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Green Congregations

Green Congregations is a growing movement among faith communities of many denominations to recognize the importance of environmental stewardship in all aspects of life--at home, at church and at work.  IKE is working with local congregations to help them understand the importance of this effort and to provide practical tools to help them on their journey.  On this page, we provide some resources and links that we hope will be helpful.

The Green Congregations Workshop scheduled for June 5, 2010, at Christian Theological Seminary has been canceled. Contact Jodi Perras at jperras@ikecoalition.org for more information.

Looking for Good Ideas?

Several of the active Indianapolis area congregations have compiled their green activities--check out these lists for good ideas that you can implement in your congregation:

Christ the King

Epworth United Methodist

First Mennonite

Unitarian Universalist Church of Indianapolis

What's a Walbicus?

Several Indianapolis-area congregations participated in the first WALBICUS weekend on Sept. 25-27, 2009, and nearly 130 people walked, biked, carpooled or took the bus to attend church services. Northminster Presbyterian Church had the highest participation rate, with 16 percent of its congregation finding an alternative way to attend worship services. For their efforts, Northminster Presbyterian will receive a bike rack donated by Health by Design.

Also participating in the first WALBICUS weekend were Bethlehem Lutheran, Unitarian Universalist Church of Indianapolis, Epworth United Methodist, All Souls Unitarian, Trinity Episcopal, St. Luke's United Methodist and Second Presbyterian.

Congratulations to Northminster Presbyterian and to all the congregations who participated in the first WALBICUS weekend! Also thanks to Health by Design for their generous donation of a bike rack.

WALBICUS was sponsored by Indianapolis Green Congregations, an interfaith group committed to caring for God's creation and inspiring other faith communities to do so.
 

If you are interested in planning a Walbicus event at your congregation or in your community, below are some resources you may find helpful.

Instructions and sample Bulletin Announcement

Sample Flyer (feel free to adapt!)

Walbicus stickers:  1 x 2.635    2 x 4

Please contact Jodi Perras at 317-677-4760 or jperras@ikecoalition.org for more information.

2009 Green Congregations Workshop 

Workshop Materials

• Agenda

• List of Speakers

• Getting Started:  Ed Cohen and Janet McCabe (UUI)

• Citizens Thermal Rebate Programs

• IPL Green Power Program

• Simple Steps to Energy Efficiency -- Purdue Technical Assistance Program

• Saving Energy at Epworth

• Closing Comments

• Notes from "Already Started" Session (2/28/09)

• Results of Evaluation (2/28/09)

• Comments from Evaluations (2/28/09)

Planning Committee members

Betty Brandt, St. Luke’s United Methodist Church, brandtb@stlukesumc.com

Scott Burns, Second Presbyterian Church, scott.burns@nationalcity.com

Ed Cohen, Interfaith Alliance Indianapolis Care for Creation Committee, e.cohen@sbcglobal.net

Patty Cortellini, Christ the King Catholic Church, pscott@netdirect.net

Bill Cummings, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, grosvenor3@juno.com

Brady Hansel, Hoosier Environmental Council and Common Ground Christian Church, bhansel@hecweb.org

Carol Johnston, Christian Theological Seminary, carol.johnston@cts.edu

Janet McCabe, Unitarian Universalist Church of Indianapolis

Jodi Perras, Epworth United Methodist Church, jperras@ikecoalition.org

Sample questions for congregational survey

Charter for Environmental Sustainability Committee (UUI)

Waste Minimization Policy (UUI)

Track Your Utility Usage spreadsheet (Epworth United Methodist)

2007 Green Sanctuary Workshop

    Epworth Methodist Church presentation

    St. Luke's Methodist Church presentation

    First Congregational UCC presentation

2006 Spirit and Place Green Sanctuary Workshop

On November 11, 2006, IKE joined the Unitarian Universalist Church of Indianapolis in presenting a Workshop called "Walk Softly but Keep the Lights On," a session for Central Indiana congregations to learn how to integrate environmental stewardship into the spiritual life of the congregation and encourage care for creation in all aspects of church and home life.   Materials from the workshop can be downloaded from the following links:

Why Are We Here?  -- A brief overview of the environmental challenges facing our community

Green Sanctuary Nuts and Bolts -- How to get started at your church

Resources from Faith Traditions -- Links to statements of principles and information from many denominations about their environmental stewardship commitments and programs

Resources and Helpful Websites  -- This list is just the beginning of the many resources available to help congregations who want to implement programs to reduce their impact on our natural resources.

Resources and Weblinks

Earth Points Challenge Form

List of helpful websites for green products, recycling etc.

Interfaith Alliance Care for Creation Committee -- Information about what Indianapolis congregations are doing to care for creation is available here, as well as additional links to denominational websites and other resources.

 

 

page last updated 3/1/2010