Presbyterians for Earth Care - Updates on Canadian Wildfires and Plastic Free July

Canadian Wildfires, Hazardous Air in USA, and What Christians Can Do – Note from PEC Moderator Bruce Gillette Wednesday’s news is “Wildfire Smoke, Unhealthy Air Envelops LargeParts of North America.”  Airpollution warnings were in effect across Canada and the United States becauseof Canadian wildfires.   In Binghamton, twenty minutes fromwhere I live in New York state, a meteorologist with the National WeatherService, said the city “looks like Mars” and “smells like cigars.”   The Washington Post reports:  “Canada’s government expects “higher-than-normalfire activity” to continue throughout the wildfire season — which typicallylasts between April and September — due to a combination of ongoing droughtconditions and hot temperature forecasts. Smoke and haze from the Canadianwildfires has also affected the United States,leading authorities from New York to Minnesota to issue public health alerts and urgepeople to stay indoors and wear masks to protect themselves from potentiallytoxic fine particles in the air.” Earlier this week, the headline proclaimed, ‘Unprecedented’Canadian fires intensified by record heat, climate change:  About 200 wildfires are burning across thecountry, and more than half are out of control.” This natural disaster offers PEC members an opportunity to act: Pray for everyone impacted – those who are losing loved ones, homes and jobs in the wildfires, those putting their lives at risk fighting the fires and those who have to work outside. Pray for government leaders and churches to act boldly to support efforts to counter climate change now. Ask for such prayers for your church’s prayer chain, email communications, prayer and Bible study groups and in worship services. Keep up on the news, here a link to a gift NY Times article on the wildfires that is being updated frequently (no subscription needed).   Keep track of your local air quality,   https://www.airnow.gov/ is an excellent resource done by top government agencies. Support those who have to work outside. We are giving out K95 masks and water to construction workers who did not realize how hazardous the conditions were for them. Share ideas on how to counter Climate Change with family, friends, church members and others in your area.  Ask your presbytery to share these ideas in their weekly newsletter. The free resource by Christian Century should be shared widely.  PEC webinars are posted on YouTube and many other resources are online. Explore your church becoming an EarthCare Congregation. Encourage everyone to register now for PEC’s national hybrid conference, “The Climate Crisis & Empowering Hope,” September 20-23, 2023 (see below for more information).

PLASTIC FREE JULY - Be a Part of the Pollution Solution Join in an Effort for Plastic Free July: An Adventure in Less is More! This summer, more than 140 million faith communities around the world, as well as others organizations concerned about our environment, are coming together to promote, work in concert, and live a Plastic Free July. The focus is on reducing and/or eliminating single use plastics for the month of July. It’s going to be fun, it’s going to be challenging, and we will learn a lot that can help us advocate for better alternatives for our world. You know this, but you may need to be reminded: in 2023, about 380 million metric tons of plastic—about the weight of all of humanity living today—will be created from liquid fossil fuels and thousands of chemical additives, many of them known carcinogens.  Much of this new plastic will enjoy a single use (That plastic bottle of water? That vegetable wrapped in cellophane at the grocery store?) before heading to a landfill (less than 10% is recycled), where it will not break down for hundreds of years or longer. The health consequences of this plastic are staggering, to humans and to all of life on earth. Can your church join this effort? Presbyterians for Earth Care is encouraging this opportunity to join in, make connections, and increase our impact. We will have a Pledge (to do our best, not to be perfect—see below) and a Blog (to share successes and frustrations—see how one congregation is organizing around this effort). Here are three things you can do now: 1. Get motivated. Watch this powerful presentation by Dee Kochirka about plastics, fossil fuels, and our health, from PA Interfaith Power and Light 2. Learn more about Plastic Free July, an international non-profit intent on starting a movement. The focus is on those single use plastics we didn’t have in 1949 and can’t seem to live without in 2023. This site provides an engaging promotional video that you can share with your congregation and all sorts of options for diving into Plastic Free July. 3. Talk to your friends and find a buddy(s) to join you as we all try to cut back on our addiction to single use plastics! Interested in helping to make this effort a success and want more information? Contact: Courtenay Willcox, NE Regional Representative, PEC, pecrepne@gmail.com

PLASTIC FREE PLEDGE: We seek to become more aware of plastics in our lives, the health dangers—for all living creatures–and alternatives to the status quo. ​ We will do our best (perfection may be hard to come by) to avoid single use plastics for the month. We can share tips, successes, and frustrations, on our open Plastic Free forum. ​ We will use this experience to engage with at least one pollution producing company (as, a soda or water bottle company, a grocery store), via a quick note or longer letter asking that they reduce their reliance on single-use plastics. ​ Let’s build a Plastic Free community!

WEBINAR REGISTRATION OPEN: Labels, Food Waste & Climate Change Presenter: Minnie Ringland, ReFED Climate Fellow Date: Thursday, June 29th Time: 7:30 pm EDT (6:30 CDT, 5:30 MDT, 4:30 PDT) What are the relationships between label date confusion, wasting good food, and methane emissions from landfills?  In the U.S., a staggering estimated 38% of all food goes unsold or uneaten – the equivalent of 149 billion meals annually. It’s valued at $444 billion, roughly 2% of U.S. GDP, and it has the same climate footprint as the entire U.S. aviation industry (passenger, commercial, and military). Join PEC for a webinar with ReFED, a national nonprofit that leverages a holistic view of the food system to collaborate with key audiences and generate large-scale, meaningful impact. Confusion over food labels can lead to food waste, increased organic waste in landfills, rotting food in landfills, and methane emissions. In addition to environmental concerns, perfectly good food could be going to feed hungry unsheltered people through our food pantries if label confusion could be addressed. Join us to learn what we can do about food waste in our communities, homes, and places of worship.  Please plan to join us for this FREE Webinar!

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

“The Climate Crisis & Empowering Hope” is our theme for our 2023 national conference. The conference will deal with the greatest moral issue of the day and practical ways that our faith can guide us to act for creation care. We will gather in person in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley and at three satellite locations (California, Arkansas and Minnesota) and we will also stream all presentations online. We will learn from top church leaders, gifted biblical and theological teachers, activists, pastors, and one another. This important conference will make a difference for God’s creation and the Church. Please plan to join us and ask your Presbytery to include this information in your Presbytery newsletter.

CLICK HERE FOR CONFERENCE INFO & REGISTRATION

Help us grow! Please let us know if there is anyone we should add to our list!  Just reply to this email.  Thank you! Please help us to continue to assist individuals and churches in creation care work by donating to PEC through our website by CLICKING HERE.  Thank you!

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