Bino Teboho Makhalanyane

Mothers Union in the Diocese of Lesotho had planned to commemorate World Environment Day on the 9th instead of 5th June 2024 as it fell within week day. Despite the freezing cold and snowy week, the St. Mary and John Parish in Maseru, had a session on the theme “Land, Restoration, Desertification and Drought Resilience” (translated in Sesotho), followed by comprehensive cleaning campaign of the church’s surroundings, de-weeding their existing flowering lawn and preparing soil for the additional new lawn. They appreciated the teamwork and unity brought by this day. They sung while working and shared their homemade meal afterwards. by: ‘Máseitshiro Khooe

  On the 05th June 2024 the Parish of St Peter’s Greenpoint hosted the Bishop and had the confirmation service that coincided with World Environment Day and as a symbol our of faith and commitment to caring for creation a small spekkebom plant was planted. #Careforcreation#EnvironmentalDay#CommunionForest#RadiatingChristslove#DioceseofKimbeley&Kururman by :Revd Tshenolo ,Ms.Kaone & Ms.Refilwe

Attending the FLEAT which took place at the Cape Town City Lodge  from the 21-24 May 2024  as a member of the Anglican Church was a transformative experience. The training brought together faith leaders from various denominations, united by a common purpose: to address environmental issues through the lens of faith and spirituality. One of the highlights was the rich exchange of ideas and perspectives. As Anglicans, we often emphasize stewardship of God’s creation, and it was inspiring to see this echoed in the teachings and practices of other faith traditions. We discussed how our faiths can dive environmental advocacy, focusing on the moral imperative to care for the earth and all its inhabitants. The workshops were particularly impactful. They provided practical tools and strategies for advocating for environmental policies within our communities and beyond. I left with a clearer understanding of how to effectively mobilize my congregation and engage with local and national leaders on environmental issues. Networking with fellow attendees was another significant aspect. Sharing experiences and challenges helped build a sense of solidarity and collective purpose. We developed a network of support that extends beyond the training, enabling ongoing collaboration and mutual encouragement in our advocacy efforts. The training also deepened my theological understanding of environmental stewardship. Through scripture study and theological reflection, we explored the biblical basis for environmental care, reinforcing that protecting the environment is not just a secular concern but a vital aspect of our faith practice. Overall, FLEAT was a profound experience that strengthened my commitment to environmental advocacy. It equipped me with the knowledge, skills, and spiritual grounding to lead my community in making a positive impact on the environment, aligned with our Anglican values. #SAFCEI Tshegofatso Lekgetho

NAIROBI SUMMER SCHOOL ON CLIMATE JUSTICE The Nairobi Summer School on Climate Justice Cohort III saw well over 200 young people from Africa and neighbouring continents come together for two full weeks of intensive learning and capacity building programmes which pushed us all our ultimate limit showing us that nothing is impossible when we work as a team. The Conference was organised by the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance ( PACJA) in partnership with Kenyatta University and was held at the University from the 3rd to 15th of July. This was the third cohort of young people to be trained.  Our major focus for the two weeks was around issues of Climate Justice at a global level and how Africa fits in as one of the most affected continents by Climate Change. Africa also  has a high number of young people who need to adapt to the current crisis, while always advocating for justice and growing our economies.  During the two weeks one was able to clearly understand the call for a JUST Transition at all levels of Climate Adaptation and Mitigation which ensures that we leave no one behind or pushed to a disadvantaged state. Through this programme I can safely say I understand better and have increased my level of understanding on our call for climate finance, how and we why we are demanding climate justice. I was also privileged to be invited to the Green Anglicans Movement of Kenya dinner by the Provincial Coordinator Revd Dennis where we shared our learnings and how best we could collaborate as ecumenical bodies across Africa to fight and advocate for Climate Justice in our lifetime. There was a strong Green Anglicans contingent at the Conference: Rev Dennis Nthenge, Mis Ester , (Kenya), Eric Bagenzi (Rwanda),  Helvi Shindume (Namibia), Gobeng Mamuru ( South Sudan) myself from South Africa and  two climate justice activists from Kenya ( Jesse David and Halisi Monray ) who both use art as an advocacy tool. The most important things that I learned during the two weeks were that we need to always seek to get involved at all levels of engagement as activities and not just keep to our small local comfortable zones we need to be in the political as they are policy makers we also need to align with business as economy plays a big role in our lives. Monitoring and evaluation is important in the climate justice these helps us plan well, implement, measure progress and take learnings so that we are able to do better next time, without it we are just but moving and cannot measure growth. Most importantly we need to keep ourselves informed of the current news within our space and always identify which area of Climate justice you want to focus on,  so that one is able to excel without burning out. I would like to give a special thanks and appreciation to CLIMATE YES Movement which made it possible with me to attend the event, the All Africa Conference of Churches,  Green Anglicans across Africa, and the organizers of the NSSJ PACJA. You have surely contributed to ensuring a better and bright future for Africa and I’m proud to be amongst the team of climate justice soldiers. #GreenAnglicans #ClimateYes #PACJA By : Bino Makhalanyane

The Environmental Desk in the Diocese of Mthatha is led by Revd Mpumlwana, Revd Mafanya, Mr. B. White and Ms. T. Ngudle. The team has started a tree planting campaign in 2020Tree by introducing palm tree planting in all o parishes across the Diocese . The Environmental desk encourage parishes to plant trees during the following services:-– Bishop’s Episcopal Visits– Baptismal Services– Guilds’ Diocesan Conferences. The first parish to have planted a tree is All Saints Parish, Mbokothwana (St Augustine Station) on 26/02/2023 followed by St Francis Parish, Ngolo (St Paul’s Station). In both these parishes the trees were blessed and planted by the Diocesan Bishop, The Rt. Revd. J. T. Ngombane who is very much supportive towards the programme. We are pleased to announcec that the Diocesan Youth Guild is very much interested in our programs as they always invite us in their conferences to talk. Last year we planted 2 palm trees as St. Bedes during their 2022 conference. Together with them (Youth Guild), we are preparing to have a workshop where we will be equipping each other on tree planting and waste management. By Mr B White  

“Getting the Streets ready for the Messiah” For many churches, the Palm Sunday procession is the only time the church goes out through the streets. The young people of St Mary’s Kutlwanong decided to make a difference and apply the Reuse, Reduce , Recycle method to improve the community . On Saturday 26 February Bino Makhalanyane visited the young people from  St Mary Kutlwanong Odendaalsrus in the Free State, South Africa  to share with them what the Green Anglicans movement is  all about and the importance of getting involved on issues of care for creation, as we only have one common home called planet earth. During our time together we disused  what environmental hazards are being faced by the community of Kutlwanong and how we could address them using the three R’s ( Reuse , Recycle and Reduce) which when applied could make our community a better and cleaner place to be in . During the discussion one of the young people shared with us that these things are taught at school level but lack of eco-clubs or practically implementing the methods within the curriculum makes it hard for them to get involved in taking care of God’s creation. The day ended with each person learning how our to grow their own spekboom( Portulacaria Afra) which is known for its ability to remove carbon dioxide from the air, can be used for medicine , easy to grow , does not require too much water  and can be used a good source of vitamin C amongst other things . Those who were in attendance will now be teaching their peers on how to grow a spekboom from cuttings. The young people are planning  a clean-up near the church for Palm Sunday under the theme: “ Getting the streets ready for the Messiah “ We are grateful for the support of the United Thank Offering for this programme Bino  Makhalanyane   Photo used with permision