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20. WHAT
SOME CHURCHES DO TO IMPROVE THE ENVIRONMENT
1
Allotments/Gardens:
Make church land productive or rent a community plot to grow
vegetables – organics of course. An ideal way of motivating
young people.
2
Aluminium
cans/foil:
Collect as a way to raise church funds or help a charity, with
re-cycling as a valuable by-product.
3
Audit:
Carry out energy audit and encourage church members to calculate
their own home energy usage.
4
Bags:
Encourage use of traditional shopping bags and discourage
acceptance and use of plastic bags.
5
Banking:
Consider changing to an ethical bank for handling church and
personal accounts.
6
Bicycles:
Install cycle racks on church premises and encourage those who
are able to use bicycles.
7
Bird
boxes/tables:
Install these on church sites or sponsor boxes at local nature
reserves. Ensure they are regularly maintained and monitored.
8
Bottles:
Use glass bottles where practical rather than plastic, and take
all bottles to the bottle bank when no longer needed.
9
Building
materials:
Recycle building materials resulting from any building project,
where practical (bricks in particular).
10
Cars:
Encouraging car sharing to church and meetings, and make less
use of cars for shorter journeys. Promote less-car Sundays.
11
Cleaning
products:
Use environmentally friendly cleaning products, for cleaning and
washing up in particular (also eco-balls in washing machines).
12
Christmas
cards:
Recycle Christmas and birthday cards through local outlets such
as Boots and WH Smiths.
13
Church
office:
Apply recycling to all office consumables where possible (paper,
toner, cartridges, envelopes). Print double sided where you can.
14
Church
yards and gardens:
Make these attractive places for the living, with planting,
seating and natural patches to attract butterflies and other
wild life as well as making them easily accessible places for
rest and contemplation.
15
Composting:
Arrange a composting workshop involving local expertise
(gardening club perhaps). Compost all kitchen and garden waste.
16
Community:
Use practical environment projects as a way of establishing
closer contact with the community, schools and youth groups.
17
Eco-congregation:
Contact the Eco-congregation organisation with a view to your
church becoming recognised as an eco-friendly church.
18
Energy:
Consider changing to a renewable energy supplier (such as Good
Energy or Eco-tricity) as your electricity provider. Carry out
an energy usage survey.
19
Fair
Trade:
Purchase fairly-traded products for use in the church and at
home (beginning with tea and coffee).
20
Fashion
show:
Plan a fashion show or fancy dress party centred on recycled
clothes (charity shop perhaps), or other recycling theme.
21
Free
range:
Purchase free range, organic or locally grown food for church
use and other events. Support local suppliers, farmers and
markets.
22
Ground
source heating:
Consider using ground source heating for a new building project
(also photovoltaic cells for generating electricity).
23
Information points:
Use information points and notice boards (inside and outside) to
provide regular information on environmental issues. Set up an
electronic newsletter.
24
Ink
cartridges:
Put recycling of ink cartridges to best possible use, to benefit
local schools or charities.
25
Insulation:
Make sure all roof spaces are adequately insulated. Enquire
about grants available – for private houses also.
26
Lacewings:
Set up lacewing breeding chambers in grounds and gardens.
27
Leaf mould:
Collect all leaves in the autumn to make leaf mould and mulch,
as part of the composting routine.
28
Lent and
liturgy:
Make Lent a special time to consider life styles as an
environmental issue. Take advantage of special occasions to use
liturgy with a creation theme.
29
Litter
picking:
Take part in and support community clean-up efforts in towns,
parks, along beaches, canals and rivers.
30
LOAF:
Arrange meals for church events to be arranged as LOAF meals
(locally produced, organically grown, animal friendly and fairly
traded).
31
Low energy
(long life) light bulbs.
Progressively change to low energy bulbs. Distribute low energy
bulbs at appropriate services such as Candlemas.
32
Newspapers:
Recycle all unusable paper to paper bank. Newspapers can also be
pressed to form blocks that will burn in wood burning stoves at
home.
33
Organic
food:
Organise an organic food tasting evening, perhaps with a drama
production having an environmental theme.
34
Overseas
aid:
Make environment projects an opportunity to support overseas
work and to consider the effects of climate change in poorer and
low-lying countries.
35
Pill
boxes:
Collect for use by medical missions.
36
Plastic
drinking cups:
Minimize their use. Use crockery where possible and make washing
up a social activity.
37
Policy:
Prepare an environment policy or statement of values. Model it
on an existing diocesan or denominational policy, modified to
suit your situation.
38
Radiator
insulation:
Place insulating panels behind radiators to maximize heat use.
39
Re-use and
recycle:
Re-use or recycle everything where possible – books, clothes,
spectacles, everything. Make it a culture within the church. Use
charity shops both for donating and buying good used products.
40
Remember:
Re-use, recycle, reduce, and in some cases (like plastic bags)
refuse.
41
Services:
Take advantage of church services to promote environment issues.
Create a synergy between saving people and saving the planet;
both are God’s handiwork.
42
Simulations:
Use computer simulation programmes to find out how heating and
lighting systems can be improved and to assess footprint.
43
Site
visits:
Plan visits to other churches where improvements have been made
or to eco-projects to see what can be done. Also visit organic
gardens and nature sites.
44
Timers and
thermostats:
Install timers and programmers on heating systems, and zone
buildings to minimize energy waste. Fit thermostats to
individual radiators.
45
Tools:
Collect and recycle unwanted work tools for use by organisations
such as Tools with a Mission.
46
Traidcraft:
Support Traidcraft by having regular stalls for sales of food
and gifts.
47
Trees (and
shrubs):
Plant appropriate trees at every opportunity. Support local
initiatives to plant trees, in the community and schools.
48
Water:
Meter water usage. Fit existing flushing toilet cisterns with
`Hippos’ or other means of reducing water used. Where possible
install rain butts in gardens.
49
Windows:
Make double glazing a priority, along with roof insulation; but
remember some draughts are useful.
50
Young
people:
Involve them. Taking the environment seriously is a good
opportunity to involve junior church, youth groups, schools,
colleges, young offenders groups and young people in general. It
is their future we are trying to save.
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