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The Episcopal Diocese of Olympia

The Episcopal Diocese of Olympia

The Episcopal Church in Western Washington

Bishop’s Climate Justice Task Force

Report to the Bishop & Other Episcopal Church Resources

Background

Bishop Greg Rickel assembled a task force to focus on climate justice in the Diocese of Olympia.  In 2022 the group published a report that takes a hard look at the role that the Episcopal Church in Western Washington has already played in addressing creation care and environment; the urgency of stepping up those efforts; and recommendations for moving forward that apply to both the Bishop’s Office and to local congregations.

The report states:

“Beginning in the early 1990s, Episcopalians and other Christians in Western Washington joined forces to ask questions such as What does it mean to be a follower of Jesus Christ in these times of environmental decline? and How does our faith tradition inform and empower us?…

“But 2022 is a long way from 1992. Once again, the Church is called to ask vital questions about our role, our place, and our ministry within the communities we serve. And once again, the Diocese of Olympia has a unique role to play and special gifts to offer as we live faithfully in the world we are called to serve (Climate Justice Task Force Report, p. 10).”

Here is the full report: Climate Justice Task Force Report to the Bishop, May 2022

Here is the report, each section stand-alone:

Table of Contents

Executive Summary

Our Bioregion, Our Sacred Home

Introduction

Reasons for This Work

The Science

Recommendations

  • Action
  1. Pledge to Care for Creation
  2. Use Your Voice to Advocate for Climate Justice
  3. Determine Your Carbon Footprint and Embrace Drawdown
  4. Offset Your Unavoidable Carbon Emissions
  5. Prepare for Environmental Emergencies
  6. Collaborate with Others
  7. Green Your Congregation
  • Faith Formation
  1. Offer Intergenerational Opportunities to Explore Creation Care
  2. Engage Children & Youth in Climate Justice
  3. Train and Mobilize Church Members as Climate Stewards
  4. Connect to the Land
  5. Adopt Liturgies and Seasonal Practices That Revere Creation
  • Resources and Staffing
  1. Hire a Canon for Creation Justice
  2. Move Resources into Socially Responsible Investments
  3. Reorganize the Bishop’s Committee on the Environment

Conclusion ~ Readings & Other Resources ~ Appendix

[Photo credit: Stuart Meeks]

Task Force members:

John Kydd, Chair

Marcy Lagerloef
Nancy McConnell
Emily Meeks
The Rev. Carla Pryne
Valerie Reinke
Marjorie Ringness
The Rev. Gail Wheatley

Other Resources:

From the 80th General Convention of the Episcopal Church (July, 2022)

Resolutions related to Climate Justice and Creation Care:

Commit to the Pressing Work of Addressing Global Climate Change and Environmental Justice (AO88)

Net Carbon Neutrality by 2030 (AO87)

Encouraging Utilization of Virtual Governance Options for Creation Care (DO27)

Carbon Sequestration – Creates An Internal Carbon Offset Program (CO15)

Climate Change – Carbon-Intensive Lending (CO16)

Support Decade of Action to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals (AO20)

Endorse and Encourage Green Deal Legislation (DO64)

 

From the 15th Lambeth Conference of the Anglican Communion (July/August 2022)

[Convened by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Lambeth Conference is an international meeting of Anglican bishops. The conference discusses church and world affairs and the global mission of the Anglican Communion for the decade ahead.]

Here’s the report from Lambeth on the global environmental restoration plan launched.

The Communion Forest is a global initiative comprising local activities of forest protection, tree growing and eco-system restoration undertaken by provinces, dioceses and individual churches across the Anglican Communion to safeguard creation. Here is the brochure.

Carbon Offset Cooperative Mission

A Carbon Offset Cooperative Mission partnership was begun in 2012 between the Episcopal Diocese of Olympia and the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Philippines. This program allows members of the diocese to make donations for carbon offsets in Western Washington in order to fund tree-planting in the Philippines. Visit here to learn more about this partnership and to donate.

Growing Together – Creation Care and Environmental Justice in the Diocese of Olympia: Convention 2022 Workshops

View the workshop here: https://vimeo.com/768289520

From COP27

The 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference or Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC, more commonly referred to as COP27, was the 27th United Nations Climate Change conference, held in November, 2022 in Egypt. The Episcopal Church sent a delegation to represent the church’s priorities and concerns around climate justice.