Carbon Fast 2015

Amb Crispin Grey-Johnson, Gambia “Fuel poverty is the bane of our lives here in The Gambia. Daily power outages affect every aspect of our lives. We cannot conserve food or run our businesses. Our children cannot study properly; security is a problem; our hospitals cannot function properly and the list goes on. Resolving the power situation must be our number one priority and the focus must be on renewables.” Conserve. Neither the blessing of abundant power nor the dirty fuels that often make it possible should be taken for granted. Set large appliances like refrigerators and water heaters on the lowest possible setting. Turn off anything that has a switch when you’re not using it. BLOG Appliances generate a lot of waste in the typical home, office, or parish. Changing how these appliances are used to reduce their energy consumption is a good way of protecting creation. Make sure that your water heater and dishwasher are on the most efficient settings. Turn off lights, television, computers, printers, routers, and anything else with a switch whenever these items are not in use. All members of your household or office must participate in the new practices in order for them to be effective. A conversation about our faith’s call to protect creation is an opportunity to reflect on the values you share while making plans to conserve energy. To guide your conversation, say a prayer like this: Let us bless God, whose might has created the earth and whose providence has enriched it. God has given us the earth to cultivate, so that we may gather its fruits to sustain life. As we thank God for this bounty, let us learn also, as the Gospel teaches, to seek first God’s way of holiness: then all we need will be given us besides.

John Hawkins, England “When Mozambique was decimated with floods in 2000 it was called a natural disaster. Some of us in London thought differently. Our prayers were filled with a determination to make a change in our choices about energy use, reducing our contribution to climate change for the sake of God’s creation.” Install LEDs. Increasing energy efficiency is the first step in stewarding the resources we’ve been given. Replace extinguished bulbs with efficient, long-lasting LEDs. BLOG Most of the buildings we encounter in our day-to-day lives are artificially lit. Changing the type of light bulb we use is a small act that, cumulatively, makes a big difference. LED bulbs generate light through light-emitting diodes, rather than burning a filament, as in conventional incandescent bulbs. As a result, they are much more efficient. In fact, the average LED light bulb uses about 75% less energy than a conventional bulb. Avoiding excess energy in turn reduces the fuels burned to produce it. Making the transition from incandescent or fluorescent bulbs to LEDs is an easy but impactful way to save energy and protect the climate we all share.

So God created humankind in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. (Gen 1:27-28)

Roselyn Kareithi, Tanzania “I love gardening; it is one of my favourite ways to relax, yet be creative. I compost so as to reduce dustbin waste, enrich the soil, have healthier plants, and get higher yields. It makes me feel content to obey God’s command to take care of the earth.” Compost food waste. Food waste constitutes a large portion of the material in landfills, where it rots and creates methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Compost at home and in your parish to strengthen the soil and sequester greenhouse gas. BLOG Composting is an excellent method of eliminating food waste while building soil health. In composting, food scraps are combined with other organic waste, such as dropped leaves, newspaper, or paper bags, and aerated while decomposing. The result is a rich, dark earth that can be added to a garden or potted plants. In addition to benefiting the soil, this method of food disposal avoids the greenhouse gasses that would be created by the food decomposing in a landfill. Rather than generating a harmful byproduct, compost contributes to the web of life in God’s creation. Instructions for building a compost pile are here. If your parish or parish school does not have a compost bin, encourage its leader to create one. Write that person an email, saying something like this: “Dear [name], I’ve been learning more about our faith’s perspective on creation, and that caring for the Earth is an important part of our call to serve the Creator. As part of that, I’ve installed a compost bin at home. I think composting would also be a good option for [institution name]. It would protect our common home, engage parishioners, and be a good example of living our faith. I would be very happy to help build and maintain it. Do you have a few minutes to discuss this?”