What is the Greening Congregations Program?
The Greening Congregations Program offers a partnership with Earth Ministry/WAIPL and a flexible strategy for engaging your faith community in environmental action. This program supports your congregation as you envision and celebrate the “greening” of many different areas of your community’s life.
Earth Ministry/WAIPL’s Greening Congregations program was the first of its kind in the nation and has helped scores of congregations foster environmental awareness that leads to real action. The Greening Congregations program provides a customizable, structured approach that allows you to utilize the unique gifts and passions of your faith community to build a successful greening campaign. Participating congregations are assisted through a process of articulating and implementing their greening mission, which is celebrated with a banner to be displayed in your congregation. Ongoing support for greening efforts includes staff consultation, gatherings for networking with other faith communities, an annual adult education class led by an Earth Ministry/WAIPL presenter for local congregations, and ongoing support of your greening activities.
Who can participate in the Greening Congregations Program?
Earth Ministry/WAIPL invites any member congregation to engage in this program. Congregations can become members of Earth Ministry/WAIPL as part of the application process. For congregations outside of the Northwest, it is difficult to send in-person staff support, but we do provide plentiful resources and remain in communication by phone and email.
What are the benefits of this partnership with Earth Ministry/WAIPL?
By joining this program, you gain access to Earth Ministry/WAIPL’s 30 years of experience shepherding congregations through the greening process. We supply multiple resources for green teams, both online via email and through staff support. See our resources page for a list of great online and print materials, including our Greening Congregations Toolkit and Earth Ministry/WAIPL publications. Staff support is offered in the Northwest by phone or email and through in-person consultations and adult educations. Most of all, Earth Ministry/WAIPL offers a vibrant community for congregations to connect around work that can be challenging. Networking opportunities allow Greening Congregations to share their projects, events, and plans with one another and gain valuable support and encouragement.
This program sounds perfect for my congregation! How do we get started?
The application process is laid out in the Greening Congregations Process, which outlines step-by-step how to get started on the path to implementing more sustainable practices in your house of worship.
How do I learn more?
If you have any questions or want to learn more about this opportunity at your congregation, please contact Keah at keah@earthministry.org. You can also reach her during our office hours, Monday through Friday between 9 am and 5 pm, at (360) 230-8782.