Oak Flat, NOAA & more - News, events, resources
Climate Cafe Multifaith and Faiths4Future weekly BOOST
May 16th - Sacred Sanctuary: The Fight to Save Oak Flat. Sarah Augustine will lead our conversation as we talk about Oak Flat, in the Tonto National Forest, and the efforts of the San Carlos Apache and other tribal leaders to stop a proposed open pit copper mine. May 16th, 11:00am Pacific Time / 2:00pm Eastern Time. Register.
June 6th - When your neighbor says no: The Yakama fight to save Goldendale, WA, from the renewable rush In Goldendale, Washington, the Yakama tribe raised a clear ‘no’ when the land they use for first-food gathering, life practice, and ceremony was sited for construction of a hydroelectric pumped-storage energy project. Addressing climate change is a moral imperative. But how should we go about it? Join us to learn more. June 6th, 11:00am Pacific Time / 2:00pm Eastern Time. Register.
If web viewing is easier, find all this on a webpage.
Past Cafes Articles, Videos + More on the Blog.
It's UP! Tiffany Jones with National Wildlife Federation, Courtyard & Sanctuary: Urban Ecology and Community Stewardship.
It's UP! For Faith Communities: IRA Environmental Justice and Funding. A conversation following the Power Up! Climate Reality Leadership Training.
It's UP! Part Two with NOAA: Resilience, toolkits, and Conversations
Boost!
Applications due today - May 15. A climate training for faith communities in New York City through the Center for Earth Ethics at Union Seminary. Training will be June 9th. Apply.
Biodiversity Crisis Discussion Course. A free online 4 week course from Professor Mark Davies, "Ecological Responsibility and the Global Biodiversity Crisis" sponsored in part by the United Methodist General Board of Higher Education and Ministry’s Leadership, Education, and Development (LEAD). June 2, 9, 16, and 23. Learn more and register.
Festival of Homiletics The theme this year is Preaching Hope in a Weary World. May 15-18, both online and in person. More here.
Faith and Natural Regeneration: I missed this! It was a hybrid event with World Council of Churches. I am sure they will post a recording, so check the link “Caring for the Earth, Transforming Lives: Linking Faith & Natural Regeneration,” - help for churches and faith-based communities in responding more effectively to the challenges of environmental degradation and climate change.
WCC Eco-School Applications: World Council of Churches is accepting applications for this year's Eco-School. The school is open to applicants under 30 years old and will take place July 24-31 in Crete, Greece, applications are due by June 15. Learn more about the Eco-School. Download the brochure.
Theressa Hoover Community Service and Global Citizenship Award: This award/grant is sponsored by the United Women in Faith to a young woman, ages 21 - 35 with interest in travel and service. Other requirements also, application needs to be in by June 11.
Christian Climate Action based in the UK has a number of events listed for May, including prayer groups. See their pages.
Movement Cafe May 17 - the United Methodist Creation Justice Movement offers a monthly Movement Cafe for conversation and to learn about creation justice in the institution and at the grass roots of the denomination. The May Cafe features Jessica Gamache, author of Climate Hero, Association Director of Camp and Retreat Ministries. More here.
Climate Prayer - a monthly prayer group, Climate Intercessors, formed in the runup to COP 26 and still meeting. Check the websites for an update for the March prayer date and link.
Reports
Find reports on the reports page.
Canadian perspectives. A report from Tearfund /A Rocha Canada (thank you, Samuel!). Of church-going Christians, survey said 91% are worried about climate change and nature loss, and 92% believe that caring for creation is an essential act of discipleship and the Church’s mission.
Resources
More resources on the reports page.
Love your mother - a lovely boost in Earthbeat for the book Love Your Mother by Episcopalian and Environmental Educator Mallory Duff. The book features the stories of 50 Women Change-Makers for Climate Justice.
Climate and Faith - Steps to Take. Blessed Tomorrow has a few resources worth looking at, and today I want to mention a fact-sheet spelling out 5 Steps to Climate Communication, and a guide publication. Moving Forward: A Guide to Climate Action For Your Congregation and Community
Climate Hazard and other Real-Time Interactive Map. This is a WOW tool from Climate.gov, the CMRA, or Climate Mapping for Resilience and Adaptation, It tracks climate-related hazards in real time across the US.
NOAA Voices - Oral History Archives. Another WOW resource, this one is a library of oral histories, it's just filled with listenable stories archived from Elder Samoan Fishermen, the Deepwater Horizon disaster, and so much more.
News this Week.
Find our news archive here.
Deeper Dive - Deep Sea Mining. The mining rush for minerals essential to a green transition is raising alarms. We have talked about this before... climate change is an emergency and must be addressed as such. But exploiting and extractive practices that destroy ecosystems is what got us into this mess in the first place. Real attention must be paid to repenting of destruction and seeking a path of true life-building sustainability. A few articles to reflect on here, from the Guardian Deep-sea mining for rare metals will destroy ecosystems, say scientists, a fact-sheet with the issues here Deep-sea mining. Materials for faith communities are available through Creation Justice Ministries as people of faith embrace a Blue Theology. Build appreciation of our oceans! I don't usually share podcast info, but this one resonates. The Ocean Declares | Horseshoe Crabs, Hospitality & Creatureliness, two marine biologists and three A Rocha interns
Continued Spotlight on Thacker Pass - I've been keeping up on the news surrounding Peehee mu’huh/Thacker Pass on the Oregon/Nevada border, where a hard-fought lithium mine is now under construction. Prayers for visibility and witness of the People of Red Mountain as they call for an end to construction, 'Peaceful protest' staged at Thacker Pass to halt construction of lithium mine
Good News:
Solar plus Pollinator. Big ups for Minnesota's Habitat Friendly Solar Program! The program helps bring solar installations and agriculture together for the benefit of clean air, clean energy, and lots of butterflies. A nice article in Clean Technica Army Of Butterflies To Win Solar Farm Wars, Despite Opposition
Rewild with Wildflowers. I loved this wildflower how-to from Better Homes and Gardens! A fun and very accessible trip to rewild your yard--and the temple grounds or church yard, too! When and How to Plant Wildflower Seeds to Rewild Your Yard
Sustainable Fashion. Mongabay is amazing as usual with its reporting, and very helpful today because I want to lift a shout out to the fashion and textile industries taking the 'fast fashion' problem seriously and turning toward lots and lots of new sustainable possibilities. Sustainable fashion: Biomaterial revolution replacing fur and skins
Loss and Damage. Okay, this is in the good news section but hear me out. The global south is desperately affected by fossil fuel emissions and the global north is almost exclusively to blame--all while profiting. A wealth tax could be well applied here. Wealth tax of 0.5% could cover UK’s share of loss and damage fund, says charity
Bad News:
La Nina Returns - Wildfires and Weather. With the sheer scale of fires across the globe for decades now, even in places like Siberia and Alaska, climate impacts seem inevitable. A new study looks at the effects of so much smoke in the atmosphere, and discovered yet another feed-back loop. The worse the climate, the worse the fires, the worse the climate. Black summer bushfires may have caused rare ‘triple dip’ La Niña, study suggests and How Wildfire Smoke from Australia Affected Climate Events Around the World
Packaging waste & McDonalds. How much waste? McDonalds--just McDonalds--is responsible for well over 2 billion pounds of waste every year. EU is attempting to address that waste, but McDonalds, with the power to change industries for the better, is apparently not helping. From DeSmog McDonald’s Leads Lobbying Offensive Against Laws to Reduce Packaging Waste in Europe
Illinois Dust Storm. The giant dust storm two weeks ago in Illinois that caused a 70+ car pileup and cost lives is a weather pattern made worse by agricultural practices and climate change. Folks across the midwest are trying to raise the alarm. From Scientific American More Frequent Dust Storms Could Be in Our Future; from Union of Concerned Scientists Illinois Dust Storm Disaster Is a Warning for Agriculture
Drought Crisis in Spain: Welcome rain--a lot of it--helped ease drought conditions in California this winter/spring. On the whole, tho, the challenges of changing climates continue. For countries experiencing expanding desertification, the change is alarming. ‘The country is becoming a desert’: Drought-struck Spain is running out of water
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Prayers this week. Prayers especially for those impacted by Cyclone Mocha this week. Prayers for all those in its path as climate-enraged storms pile suffering on suffering. Prayers for an end to the era of oil.
Prayers Up.
Richenda