Earth Ministry / Washington Interfaith Power & Light

Earth Ministry

Stewardship of the earth

  • Win on PFAS in Food Packaging

    This spring, over 130 people of faith asked the Department of Ecology to speed up the phase out of PFAS in food packaging. They heard us and changed their timeline, thanks to you!

  • Clean Cars Petition to Gov. Inslee

    Earth Ministry/WAIPL is joining with the Faith Action Network and our other partners in the Clean Cars campaign to petition Gov. Inslee, asking him to honor the desire of the legislature and the electorate by issuing an executive order setting forth the Clean Cars 2030 EV target.

  • We’re Hiring a Multifaith Outreach Coordinator!

    Earth Ministry/Washington Interfaith Power & Light seeks a part-time Multifaith Outreach Coordinator responsible for supporting our Greening Congregations and Colleague Connection programs. The position will cultivate new partnerships in Washington State with an emphasis on outreach to Jewish communities, and engage existing Earth Ministry/WAIPL congregations and Colleagues (congregational activists). Flexible 20 hrs/week schedule that includes some evenings and weekends. $22-$24/hour, generous vacation/sick leave, and cost-share health insurance available.

  • The Shmita Project Northwest

    The Shmita Project Northwest (a project of Congregation Beth Shalom and Earth Ministry/WAIPL) seeks to educate, inspire, and build community around bringing Shmita to life. The Shmita Year is part of a cycle analogous to the weekly Sabbath, but takes place once every seven years as opposed to every seven days. The next Shmita Year in 5782 begins later this fall with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.

  • Solidarity with Indigenous Peoples

    Earth Ministry sees support of Native climate and creation justice campaigns as a moral issue connected to shared values of stewardship, responsibility, legacy, and justice. Given the Church’s historical disrespect of traditional Native American spiritual practices and traditions, we acknowledge that the Christian community in particular has an added obligation to strive toward reconciliation with Native neighbors and humbly strive to show up as good allies.

Earth Ministry envisions a just and sustainable future in which people of all spiritual traditions fully embrace their faith’s call to environmental stewardship.

Earth Ministry/Washington Interfaith Power & Light (WAIPL) transforms faith into action for the well-being of communities and the environment. We organize people of faith to advocate for strong environmental policies and provide strategic guidance to religious communities working toward environmental justice.

Our Greening Congregations program was the first in the country to help houses of worship implement sustainable practices, and our Faithful Advocacy program is on the cutting edge of empowering clergy and lay leaders to speak out on public policy issues. As a multifaith organization, Earth Ministry/WAIPL is part of the national Interfaith Power & Light network active in nearly 40 states around the country.

Featured Events

August 2021

Clean Cars 2030 Rally

Sat 14 Aug 2021

12pm PT

St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral, 1245 10th Ave E, Seattle, WA 98102

Join Earth Ministry/WAIPL and our partners at Coltura for a Clean Cars 2030 rally at St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral. While the Clean Cars 2030 bill passed the WA legislature in 2021, Gov. Inslee vetoed it because it was tied to a road usage charge. Now we're asking the governor to issue an executive order to phase out new gas cars by 2030. We're excited to host this rally at St. Mark's, who recently dedicated an EV charging station in their parking lot to the late Earth Ministry/WAIPL co-founder and long-time St. Mark's member Jim Mulligan.

Read More »

To see a full list of upcoming events, click here.

Recent News

A Statement from the Interfaith Network for Indigenous Communities regarding Indigenous Boarding Schools, July 2021

by

While we know that any response to the horrible news of unmarked mass graves at Residential Schools in Canada is inadequate, we also know that our lament must lead to action. We recognize that, though these atrocities are making headlines and receiving the attention of the world now, tribal communities have been testifying for years to the truth of forced removal, assimilation, abuse, and death perpetrated through boarding schools.

Netse Mot for Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut

by

On August 8, 2021, the 51th anniversary of the forcible taking of Salish Sea orca relations from Penn Cove, Washington, ATNI President Leonard Forsman, Tsleil-Waututh Nation Councillor Charlene Aleck, and other guests joined Lummi matriarchs at the “Netse Mot for Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut” virtual event and called for the return of the last surviving stolen orca.

For Everything There is a Season: A message from Executive Director LeeAnne Beres and the Board Executive Committee

by

Dear Earth Ministry/Washington Interfaith Power & Light community,

As it is said in Ecclesiastes, “For everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.” After 16 years of pouring my heart and soul into Earth Ministry/Washington Interfaith Power & Light (WAIPL), I’m writing to let you know that the time has come for me to move on as Executive Director. My last day serving this community will be August 31. Photo credit: peter.more

Win on PFAS in Food Packaging

by

This spring, over 130 people of faith asked the Department of Ecology to speed up the phase out of PFAS in food packaging. They heard us and changed their timeline, thanks to you!

Support Earth Ministry/WAIPL’s Growth

by

Earth Ministry/Washington Interfaith Power & Light has exciting news to share – we’re hiring a Multifaith Outreach Coordinator. We are taking a leap of faith and moving forward with hiring this position without yet having all the necessary funds in hand. Choosing to live in abundance rather than scarcity, we know that this new role is vital to helping us meet our mission. We also know that the generosity and commitment of the Earth Ministry/WAIPL community will help make it possible. For that, we are grateful. Photo credit: homegets.com_David Stewart

Historic summit of tribes across Pacific Northwest presses dam removal on Inslee, Biden, Congress

by

In a historic gathering of more than 15 Indian nations, tribal leaders from around the Northwest called for immediate action to save endangered orcas and the salmon they depend on. The call for salmon and orca recovery was joined by U.S. Sen. Patty Murray and Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington, who each stated dam removal on the Lower Snake River, a tributary of the Columbia, must remain on the table and a comprehensive solution quickly reached to save salmon and orcas from extinction.

Earth Ministry/WAIPL works within the unceded territories of Northwest Native nations. Our office is on the traditional land of the first people of Seattle, the Duwamish People past and present. Land acknowledgement is one way to resist erasure of Indigenous histories as well as to honor tribes and the land itself.