ok, but a portable BBQ
had melted the plastic seats chosen to avoid them rotting. </span>She recommended cycling over to <a href="https://www.reading.gov.uk/leisure/outdoors/parks-outdoor-facilities-open-spaces/clayfield-copse-and-blackhouse-woods/">Clayfield
Copse</a> where the bank of wildflowers they have planted looks magnificent.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">In Reading at present there are a lot of
problems with people trying to have tree preservation orders overturned. We
really need legislation that in principle you cannot cut down trees.</span><span lang="EN">But good things are being achieved</span>She mentioned that the biggest single thing we
can do is have a wildlife pond in our garden and she is happy to help provide
suitable plants since they multiply easily yet cost a fortune in the garden
centres.</p><p class="MsoNormal">She concluded by urging us to join the <a href="https://readingcan.org.uk/festival/">climate festival events</a>, this
starts with the <a href="https://www.whatsonreading.com/venues/reading-borough-council/whats-on/reading-water-fest-2023">Water
Fest</a> where she will have stall where there will be the opportunity to
handle slow worms.</p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN">In the questions afterwards, as well as making
suggestions for dealing with the duck nesting in our courtyard, she mentioned
events for children happening at <a href="https://nature-nurture.co.uk/projects/holy-brook-nook/">Holy Brook Nook</a>
in the triangle between the railway lines in Coley.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-89403451398483644202023-05-31T22:06:00.000+01:002023-05-31T22:06:16.382+01:00Campaigns, Courtyard Garden and Collecting Litter<p>The <a href="https://www.zerohour.uk/">Climate and Ecology Bill</a> was reintroduced to Parliament earlier this month, so a couple of weeks ago we sent postcards to our MPs encouraging them to support the bill. We used cards with images from the <a href="https://www.thelostwords.org/lostwordsbook/">Lost Words</a>, which seemed appropriate.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPjl_qppriFd4PBRbhJPgNyyxmuBAjhcXbnEW-ruqKVcsUYRLoedcR598x8Qx_Nw9HVX8AjAPpUI4Kt-x8zjiERfnT5O-mQYV7FTgfjHMXN1r2c9kXqABMW_zVsv0JGubTN1DUZKLIqrRk-yorc_e0i9D5JmZgaJJcIx6gqTS6AQDFNCx4m-NTtpLyrQ/s4344/campaign%20cards.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4344" data-original-width="4344" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPjl_qppriFd4PBRbhJPgNyyxmuBAjhcXbnEW-ruqKVcsUYRLoedcR598x8Qx_Nw9HVX8AjAPpUI4Kt-x8zjiERfnT5O-mQYV7FTgfjHMXN1r2c9kXqABMW_zVsv0JGubTN1DUZKLIqrRk-yorc_e0i9D5JmZgaJJcIx6gqTS6AQDFNCx4m-NTtpLyrQ/s320/campaign%20cards.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Last week I welcomed the St John's School Eco Club and Gardening Club members to do some planting - tomatoes, strawberries, peas and salad. Hopefully the former two will be ripe before they break up for the summer while the latter should be ready for a church lunch eventually. The children were hugely enthusiastic and the courtyard was a whirl of industry - when the dust settled not all the plants were quite where I was expecting them and there weren't enough pots left over for the rocket (which is why it's still by the back door), but it was great fun and they're keen to come back and keep watering when they get the chance after their half term break.<div><br /></div><div>Last Sunday I used resources from Tearfund's <a href="https://www.tearfund.org/campaigns/rubbish-campaign">Rubbish Campaign</a> to frame our Godly Play session on the Good Samaritan. I was hoping to get the older children to write some campaign letters afterwards but a couple of them were certain there was no point because the government never listen - that led to other discussions, but sadly no letters. More positively, they were very keen to help clear up the rubbish in the local park, with the litter pickers borrowed from a Green Party councillor in the parish. </div>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-70449340553925551502023-05-16T22:01:00.002+01:002023-06-04T18:23:14.109+01:00Enjoying the Sunshine and Christian Aid Week<p>Over the past two weeks we have had plenty of opportunity to enjoy the gorgeous weather. On May 7th we took our Family Service out to the front of the church for the first of outdoor service this year. We headed back inside for a Coronation lunch (there was a vegan alternative to the Coronation Chicken available) - and money raised will go to Christian Aid. </p><p>Our main fundraiser for Christian Aid week was a very well attended quiz on Saturday night organised by Rosemary and Liz. At half time a speaker from Christian Aid updated us on what Christian Aid has been doing for the people of Ukraine. Sunday's service drew on Christian Aid's worship resources for this year so it felt apt to take the children out for part of the service to do some planting - not of pigeon peas but wildflower seeds. We added a few plants to each pot in case the seeds don't come up.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkL2351KUUMAsjGIxoRu-zQwQXwhM6fk--gr1SFbeTfz5mWYmt8eIqRcDzTvzqECYVeLvwricS2wgnaxNvA30bRBQaFvbaNeok6-kxrh2GkwVgatORtZOLfDNYTWZGvjZPNUkAV8XT2KhRRDOhzB3mSkK57tZ5gOCGdyD_IyL3qOq55PYeHiTlha6C9A/s1600/IMG-20230514-WA0000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkL2351KUUMAsjGIxoRu-zQwQXwhM6fk--gr1SFbeTfz5mWYmt8eIqRcDzTvzqECYVeLvwricS2wgnaxNvA30bRBQaFvbaNeok6-kxrh2GkwVgatORtZOLfDNYTWZGvjZPNUkAV8XT2KhRRDOhzB3mSkK57tZ5gOCGdyD_IyL3qOq55PYeHiTlha6C9A/s320/IMG-20230514-WA0000.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></blockquote></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In the afternoon there was Forest Church - looking forward to Ascension with the aid of lots of bubbles.</div></div><br /><br /><p><br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-15213787176585124892023-04-26T17:28:00.001+01:002023-06-04T18:22:17.578+01:00The Big One<p>Over the weekend thousands of campaigners, including several of our congregation, joined a protest in London, calling for meaningful action to tackle the Climate and Biodiversity Crises. Although <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-65362335">national news</a> gave the impression that all those present belonged to Extinction Rebellion, the reality was that lots of other organisations including Christian Aid, Tearfund and A Rocha were present too. On every day there were services led by different church groups in addition to daily Franciscan prayer walks. Former archbishop of York, Lord Sentamu, tried to deliver a letter of protest to Shell headquarters - you can see what happened <a href="https://twitter.com/CClimateAction/status/1649405477686501377">here</a>.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-vSKhjWZ1REAITRHOR6HkOPnQeR9JHM4EZ80dgmLuNtWFOXn-P35p9xyjEdpr3UbWPzDu-KHZjQXRItWwWbgqyGvoYA2QmBYyirb6zEoSMxhdq38MOXGzrqUn0SeTt0YCSVjuagqMLCc-Xk8xxBUvi_udLXlPlNDHRuvrL8OTfSpNWZpnnDs8oLCkyg/s2048/The%20Big%20One.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1554" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-vSKhjWZ1REAITRHOR6HkOPnQeR9JHM4EZ80dgmLuNtWFOXn-P35p9xyjEdpr3UbWPzDu-KHZjQXRItWwWbgqyGvoYA2QmBYyirb6zEoSMxhdq38MOXGzrqUn0SeTt0YCSVjuagqMLCc-Xk8xxBUvi_udLXlPlNDHRuvrL8OTfSpNWZpnnDs8oLCkyg/s320/The%20Big%20One.jpg" width="243" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-69874856177468614252023-04-04T16:34:00.004+01:002023-04-04T16:34:52.413+01:00Diocesan Report<p>At last week's deanery synod the report of the diocesan synod was all about environmental issues. Reading deanery's motion to make it easier to put solar panels onto churches was passed, as was a motion from Wantage:</p><p>That this Synod, embracing the principles of the Sustainable Church Flowers movement, which encourages a living into the Fifth Mark of Mission by promoting the use of local, seasonal and fully biodegradable/compostable flowers and foliage without floral foam, 1.) encourages a sustainable approach to church flowers throughout the diocese and 2.) strongly discourages the use of all floral foam in churches and churchyards across the diocese. </p><p>Their supporting paper is <a href="https://d3hgrlq6yacptf.cloudfront.net/61f2fd86f0ee5/content/pages/documents/ods-23-03-wantage-deanery-synod-motion.pdf ">here</a>.</p><p>We were also encouraged to take a look at the Diocese's<a href="https://d3hgrlq6yacptf.cloudfront.net/61f2fd86f0ee5/content/pages/documents/ods-23-01-environment-paper.pdf "> plan to reach net zero</a>, which was accepted by the synod. This has ambitious targets aimed at tackling the Climate Crisis, and both the Diocese and parishes have a part to play in meeting them.</p><div><br /></div>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-29285777926124468892023-03-24T18:17:00.000+00:002023-03-24T18:17:09.666+00:00Green Meetings and Mothering Sunday Flowers<p>It's been a week of 'green' meetings - last Saturday the Berkshire Area of the Third Order Franciscans were here at St John's and I was asked to talk to them about our EcoChurch journey. Some of them were already members of EcoChurches and could share their experience too, while others said they were enthused to set their own church on the path.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxCauxitHSi7ZfZ7HWSp9GX0_R8aayzhBsF8ufm_TgxX9dW0UDrV1mTSwqp_4fiaRZH5hAxnTX4yWectFRBo29ynN4WqWkrajTgnTtk-2DmH34y0snPLr_Ko0jZ2FbwZNqt9G_zanUKSmd6BoASNzTTT6pi8ogGbtSpmffoFBHUzgR86JkF2KnlMAcCg/s1360/cafe.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="765" data-original-width="1360" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxCauxitHSi7ZfZ7HWSp9GX0_R8aayzhBsF8ufm_TgxX9dW0UDrV1mTSwqp_4fiaRZH5hAxnTX4yWectFRBo29ynN4WqWkrajTgnTtk-2DmH34y0snPLr_Ko0jZ2FbwZNqt9G_zanUKSmd6BoASNzTTT6pi8ogGbtSpmffoFBHUzgR86JkF2KnlMAcCg/s320/cafe.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Daffodils left over from Sunday morning <span style="text-align: left;">- the art on the walls in our Caf</span>é</span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: left;">, inspired by the CofE Lent theme "Dust and Glory", includes quite a few images that also celebrate Creation</span></span></div><p>Then there was the pre-service gathering on Sunday to assemble the Mothering Sunday posies. Unlike most cut flowers, daffodils are typically grown in Britain, so they're definitely a better option than the mixed flowers that can occasionally be handed out (I'm told even roses!). Nonetheless, I miss the tradition we had at <a href="https://www.tadcasterbenefice.org/">Tadcaster</a> of collecting the flowers locally (one of the downsides of an urban parish). The gorgeous-smelling greenery that was bound with the flowers did, however, come straight from Chris S's garden, which was lovely. This year we abandoned the practice of wrapping them in aluminium foil in favour of more re-usable elastic bands. Had we more time, I know, raffia bows would have been better - something to aim for!</p><p>On Tuesday, vicars from two of our neighbouring parishes joined Jeremy and I for lunch (the regular Tuesday Café baked potatoes) to share experiences and suggestions for reducing our carbon emissions (and heating bills) with greener energy. St Johns's own plans are still awaiting agreement from the Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust because the project will give much of its electricity to them.</p><p>That evening we had our regular EcoChurch team meeting. Some of the discussion was about the buildings section (do our new paper towels from recycled tetrapaks work as well as the old FSC ones, how long until all the lights are LED etc!) and our little bits of land - time to renew the weeding rota. We also discussed 'global and community engagement' - eg how to encourage more people to get involved with local Newtown Conservation projects: the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/954172832101909/?locale=en_GB">Community Garden</a> (meeting this Sunday) and the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/724191215892355">Cemetery</a> (first Sunday of the month) - there is still time to join in after our service has finished.</p><p>Finally, on Wednesday I was at RISC, representing Reading Area Green Christians, as a partner of Reading Climate Action Network, in a 'Strategy Room' session, looking at potential new policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As one of the other participants mentioned, it's really worth keep reminding people that our food system is responsible for about a third of all climate changing emissions - this and heating were the targets of the suggested policies.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-80497721078839676612023-01-31T15:44:00.002+00:002023-01-31T15:44:34.680+00:00<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigdy72xuLf7UZ8wn6aAEGw0O0ovGx8_rJRoQTeSHH9bGERsOlUsBXrMEWkpcdAa2D6N87y0xtj1YMKZrRpkliajmnk_k6I3oWdHMq-4HdRFUIaEt9aw0lJBNODLvd3oIfAp71aKazSw0lrl-2oq576vVX3OAF8K18vbsCt1ETZzbgZIuGi05L_6b2jcQ/s1900/hero_blue-tits-on-branch_istock-925264080.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="1900" height="101" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigdy72xuLf7UZ8wn6aAEGw0O0ovGx8_rJRoQTeSHH9bGERsOlUsBXrMEWkpcdAa2D6N87y0xtj1YMKZrRpkliajmnk_k6I3oWdHMq-4HdRFUIaEt9aw0lJBNODLvd3oIfAp71aKazSw0lrl-2oq576vVX3OAF8K18vbsCt1ETZzbgZIuGi05L_6b2jcQ/s320/hero_blue-tits-on-branch_istock-925264080.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Many of us joined the <a href="https://www.rspb.org.uk/get-involved/activities/birdwatch/">Big Garden Birdwatch</a> at the weekend, including the young people at Forest Church who saw pigeons, robins, crows and a woodpecker as well as kites overhead.<p></p><p>A couple of congregation members also headed over to Newtown Community Garden where there was birdbox building, bulb planting and more - see their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/954172832101909/?mibextid=HsNCOg" target="_blank">Facebook Page</a> for some great photos.</p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-82524413032105596062023-01-28T18:21:00.001+00:002023-01-28T18:21:33.161+00:00The Letter: A Message for our Earth <div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOvoVk37t-IG-HXHIw4UdNEgrnfTSzpmMt9zI08_e4vyX9rOAk2zvSyli9Z2OXrj-e-Ip9A0BS8hNdSGUiEgFpQuXPtkI3Ke8dKd9Y0yw2JH_3300Zr-R9SYmZr8Bmgm49GdMP9yecDfu3GCJOcy4OgXKNTjdW8KoK20MiXvgONJ92TGZhZqPr4X-h9w/s723/The%20Letter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="723" data-original-width="599" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOvoVk37t-IG-HXHIw4UdNEgrnfTSzpmMt9zI08_e4vyX9rOAk2zvSyli9Z2OXrj-e-Ip9A0BS8hNdSGUiEgFpQuXPtkI3Ke8dKd9Y0yw2JH_3300Zr-R9SYmZr8Bmgm49GdMP9yecDfu3GCJOcy4OgXKNTjdW8KoK20MiXvgONJ92TGZhZqPr4X-h9w/s320/The%20Letter.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Before Christmas, a couple of members of our EcoChurch team watched <i>The Letter: A Message for our Earth</i>. It is the story of Pope Francis's Laudato Si' encyclical and some of the many many people who are acting on the issues it raises. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">They were so impressed they suggested we invite home groups and any other congregation members to join us to watch it together at church. This will be happening this Thursday, 2nd February at 7.30 - all are welcome to join us and refreshments will be available.</div><p></p><p><br /> </p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-56559456131399677912022-11-13T16:02:00.001+00:002022-11-13T16:03:14.303+00:00Campaigning for action at COP27 and in the Lords<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7CQyYTnmLwEyt1gYFWGrSzfWxcW8Gdg9Ym8atGj2gtg2hJ7p37dKqgbEnFCVfRhNYyKCuFjHHBV3rf5GCFIx04ZyExNVm3MNavnWpXFKMoT6TyilWwNlXpVoSBe6qeLVnFJrpFmfRy-oxehNJLH7lqwWkevaWeSJNIgeVU_-L0voOARiq2q_74vDC9Q/s1600/Richard%20B%20at%20COP27%20demo%2012%20Nov%2022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1239" data-original-width="1600" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7CQyYTnmLwEyt1gYFWGrSzfWxcW8Gdg9Ym8atGj2gtg2hJ7p37dKqgbEnFCVfRhNYyKCuFjHHBV3rf5GCFIx04ZyExNVm3MNavnWpXFKMoT6TyilWwNlXpVoSBe6qeLVnFJrpFmfRy-oxehNJLH7lqwWkevaWeSJNIgeVU_-L0voOARiq2q_74vDC9Q/s320/Richard%20B%20at%20COP27%20demo%2012%20Nov%2022.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Representatives from St John's have been at demonstrations calling for real action at COP27: this is Richard B on yesterday's march. Christine was in London at the prayer vigil on Wednesday. The conference has been in our prayers at our midweek services too.<p></p><p>After church today we were looking at the Community and Global Engagement section of the EcoChurch survey and realised that quite a few of us are involved in the local Newtown Community Garden. Several of us also committed to take up <a href="https://www.zerohour.uk/bill">Zero Hour</a>'s request to write to peers this week to encourage them to support the <a href="https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/2943">Climate and Ecology Bill</a> when it comes to its first reading in the House of Lords on Friday.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMn6F5Xpe-7z-3hYYO8WQFji34_JIsFY7PLwuhoJ8EeiQGLcTohuta_6ozORT8Se4acQv0ZJXADwmUQ9R3e5KONCc7t3ohmz838dl_FyuVYqPESVkEweEpBd5LICGBk9UZAAuNaU0f577YAgpkono_PjCxCoj2sbgU0wcizkZHFNwDocXSJs11cODV8w/s1600/COP27%20demo%2012%20Nov%2022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMn6F5Xpe-7z-3hYYO8WQFji34_JIsFY7PLwuhoJ8EeiQGLcTohuta_6ozORT8Se4acQv0ZJXADwmUQ9R3e5KONCc7t3ohmz838dl_FyuVYqPESVkEweEpBd5LICGBk9UZAAuNaU0f577YAgpkono_PjCxCoj2sbgU0wcizkZHFNwDocXSJs11cODV8w/s320/COP27%20demo%2012%20Nov%2022.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p> </p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-13888148646528104952022-11-04T19:13:00.002+00:002022-11-04T19:13:32.461+00:00Praying for COP27 as Kingdom Season begins<div style="text-align: left;">It feels rather appropriate to be hoping for miracles, praying for a world in which the rich and powerful finally put the needs of the poor and vulnerable first, as we enter Kingdom Season. This week's church email included invitations to pray - either through Tearfund's SMS updates by texting PRAY to 07916 874441 (save the number as a contact); or subscribing to the daily prayers sent out by<a href="https://www.leeds.anglican.org/news/call-prayer-cop27-climate-talks"> Leeds Diocese</a>.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">There was also an invitation to join Christian Aid, Tearfund ARocha and other campaigners on 12th November at demonstrations including one in London. They'll be calling for the actions needed to stop warming going over 1.5 extra degrees, and to support the countries suffering loss and damage as a result of the past emissions that our wealth was built on.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">You can find out more about this and other ways to get involved with prayer and campaigns around COP27 from <a href="https://www.tearfund.org/campaigns/climate-campaign">Tearfund</a>, <a href="https://arocha.org.uk/event/join-a-rocha-uk-for-the-global-day-of-action/">A Rocha</a>, or the <a href="https://climatejustice.uk/cop27/">Climate Justice Coalition</a> websites.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7GOZGg4KRZ5YIW1Ud-a04SIcf3czuv_MEEYztfMBnxMSL2AgYnyrjuOVvMsGniWHdwcAMhTIGSjqdApeqOpSVQ5usF4OWU65TQbrL28BA_gsJJKPGx5wyKox_Gq6EGcGW4RAYKcSYqbzJuPlrf8VmucE6WuPgEEL6Z7QjVr-Hte7EQf-MuGBFP6NwhA/s5184/ash-from-modern-afflatus-NQ6Lh81BTRs-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="5184" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7GOZGg4KRZ5YIW1Ud-a04SIcf3czuv_MEEYztfMBnxMSL2AgYnyrjuOVvMsGniWHdwcAMhTIGSjqdApeqOpSVQ5usF4OWU65TQbrL28BA_gsJJKPGx5wyKox_Gq6EGcGW4RAYKcSYqbzJuPlrf8VmucE6WuPgEEL6Z7QjVr-Hte7EQf-MuGBFP6NwhA/s320/ash-from-modern-afflatus-NQ6Lh81BTRs-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Kingdom by R. S. Thomas<br /></span></b>It’s a long way off but inside it<br />There are quite different things going on:<br />Festivals at which the poor man<br />Is king and the consumptive is<br />Healed; mirrors in which the blind look<br />At themselves and love looks at them<br />Back; and industry is for mending<br />The bent bones and the minds fractured<br />By life. It’s a long way off, but to get<br />There takes no time and admission<br />Is free, if you purge yourself<br />Of desire, and present yourself with<br />Your need only and the simple offering<br />Of your faith, green as a leaf.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">(From <i><a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/17469/selected-poems-by-r-s-thomas/9780140188905">Selected Poems</a></i>)</div><div><br /></div><div>(Photo - Ash from Modern Afflatus on Unsplash)</div>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-2594281478639627222022-10-03T14:07:00.002+01:002022-10-03T14:08:36.928+01:00Harvest Festival<p> Yesterday's service was our Harvest Festival, followed by a shared lunch to raise money for <a href="https://www.christianaid.org.uk/">Christian Aid'</a>s Harvest Appeal for the East Africa Hunger Crisis. As the final service in Creation Season it was the appropriate time to mention <a href="https://takethejump.org/system-change">TakeTheJump's</a> biggest challenge:</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAEVhUCeQTaSme8i9YmnIGafheOfnJUYvgqFH0YXtIEozPKGC-WLK6woglV0E-0BeJ37blpYFn9ceJyiKf9sI8WXUqheTTfIEK3vGn9An2ZmZFxF2HauBc3hEExWZrB5WWPKns0UXWqT5Wyhbj9kqSwpSivybPCiCJmj0pxaFDo6vllrQq4p8blyTcFg/s468/change%20the%20system.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="467" data-original-width="468" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAEVhUCeQTaSme8i9YmnIGafheOfnJUYvgqFH0YXtIEozPKGC-WLK6woglV0E-0BeJ37blpYFn9ceJyiKf9sI8WXUqheTTfIEK3vGn9An2ZmZFxF2HauBc3hEExWZrB5WWPKns0UXWqT5Wyhbj9kqSwpSivybPCiCJmj0pxaFDo6vllrQq4p8blyTcFg/s320/change%20the%20system.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>The suggestions they offer include:</p><p><span style="color: #ff00fe;">Changing to a green energy supplier </span></p><p><span style="color: #ff00fe;">Changing your pension to a green investor</span></p><p><span style="color: #ff00fe;">Using ethical and green banks </span></p><p><span style="color: #ff00fe;">Using your energy at home efficiently, or install energy efficiency measures (this can be expensive so not everyone is able to do so easily).</span></p><p><span style="color: #ff00fe;">If you feel comfortable and able to, you could consider pushing for change through activism or peaceful protest. For example, write to your political representative with the change you want to see.</span></p><p>A good place to start with campaigning is Christian Aid's own new <a href="https://www.christianaid.org.uk/get-involved-campaigns/climate-change/loss-and-damage-landing-page">Loss and Damage campaign</a> to help vulnerable communities already damaged by Climate Change despite being those who contribute least to the greenhouse gas emissions.</p><p>Several of our congregation were also in a meeting last week to build support for the <a href="https://www.zerohour.uk/">Climate and Ecology Bill</a>. This would bring in legislation to stop and try to reverse both elements of the environmental crisis while engaging a people's assembly to help ensure fair action. If you'd like to know more - do ask Jo Laynesmith.</p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-43111881220256784712022-09-29T14:29:00.003+01:002022-09-29T15:02:32.361+01:00End Clutter<p>The green tip for last week's service was from <a href="https://takethejump.org/end-clutter">TakeTheJump's</a> End Clutter suggestion - they highlight the climate and ecological impact of electronic items which are often replaced very frequently. The carbon emissions associated with the production of any electronic product are generally higher than those used in its entire lifetime eg only 13% of the Apple iPhone 11 Pro’s lifetime emissions are actually to do with its use; the other 86% are associated with its production, transport and end-of-life processing.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs9dwdMIgidz8k_Zxt4_LTK_6cZwSpwuNpirze9Xi0Ax2lP9Y4XGHU2njxswLyVOu8UuXvEvwha-2kQi2EVZrSF0xULDRs98pjLg_-N-DEECtTZ5bkjLANLt58bpf4Hko3DA_z60YjXTX4HxH_gZKzdEeaPBBERiEsVe7mDqoJA-uRkcovC0znahvtiw/s464/end%20clutter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="464" data-original-width="461" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs9dwdMIgidz8k_Zxt4_LTK_6cZwSpwuNpirze9Xi0Ax2lP9Y4XGHU2njxswLyVOu8UuXvEvwha-2kQi2EVZrSF0xULDRs98pjLg_-N-DEECtTZ5bkjLANLt58bpf4Hko3DA_z60YjXTX4HxH_gZKzdEeaPBBERiEsVe7mDqoJA-uRkcovC0znahvtiw/s320/end%20clutter.jpg" width="318" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>Electronic items should last 5-7 years so our target is not to replace them within that time. Obviously the same is true for lots of other products with potentially much longer lifecycles. According to <a href="https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/home-garden/carbon-impact-steel-implications-home-appliances">Ethical Consumer</a>, 8% of the world's carbon emissions come from steel production and each washing machine or fridge is responsible for 300-400 kg of carbon dioxide for its manufacture.</p><p>You can try taking portable electrical items to <a href="https://en-gb.facebook.com/ReadingRepairCafe/">Reading Repair Cafe</a> for advice on mending. Hiring, borrowing or buying secondhand are all obvious alternatives that save money too. </p><p>Some years ago we tried a 'church borrowing book' in which people listed items they owned that they were prepared to lend to anyone in the congregation who wanted - these ranged from DVD collections to a flat by the sea - but it didn't really work because people forgot to check in there to find what might be available. It can feel awkward to ask to borrow but that is surely a consequence of problems with our culture - individualism, prizing wealth etc. Yet being prepared to borrow helps the planet and makes whoever does the lending feel good at the same time. It's part of what it means to be a community, so we shouldn't feel embarrassed to put out requests on the church Facebook page if our neighbours cannot help. My family was certainly very grateful to Laura's for lending us suitcases for our holiday this year. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRHPVgoNsmvx_WU5YZO2lJNplEmc-_VbcINRab2GfKu1RmrdxDmw95_VNmG7xsmurUr2wyozrApDkXOFHh1okavWqbtkf-pIgOArJkzfsf_nafi3nmO9RfMHK8soPUoXE3ZJSBs1Bt0HNCwSKRdXiX1jkO0ikjGmbu7RlWraXMrYw77RqJZp9g62U5Gw/s807/the%20jump%20image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="503" data-original-width="807" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRHPVgoNsmvx_WU5YZO2lJNplEmc-_VbcINRab2GfKu1RmrdxDmw95_VNmG7xsmurUr2wyozrApDkXOFHh1okavWqbtkf-pIgOArJkzfsf_nafi3nmO9RfMHK8soPUoXE3ZJSBs1Bt0HNCwSKRdXiX1jkO0ikjGmbu7RlWraXMrYw77RqJZp9g62U5Gw/s320/the%20jump%20image.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-7512754523309486112022-09-20T12:41:00.006+01:002022-09-29T14:59:18.956+01:00Creation Sunday<p> Last Sunday's service was given a special focus on Creation and the sermon will, as usual, be available on our <a href="https://www.stjohnandststephen.org.uk/resources/talks" target="_blank">church website</a> in due course. In the intercessions it was fortunately easy to lead from prayers about the late Queen and new King into prayers for Creation because of their family's well-known concern for the environment. This was marked most recently in the launch of the <a href="https://www.royal.uk/queens-green-canopy" target="_blank">Queen's Green Canopy</a>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnHloV1TvZV8bnDR0GIO7QhahJbtjj-RPDQ4p8hAytSGEGlyevqXnsq54bBhD_cT_nk8KOYSe6FxNCTn5zFkI_gKJo0hDhKYGLUsvuV1Q0kPNLrMeZ1HDPFkQnc_D4jSpskNtGrqjSu6uofT5C3pzUZDkRhaJj1AUf2035jVha569T2hNAj7L426DN9g/s481/take%20the%20jump%203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="474" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnHloV1TvZV8bnDR0GIO7QhahJbtjj-RPDQ4p8hAytSGEGlyevqXnsq54bBhD_cT_nk8KOYSe6FxNCTn5zFkI_gKJo0hDhKYGLUsvuV1Q0kPNLrMeZ1HDPFkQnc_D4jSpskNtGrqjSu6uofT5C3pzUZDkRhaJj1AUf2035jVha569T2hNAj7L426DN9g/s320/take%20the%20jump%203.jpg" width="315" /></a></div><br /><p>At the end, as we have throughout Creationtide, a notice was given using <a href="https://takethejump.org/" target="_blank">TakeTheJump's</a> recommended actions. This week the focus was on buying fewer clothes. The UN reckon that the fashion industry is responsible for 8-10% of global greenhouse gas emissions – that is actually more than aviation and shipping combined. About 2.5% of the world’s farmland is given over to cotton and over 10,000 litres of water are needed to make just one pair of jeans. Synthetic materials are of course often directly made from oil, and then there are all the tonnes of chemicals involved in dyeing the clothes. Apparently British shoppers buy more clothes than any others in Europe. (Source <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-60382624" target="_blank">here</a>)</p><p>Although some clothes companies have eco-ranges, <a href="https://takethejump.org/dress-retro" target="_blank">campaigners</a> say this really doesn’t address the problem seriously. In addition, while giving clothes to charity shops is good, the supply there outstrips the demand so that 70% of donated clothing ends up with textile merchants who sell it in developing countries where the livelihoods of local clothes producers are consequently undermined. TakeTheJump suggest we try to limit our buying to three or fewer new items each year, definitely no more than eight – if everyone in the developed world did that, it would reduce the fashion industry’s emissions by 37%. Instead we can buy more secondhand clothes, which supports charity shops, do more mending, and rent for special occasions instead of buying those dresses that only come out of the wardrobe once a year. Churches don’t tend to do jumble sales any more but the Greenbelt clothes swap seemed to go well and EcoChurch are trying to encourage us to do similar small scale events.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-91007072092882043502022-09-15T18:07:00.001+01:002022-09-29T15:00:19.587+01:00Travelling light<p>In last week's service the 'green tip' from <a href="https://takethejump.org/">TaketheJump</a> was to opt for greener travel - that meant taking two of TaketheJump's themes - one on avoiding cars and the other on avoiding planes. We chose to combine them because we're aware that many people don't fly at all - 70% of all flights in the UK are made by just 15% of the population.</p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNMSBUFYrVEOHyev62LyqkTm-MI-0BDK1BsZqEDYM94Qrn3UEHfkTEJby6s-lGCiTdc3TpzNEDUJTOZyz-RXYsV3Cc3pp1_IH13wfBTfJ4Qhdug16NuC0YsyuXbFJsEpHdMc5Her5xuo0e86rF4Fhl43Wv5VVMziovNpQeJC_7hFFvGD215Gk5bGL01w/s483/take%20the%20jump%202a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="483" data-original-width="480" height="334" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNMSBUFYrVEOHyev62LyqkTm-MI-0BDK1BsZqEDYM94Qrn3UEHfkTEJby6s-lGCiTdc3TpzNEDUJTOZyz-RXYsV3Cc3pp1_IH13wfBTfJ4Qhdug16NuC0YsyuXbFJsEpHdMc5Her5xuo0e86rF4Fhl43Wv5VVMziovNpQeJC_7hFFvGD215Gk5bGL01w/w332-h334/take%20the%20jump%202a.jpg" width="332" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Flights account for 2% of all greenhouse gas emissions but they're a very energy intensive way to travel and they're increasing rapidly. Some campaigns ask us not to fly at all, but TaketheJump recommend only one short haul return flight every three years and a minimum of eight years between long haul flights. As it happens there was a great talk at <a href="https://www.greenbelt.org.uk/">Greenbelt</a> this year on the topic by Helen Coffey, travel editor for The Independent who gave up flying in 2020 - an experience she records in her new book:<a href="https://www.hive.co.uk/Product/Helen-Coffey/Zero-Altitude--How-I-Learned-to-Fly-Less-and-Travel-More/26919515"> Zero Altitude</a>. It turns out that UK citizens fly abroad more than anyone else and the number of flights worldwide increased 300% between 1990 and 2021. Her top advice is to make the journey part of the holiday, to recognise that flying takes up most of a day anyway with all of the queuing and waiting; and that psychologically travelling at a pace where you are more conscious of the journey is better for you. A sleeper train may be more expensive than a flight, but it is also an adventure that feels a little bit Agatha Christie with less peril.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4YbOrATbFkz8V48yl43brXtVND3iU9FMr3GXYESqx5zipKxJ4u2TP7fy3Ftq8JC5GNMOr4Zp2cVRbr2bRohr8wb4YucwNCNXLkDuQFFZP48trmlwNwtdhxloVm-KTrEnB3uPNx8se0UlWcmeZaxlBvcGqCYvpZi8hxukHIixOPe5-9QsWm-1kdiZC2w/s482/take%20the%20jump%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="482" data-original-width="474" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4YbOrATbFkz8V48yl43brXtVND3iU9FMr3GXYESqx5zipKxJ4u2TP7fy3Ftq8JC5GNMOr4Zp2cVRbr2bRohr8wb4YucwNCNXLkDuQFFZP48trmlwNwtdhxloVm-KTrEnB3uPNx8se0UlWcmeZaxlBvcGqCYvpZi8hxukHIixOPe5-9QsWm-1kdiZC2w/s320/take%20the%20jump%202.jpg" width="315" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>A quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions come from transport, <a href="https://takethejump.org/travel-fresh">apparently</a>, with two thirds of this coming from road travel. Living in Reading, it's not all that difficult to avoid using a car most of the time - we gave ours away about twelve years ago. This has been made much easier by generous friends in the congregation lending us their cars now and again (notably for Greenbelt!). For occasional short trips the <a href="https://www.co-wheels.org.uk/">commonwheels</a> car club is great. </p><p>It's worth being prepared to spend some money on making cycling feel safer and dryer with the right clothing - it feels easier to make that purchase if you bear in mind how little the cost is in comparison with servicing a car. |It took me several years to work up the courage to cycle at night - finally inspired by a fellow PCC member. It turned out to be far less stressful than I thought, in fact, sometimes cycling in the quiet on a still night can be intensely beautiful, even in Reading!</p><p>Although train travel can be expensive, booking in advance can make a ridiculously large difference and there are some excellent discount cards too - it was worth buying a 'Twogotogether' for me and my eldest just for one return journey to York which we weren't able to book very far in advance. The Network card covers a huge area of the south so I use it most of the time. </p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-60440058578846439792022-09-06T18:19:00.004+01:002022-09-29T15:00:46.976+01:00Taking the Jump in Creationtide<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjID0Jn4qfkHKolrUtaNkw0JEuqXLBJDrO7xER4rcVY8qs_izxdXvzm2eLA8YXQEQkmq9hAAJzdYW1k0I2Ka7QS4vN9L8bXv6_vTzESqDVn10PMRN4Pw9VnJ2Zo5QxzHww7by3hiqAiOQpuO3GlYZ9R1Ktxl7RsAn70lz8Vjamw_EwplGvtmN92TwbrkQ/s471/Eat%20Green.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="471" data-original-width="464" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjID0Jn4qfkHKolrUtaNkw0JEuqXLBJDrO7xER4rcVY8qs_izxdXvzm2eLA8YXQEQkmq9hAAJzdYW1k0I2Ka7QS4vN9L8bXv6_vTzESqDVn10PMRN4Pw9VnJ2Zo5QxzHww7by3hiqAiOQpuO3GlYZ9R1Ktxl7RsAn70lz8Vjamw_EwplGvtmN92TwbrkQ/s320/Eat%20Green.jpg" width="315" /></a></div><br />As usual we are marking Creation Tide through September and the first weekend in October. We've decided to encourage the actions suggested by <a href="http://takethejump.org">takethejump.org</a> in the notices each week, not least because many of them also involve actions that save money as well as carbon emissions and it feels more optimistic to be taking actions that will positively make the world fairer than just because the cost of living crisis is forcing us into them! For this week I mentioned the value of a plant based diet since the UN reckon that livestock accounts for 14% of all greenhouse gas emissions. This is hard to believe until you realise that, of the total mass of mammals on this planet, 60% is livestock, 36% humans and only 4% wild animals. The JUMP's suggestions and justifications are <a href="https://takethejump.org/eat-green">here</a>. Elsewhere I've seen a suggestion of the equivalent of three chicken breasts a week as a maximum appropriate.<p></p><p>Of course meat and dairy aren't the only high emissions foods - chocolate can be awful if rainforests have been cut down to grow the cocoa, which is why it's essential to look for the <a href="https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/">Rainforest Alliance</a> or <a href="https://www.fairtrade.org.uk/">Fairtrade</a> symbols. Deciding what is appropriate is made more complicated by the fact that the same products grown in different ways can have different impacts. I've always been encouraged to read that beef from cattle that graze in organic pasture land is better than that from crowded sheds. Unfortunately <a href="https://www.monbiot.com/2022/08/19/unholy-cow/">George Monbiot</a> has observed that some 26% of land is grazed in this way and that if this land was allowed to grow wild it would actually be very much better both for the climate and biodiversity - not everyone has been persuaded, as<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/aug/21/how-livestock-grazing-is-benefiting-the-planet"> these comments</a> show. All in all it seems beef ought still to be a very rare luxury.</p><p>Luckily being vegetarian or vegan has never been easier with an amazing array of alternatives available in supermarkets so it's a great deal easier to do it healthily. Some of the alternatives aren't always that much cheaper than the meat of course, but with the right recipe books it can be very economical - my favourite vegetarian recipe book is one I've had since I was a student: <a href="https://www.hive.co.uk/Product/Rose-Elliot/Cheap-and-Easy-Vegetarian-Cooking-on-a-Budget-The-Essential-Rose-Elliot/15507809"><i>Cheap and Easy</i></a> by Rose Elliot.</p><p>Last Sunday I was also able to recruit a good team to start looking after the courtyard garden and added some more plants which have been wonderfully well-watered by the rains at last in the days since.</p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-79017805555652014032022-08-04T13:53:00.004+01:002022-08-04T13:53:24.873+01:00Reading-Düsseldorf Churches Interchange<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz5UcD22kTHjhtaWb2V_893C3S3aJkOt0vHxFouqSZxfRyZQyLWs8jEgHZBGkI2z6cV0YZUKcNHgO43zB0X2k6XSp0hhmsCXMGEjwPpQ-WxJr2zm-Pt5FSwzJPcLxUIfyWLx3fWd_YAbl1O6ACGaEz_zXNmojPwyWWpeBQvsG0mOFJkzSqQqsOJXDDAA/s4208/DSC_3816.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2368" data-original-width="4208" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz5UcD22kTHjhtaWb2V_893C3S3aJkOt0vHxFouqSZxfRyZQyLWs8jEgHZBGkI2z6cV0YZUKcNHgO43zB0X2k6XSp0hhmsCXMGEjwPpQ-WxJr2zm-Pt5FSwzJPcLxUIfyWLx3fWd_YAbl1O6ACGaEz_zXNmojPwyWWpeBQvsG0mOFJkzSqQqsOJXDDAA/s320/DSC_3816.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />Yesterday afternoon St John's hosted a meeting for the Reading-Düsseldorf Churches Interchange - part of a week long visit. The afternoon was themed around Climate Change and Creation Care and started with a presentation about EcoChurch. I delivered this, and had been asked to focus especially on actions that individuals can do. In my preparation, I came across <a href="https://takethejump.org/about" target="_blank">The JUMP's </a>very optimistic calculations on the impact that individuals can have on the crisis by doing six key things to cut our own emissions, so I put these at the heart of the talk.<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><div>Afterwards one of the visitors, Hans, shared some of the activities done and issues faced by German churches also wanting to cut their carbon footprint. He told us of their Green Rooster initiative - their version of EcoChurch. There followed lots of enthusiastic discussion, especially around practical action like installing solar panels and the question of influencing our politicians. As well as learning about actions in Germany, it was a great opportunity to chat with people from other Reading churches who are now interested in becoming EcoChurches too!</div><div><br /></div><div>After an excellent cream tea, there was a lovely ecumenical service at which Michaela Nieland-Schuller preached on creation care.</div>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-44767374084677712602022-08-02T10:52:00.001+01:002022-08-02T10:52:32.130+01:00Climate Hero - calculating our emissions<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTZgIflEJA6HIcOUsvEEQC5TwXe2Y16LbKiTXXC3UkRFOpWQ-CXEH7r82EZbQ3m3YTd8LqiwbbHSk7RzZBaCBIZsE0BgnG4--op7FZhJ4-r0iHcS-V6pdOQA-X2ZFIW_YhplwSwSRTiApkcwzUjvMSQJoaX234vrUhgMwW_-ao0S65V5JIBZALnx9xtQ/s549/climate%20hero.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="290" data-original-width="549" height="169" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTZgIflEJA6HIcOUsvEEQC5TwXe2Y16LbKiTXXC3UkRFOpWQ-CXEH7r82EZbQ3m3YTd8LqiwbbHSk7RzZBaCBIZsE0BgnG4--op7FZhJ4-r0iHcS-V6pdOQA-X2ZFIW_YhplwSwSRTiApkcwzUjvMSQJoaX234vrUhgMwW_-ao0S65V5JIBZALnx9xtQ/s320/climate%20hero.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />Some months ago, members of the green team recommended using the <a href="https://climatehero.me/" target="_blank">Climate Hero website </a>to calculate our carbon footprint. I have to confess, I never got round to it myself - until today, when it popped up on Twitter and I thought I really ought to take a look. I'd assumed it would want our energy bills etc, but it didn't. In some ways it was annoyingly vague, especially when it came to flights - there was no option for once every few years at any point. But it also asked questions I wasn't expecting and what was really useful was the feedback at the end which gave figures indicating the impact different changes could make. It promised to send a summary to my email address, which it did, but this really was brief so I wish I'd taken a few notes on that feedback. I suppose that's an incentive to do it again in a few months! It's probably not a very precise tool for really calculating your carbon footprint, but it is a very useful tool for flagging up actions you can take to make that footprint lower, whatever it might be. And it really does only take five minutes.<p></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-45826950191202908192022-08-01T22:17:00.000+01:002022-08-01T22:18:12.147+01:00Sunshine, wind, and not much rain<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgavn48sCwQwKSr-oLs3FP9l3lBHJO10EIEtHY3EJwM9AzZQJQwVT2WI4uq9NuGMxOSe-xpJ3RViL1KZxqHA2KLr1GbmNIfkxLlPiNWovVCR8oFSKN9G4OPFHpEPInbhO_6sghZXwiuU9IQNmaakf6KqGRNyqMcpTkeyR-pb9tyW0VCARHRDv1FGlgQcQ/s4208/DSC_3075.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2368" data-original-width="4208" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgavn48sCwQwKSr-oLs3FP9l3lBHJO10EIEtHY3EJwM9AzZQJQwVT2WI4uq9NuGMxOSe-xpJ3RViL1KZxqHA2KLr1GbmNIfkxLlPiNWovVCR8oFSKN9G4OPFHpEPInbhO_6sghZXwiuU9IQNmaakf6KqGRNyqMcpTkeyR-pb9tyW0VCARHRDv1FGlgQcQ/s320/DSC_3075.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />Having put into practice many of the 'quick wins' suggested by<a href="https://www.oxford.anglican.org/energy-audits.php" target="_blank"> the energy audit that Oxford diocese have subsidised for us</a>, we've been looking at some of the more challenging tasks to improve our energy efficiency. Finding anyone prepared to offer a sensible quote for the cavity wall insulation is proving nigh on impossible. Quotes for solar panels are not easy to come by either and we're aware that churches are often not the most efficient buildings on which to put these panels because of the short periods of time for which they are in use. Consequently, we're exploring working together with St John's school so that energy produced on our roof can support them. Unfortunately, the only way to do this will be to link in to their electricity supplier which is not as green as ours, but is part of a much more economical scheme used by the schools. In terms of our EcoChurch score, we would lose as many points for switching our energy supplier as we would gain by installing solar panels, but we've decided that in the bigger scheme of things the latter is the greener option and we're going to keep pursuing it.<p></p><p>Back in May some of the congregation joined Greenpeace's Big Plastic count. Greenpeace recently launched their <a href="https://www.greenpeace.org.uk/resources/big-plastic-count-final-report/" target="_blank">final report</a> from this, revealing that "the UK’s homes produce 96.6 billion pieces of plastic packaging waste a year, with only 12% being recycled in the UK. The rest is exported to other countries to deal with (17%), buried in landfill (25%) or burnt in incinerators (45%)."</p><p>Another May highlight was the St John's School Fair at which we set up a stall for the first time (pictured above). The centrepiece was a craft activity that had proved popular at Forest Church - cardboard hearts (from old boxes) with elastic bands (salvaged from post) across them, into which the children could thread flowers we supplied. It proved a great hit at the fair too. We also encouraged people to make a commitment to green their life in some way, and to put a pebble in the jam-jar marked with their good intention so that we could see which was most popular - walking to school and eating less meat got the most votes; closely followed by picking up litter and turning off the tap when brushing your teeth. A number opted for choosing their own green commitment. The next highest votes were for avoiding buying fruit and veg in plastic and buying fairly traded. Trailing these were a handful of commitments to turn off 'vampire' devices, tell politicians what they thought, and learn about <a href="https://readinghydro.org/" target="_blank">Reading hydro</a>. In addition we had a treasure hunt, using postcards with images from <a href="https://www.thelostwords.org/" target="_blank">The Lost Words</a> - anyone who found all (or nearly all!) of the 'lost birds' could pick a prize (the results of a recent playroom clearout - some of which proved surprisingly strong incentives). Behind the stall we had a collection of information boards including encouragement to act for the planet - unfortunately nature wasn't entirely on our side in this as high winds through the afternoon meant we eventually had to take a couple of these down.</p><p>Now that summer is here we have been holding outdoor services again for the first Sunday of the month. Admittedly the threat of rain sent us back indoors in June, but last month we followed this up with a picnic (and had the additional entertainment of Scouts dragon-boat racing on the Thames). Next Sunday there will be another picnic, hopefully a little more peacefully.</p><p>Last Sunday I spent a couple of hours (divided either side of the service) attempting to deal with the weeds that have been sprouting up in our courtyard while no one was looking. I'm sorry to say I realised then that we had also made the classic error of everyone assuming someone else was taking responsibility for the watering over this heatwave, with the inevitable disappointing consequence. Luckily most of the plants had been chosen for their resilience, but a watering rota is now top of our next agenda!</p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-40477359091021089882022-02-06T18:56:00.000+00:002022-02-06T18:56:11.870+00:00Good COP, Bad COP<p> In case you missed church today (as I did - in Covid isolation!) here's a report from Rosemary on some of what happened before the church lunch: </p><p>Good Cop, Bad Cop!</p><p>This Sunday we sat down with our mugs of coffee following the morning service for a quick update – to find out if anything is happening after November’s COP26.</p><p>We talked about </p><p>Care for creation being central to our faith – the fifth mark of the 5 Marks of Mission for those in our Anglican church.</p><p>The most important thing we can do this decade is to drastically cut the use of fossil fuels – and yet the IMF says we subsidise fossil fuels £5.9trillion /year….</p><p>The C of E and Reading Borough Council, are both committed to be carbon neutral by 2030.</p><p>We are currently at 1.2 degrees warming above pre-industrial temperatures; we are aiming to stop the temperature rising above 1.5 degrees. Currently we are heading for 2.4 degrees if the COP promises are kept </p><p>Good things from COP26</p><p>•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lots of people, lots of young people, lots of evidence of church involvement: 100,000 people marched in Glasgow and lots of others in other places around the world. There is now a lot of public concern</p><p>•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Climate justice is talked about – the industrialised countries most responsible for the emissions that cause global warming are not the ones who are suffering most from the disasters caused by climate change. </p><p>•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>An agreement was made to reduce deforestation & methane gas emissions</p><p>•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>>20 countries agreed to stop funding fossil fuel extraction overseas; </p><p>•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>There is agreement to have further dialogue on creating a climate finance pot to cover loss and damage</p><p>Bad things from COP</p><p>•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>We are still heading for temp rises of 2.4 degrees.</p><p>•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>No agreements made for climate finance and none to stop fossil fuel use</p><p>•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Fine words, but no action….just blah blah blah!</p><p>•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Corporate courts; trade agreements with multinationals often include a clause saying they can seek compensation from corporate courts, should the country pass laws which adversely affect their business.</p><p>•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Reliance on net zero – on technologies that do not yet exist at scale, at not thinking to try to improve things by a negative carbon balance. Its not when we reach net zero but how; if we continue life as usual until 2050 we will put a lot more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere – we actually need to reduce by 50% our greenhouse gas emissions every decade. </p><p>So what to do?</p><p>1.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Look at TEAR Fund’s Climate Fact sheet to help understand the issues.</p><p>2.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Know about The CEE (Climate & Ecological Emergency Bill. Now supported by 121 MPs – but not by Matt Rodda (or MP) and the Reading Area Green Christians are hoping to get together a group to meet up with him. Find out more about the CEE Bill at Zero Hour Climate UK</p><p>3.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Reading Borough Council pensions are in a pot called the Berkshire Pension Fund – which has £29 million invested in companies involved in fossil Fuel Extraction. We agreed to e-mail our council representatives to tell them that we want them to divest.</p><p>4.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Do your own climate footprint – as advertised in the recent church newsheets; go to Carbon Calculator - Climate Hero (https://climatehero.me)</p><div><br /></div>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-81967068555811684232021-09-20T11:53:00.001+01:002021-09-20T11:53:18.486+01:00Creation Season 2021<p>This year we are following the official Season of Creation more closely - just the Sundays from 1st September until the Feast of St Francis on 4th October - and using resources from the ecumenical <a href="https://seasonofcreation.org/about/" target="_blank">website</a>. The first Sunday was the last of our open air services which we've held monthly over the summer, so we could enjoy the beautiful flowers in the courtyard this year.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8-WkmUtpQGzmHHm1ZkvKf6hrE37jNiXqXpSWe5mT65Vk_gUsgrEJVQdiAyjsyNOA7kAR18DT7zwldUWARtnkyAODKWKM2YJdE2gm21Md_ByENEAStT1oY_jxFfVBr6PALFt2rSzlDQNnj/s1346/DSC_2278.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="757" data-original-width="1346" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8-WkmUtpQGzmHHm1ZkvKf6hrE37jNiXqXpSWe5mT65Vk_gUsgrEJVQdiAyjsyNOA7kAR18DT7zwldUWARtnkyAODKWKM2YJdE2gm21Md_ByENEAStT1oY_jxFfVBr6PALFt2rSzlDQNnj/s320/DSC_2278.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Yesterday, the third Sunday in the season, Jeremy encouraged us all in his sermon to read the latest <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/" target="_blank">IPCC report</a>, or at least one of the summaries of it. He included a few of their graphs of the range of possibilities we now face, emphasising the crucial importance decisions to be made at COP26.<p></p><p style="text-align: left;">Various congregation members were involved last month in supporting the YCCN pilgrimage residency at Reading, either joining the pilgrims on the routes into and out of Reading or taking part in events including a climate workshop with Reading University scientists and services of welcome and departure. Below are some of the photos Richard McKenzie took for us at the Minster Climate Service with which the residency ended (the weather soon cleared up and the walk to Twyford afterwards was gorgeous).</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTmhy_ZNaos6_lq5wVCbcBfLgg_zVTXOTar6vNP2z7stn5Mp9MTq0Ct0UU3vd3I7Xsch-vpGTvSNRKxOWdb_vDn8fEzw6jpeXTFjxyxIUb3oVViBXCiiSOPsXeXyP_6FHgdMBOS801j5vY/s2048/IMG_0820.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTmhy_ZNaos6_lq5wVCbcBfLgg_zVTXOTar6vNP2z7stn5Mp9MTq0Ct0UU3vd3I7Xsch-vpGTvSNRKxOWdb_vDn8fEzw6jpeXTFjxyxIUb3oVViBXCiiSOPsXeXyP_6FHgdMBOS801j5vY/s320/IMG_0820.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJgp9uDQFzVjsn5obGJwsl76e62E8zcWsG_A-kUAd8VbEeb0y7itR-pGqOQKblQOumHdo7VlUemOARo_W8S2bJJdRqwW04VSOp2LfGp3I5ylQ1Ah2Fdcl-GNFe1bgU0sGbMSeNu_lvZBJP/s2048/IMG_0823.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJgp9uDQFzVjsn5obGJwsl76e62E8zcWsG_A-kUAd8VbEeb0y7itR-pGqOQKblQOumHdo7VlUemOARo_W8S2bJJdRqwW04VSOp2LfGp3I5ylQ1Ah2Fdcl-GNFe1bgU0sGbMSeNu_lvZBJP/s320/IMG_0823.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk6jgXyU6xRNiy-EZszGkCOssVDFNI3wlqmm4oIceQt5vqJLFsNWebkEMn4CTueR_1rXy62bAnsirp2vgz1WbZrebTpOjnZ1VAf-YFQbs47L4aP5hILc9glO3EtEvk3zVhuYh_xdrGKQ6i/s2048/IMG_0863.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1365" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk6jgXyU6xRNiy-EZszGkCOssVDFNI3wlqmm4oIceQt5vqJLFsNWebkEMn4CTueR_1rXy62bAnsirp2vgz1WbZrebTpOjnZ1VAf-YFQbs47L4aP5hILc9glO3EtEvk3zVhuYh_xdrGKQ6i/s320/IMG_0863.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTjaObv1Q7se7pcqqxPDRitZE04v0ydGy8Ph7rcZOFVCr8mxqsOlptUWBicUCeCSJBrllMKNPxK6-jzteraR5AQpfzz2Z_1CBTo9OlZ3-m11wx9CwAgp_rZwU0zQcOeUbU-8sOlLEXI_YE/s2048/IMG_0911.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTjaObv1Q7se7pcqqxPDRitZE04v0ydGy8Ph7rcZOFVCr8mxqsOlptUWBicUCeCSJBrllMKNPxK6-jzteraR5AQpfzz2Z_1CBTo9OlZ3-m11wx9CwAgp_rZwU0zQcOeUbU-8sOlLEXI_YE/s320/IMG_0911.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><br /><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Meanwhile, over the summer exciting developments have been happening in the courtyard we share with the school:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRnilmDrOnqZ2FJC6WnoUSQg6zKYhj_XorVxmCGskQCDPuZ5ANLTpud5LjcFw5kFxtXsAtt6fXvf4vpNK-3NhpUQMXS0aJnk3weAv2LKvn_o2i13Mb8FcMRtkMm3fcZMytYkGwULuceDca/s1244/DSC_2276.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="1244" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRnilmDrOnqZ2FJC6WnoUSQg6zKYhj_XorVxmCGskQCDPuZ5ANLTpud5LjcFw5kFxtXsAtt6fXvf4vpNK-3NhpUQMXS0aJnk3weAv2LKvn_o2i13Mb8FcMRtkMm3fcZMytYkGwULuceDca/s320/DSC_2276.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><p></p><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-90864888443549723752021-05-13T12:50:00.001+01:002021-05-13T12:50:11.217+01:00Registering the Climate Emergency<p>Six months on from our first <a href="https://www.climatesunday.org/" target="_blank">Climate Sunday</a> service on 6 September 2020, we held another one in Lent - 7 March 2021 - and this time we read together a statement recognising the Climate Emergency and commiting ourselves to act accordingly. We included three reflections in the service - the first inviting people to think about why the climate and ecological emergency matters to them; the second outlining recent actions we've done as a church, including investing in <a href="https://hydro.readinguk.org/" target="_blank">Reading Hydro</a> and donations to the <a href="https://www.worldlandtrust.org/" target="_blank">World Land Trust</a> as well as practical carbon reductions and parliamentary lobbying. The third was a call to action by the congregation - it's in the new page "Climate Sunday reflection" on this blog.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjguOjitAb0RGSHQIc9LEA87wqBFhrO3gMakHYJcv3pTYBcf1Sld1Wf3qcYqeFA_wYS9JQwPF3Cp0jUdrehdeVd3TByz1eY3CGwVE1Ja2VaULzdWysVUluiwu1eya7hVHHjTueAHQNkvajo/s941/supporter-logo+high+res.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="569" data-original-width="941" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjguOjitAb0RGSHQIc9LEA87wqBFhrO3gMakHYJcv3pTYBcf1Sld1Wf3qcYqeFA_wYS9JQwPF3Cp0jUdrehdeVd3TByz1eY3CGwVE1Ja2VaULzdWysVUluiwu1eya7hVHHjTueAHQNkvajo/s320/supporter-logo+high+res.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Following encouragement at a seminar from the <a href="https://www.climateemergencytoolkit.com/" target="_blank">Climate Emergency Toolkit</a>, I've just registered that acknowledgement for inclusion on their <a href="https://www.climateemergencytoolkit.com/declare" target="_blank">map</a>. We've also signed up more locally with the <a href="https://readingcan.org.uk/" target="_blank">Reading CAN pledge</a>. to join with the town's commitment to reach net zero by 2030.<p></p><p>What are we doing about it ourselves? Most recently - we're trying to make it as easy as possible for everyone in the congregation and parish to change to a green electricity tariff, using the resources of the <a href="https://fairenergycampaign.org/main/switch-now/" target="_blank">Fair Energy Campaign</a>.; we've checked on the environmental credentials of all our investments and ensured they're as green as can be; and we've applied for a faculty for the cavity wall insulation.</p><p>On the church's behalf, Rosemary has been attending monthly meetings with <a href="https://www.uspg.org.uk/cop26" target="_blank">Make COP26 Count</a>, reporting back on the heartbreaking news of climate impact around the world. Our top campaigning priority at the moment is the <a href="https://www.ceebill.uk/" target="_blank">CEE Bill</a> - <a href="https://christianclimateaction.org/events/" target="_blank">Christian Climate Action</a> are running seminars to help churches understand and support this, starting this Saturday.</p><br /><p><br /></p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5782496280170143409.post-33960150547005608722020-11-04T12:59:00.001+00:002020-11-04T12:59:12.533+00:00Energy Audit<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN2bhCdH_ruHH8FIMw1XaPCQfK1nVlHyym7Y0ziK8GQzKr4vBLqvXhVvebi_b59p_Go8J7foVe0MUHmeDx8c5B6iIHYlEDT4uBfYYRFVYhyphenhyphenuCM7p7p090gs0-J45cmYE4NlzXFV0rNmCnQ/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="428" data-original-width="1174" height="117" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN2bhCdH_ruHH8FIMw1XaPCQfK1nVlHyym7Y0ziK8GQzKr4vBLqvXhVvebi_b59p_Go8J7foVe0MUHmeDx8c5B6iIHYlEDT4uBfYYRFVYhyphenhyphenuCM7p7p090gs0-J45cmYE4NlzXFV0rNmCnQ/" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>We have now received the report back from the Diocesan Energy Audit that was carried out on 12 October. It is hugely useful and positive. It includes 17 practical suggestions for actions with details of the estimated costs, carbon savings and eventual financial savings as well as whether they would require a faculty.</p><p>The next step is for the PCC to work out which they want to prioritise and how to take this forward.</p>Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809203653946889694noreply@blogger.com0