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Diocesan Environmental policy
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The industrialised countries of the world have a dominant view of
progress that it is measured solely by material wealth. This
encourages ever greater consumption of material goods and is
tightly coupled to world views that treat the earth as an object to
be used and abused at will.
Climate change may be the most serious issue ever faced by
human communities and it has arisen from the burning of fossil
fuels since the industrial revolution. All forms of life across the
planet are threatened and the poorest nations are set to suffer
most.
every level of life, from behaviour of each individual through to
international treaties.
This Diocese recognises that we have disregarded the long-term consequences of our actions. We need to renew our connection with the beauty and fragility of the environment. We understand that the vision of building communities of wholeness needs to be challenged to include a right relationship with the natural world. This Diocese is committed to seriously addressing the challenges that that presents through the broad range of policies outlined in this article.
We
affirm these
key elements of our faith:
- We have been created by God as part of one great, inter-dependant
living system
- We recognise a special responsibility to care for the earth
- We are inspired by the biblical vision of peace which includes the
fulfilment of our individual potential, a just social order and a
concern for the well-being of creation
- We are empowered by Christ who through his death and resurrection
reconciled all things in creation to himself, so making peace
Resources for this policy currently under development:
- A three year action plan by the Diocese with an annual review of the impact of the policy- A set of policy frameworks for parishes and others to produce their own lists of challenging and measurable targets
- A dedicated part of the diocesan interactive website where people can tell their stories, thus encouraging others by showing the policy in action
- Access to other resources and support, including trained advisers
- Seeking the commitment of a volunteer to give a minimum of one day per week to work with others, including the Diocesan Environmental Officer
- Seeking funding to resource the support of this necessary work in the Diocese
Core commitments
- As a diocese, and as part of our commitment to the Church of
England’s initiative “Shrinking the
Footprint”, to reduce carbon
emissions by a minimum of 10% in each three year period
- To locate and provide resources to develop awareness and support
action
by the church as a corporate body and by its individual members.