THE COMMUNION FOREST AT EYE23
The Episcopal Youth Event (EYE23) was attended by over 1000 young Episcopalians and took place at the University of Maryland which is in the Episcopal Diocese of Washington
The Creation Care Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington decided to set up an interactive booth to share about the Communion Forest action program.
Visitors to the booth were invited to add a prayer leaf on a prayer tree and to mark on a U.S. map any hands-on creation care projects at their respective parishes or in their respective dioceses.
It was a good launching pad to begin a conversation about creation care. We collected over 100 prayers leaves for the tree and identified over 60 projects on the map. They plotted on a map parish and diocesan work projects to protect and restore local habitats, including planting native specious, removing invasive species, and cleaning up parks, rivers, and beaches.
We were able to chat with a wide range of young people about the call to action found in the Communion Forest program. We emphasized that churches around the world are already engaged in transformative acts to protect and restore habitats in their own communities.
We saw substantial energy among the young people for creation care, environmental justice, and concern for climate change. We are hopeful that that energy will translate into concrete action.
A 7-foot high Communion Forest banner was printed for the exhibition
Abbott McCartney
Creation Care Committee
Episcopal Diocese of Washington
