Proposal for the formation of a Creation Care and Environmental Justice Task Force

Presiding Michael Curry has named Creation Care as one of his three key priorities for the Episcopal Church (along with Racial Reconciliation and Evangelism) saying: In Jesus, God so loved the whole world. We follow Jesus, so we love the world God loves. Concerned for the global climate emergency, drawing on diverse approaches for our diverse contexts, we commit to form and restore loving, liberating, life-giving relationships with all of Creation.

There have been many General Convention resolutions calling us into the work of Care of Creation. Here is a link to the resolutions passed at the most recent convention that frame the ​ ​ Presiding Bishop’s call to ministry for the rest of the Episcopal Church. They call us specifically to oppose environmental racism, shift to the use of renewable energy, support producers of ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ locally-grown food, work to reduce our production of greenhouse gases while supporting a ​ ​ carbon tax, track our energy use and commit to efficient energy and water usage, and use ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ church-owned land for regenerative agriculture and biodiversity, among other measures. ​

God made the Earth and all that is in it. That fact alone is enough of a call to care for God’s Creation and treat it with honor and respect. Also, there exists a human element to Creation Care ministry; we are called into the work of Becoming Beloved Community so that all people may live in God’s abundance. The work of Creation Care is inextricably linked with that of Racial Reconciliation-- poor black and brown people bear the brunt of the effects of environmental degradation and climate change across the country and in our diocese, with too many instances to name. For example, formerly redlined communities, which are more likely to be poor and minority communities today, are on average five degrees hotter than non-redlined ones, causing greater distress during heat waves. Low-income families spend a greater percentage of their incomes on energy costs, a figure that will only worsen as we experience more extreme temperatures. African Americans, both middle class and poor, are far more likely to live in areas ​ with high levels of air pollution than whites of the same economic status and suffer the related health and respiratory issues.

We in the Diocese of Southern Ohio must be working to meet the spirit and letter of the General Convention resolutions. Therefore, we propose that the Diocese form a Creation Care and Environmental Justice Task Force.

The Creation Care and Environmental Justice Task Force proposes to do the following: ● Offer formation activities across the diocese to help people grow in their understanding of creation care and environmental justice as part of our expression of Christian faith; ● Coordinate diocesan financial resources to grant funding to parishes who wish to improve energy efficiency in their buildings, launch creation care ministries, sponsor formation/education opportunities and advocacy opportunities and other innovative ideas that may come forward; ● Propose plans for consideration by the Trustees of the diocese to establish a widespread, accessible and sustainable program by which participating parishes could transition their energy source from polluting sources to clean, renewable sources; ● Empower and support for creation care ministry teams and encourage them to consider land use, local food production, waste reduction, creation-based worship experiences, and other ministry concepts; ● Partner with other diocesan ministry teams to align activity in the areas of racial reconciliation, strategic planning, formation, advocacy, StorySharing, and others.

Structure ● The task force proposes an initial team of six to nine people representing the geographical diversity of the diocese. ● Subcommittees will exist to focus on work in specific areas-- namely, the Solarize Ohio team will remain active as a subcommittee to the task force to propose and implement renewable energy measures.

Funding/Budget: In the coming months, the CCEJ Task Force will: ● make a Procter Fund request for a preliminary amount to begin granting funds for creation care ministries, energy efficiency improvements to buildings, and formation opportunities; ● Research other diocesan financing options, especially underutilized sources like the Wells Fund, and consider making funding requests; ● develop a financial plan to transition buildings to renewable energy sources (solar).