Comment - September 2009
Filling up the diary
As we begin to notice the evenings drawing in we also notice the increasing number of notices of events . This Autumn there are probably more events than ever being organised to encourage involvement and awareness in environmental issues. There is not enough room to put all of them in this column so do check with your own diocesan websites to see what is happening locally.
My last column included several events such as the Day for Prayer for Climate Change http://www.ctbi.org.uk/ on 4 Dec and the Service and March the following day http://www.stopclimatechaos.org/
These are national events backed by a major publicity force, but what about the myriad of local events? An excellent nationwide website to check regularly is http://www.christian-ecology.org.uk/ The last time I looked there were almost thirty events listed around the country just for October ranging from a Pet Blessing Service in Bradford on the 5th, a Copenhagen awareness event in Truro Cathedral on the 9th and a day for young people in Sussex organised by local dioceses on 31 Oct.
For details of Tearfund's Climate Justice Evenings in Sevenoaks, Leeds and London see http://www.tearfund.org/ and whilst on the subject do check out www.climatejusticefund.org for details of the new fund we can all support.
As things get nearer the end of the year there will be even more events linked to the Climate Summit, but we must not forget other important issues. On 2 November there will be a Shrinking the Footprint day for those involved in running our cathedrals at Southwark Cathedral. For details email: shrinkingthefootprint@c-of-e.org.uk
On 19 November Hereford diocese will be hosting the first in the national ‘Crossing the Threshold' programme, a series of events aimed at helping dioceses and parishes get the best from their buildings for wider community use. The programme marks the fifth anniversary of the launch of the Church of England's national strategy document, Building Faith in Our Future, and will share experiences from around the dioceses, and from experts within and outside the Church. For details email: j.gibbon@hereford.anglican.org
For those who have already got a 2010 Diary here's one for the following November. There is a really good line up of speakers and contributors already confirmed for the Faith and the Future of the Countryside conference, which will take place 3 - 5 November 2010 at The Hayes, Swanwick. This events celebrates 20 years from the publication of Faith in the Countryside, the report of the Archbishops' Commission on Rural Areas. Further information is available on http://www.rural20.org/
Shrinking the Footprint has been extended to include water and biodiversity and with 2010 designated ‘International Biodiversity Year' the Church of England will be playing its part. This will be a great opportunity to take stock of churchyards and church lands so start having ideas for local events and projects throughout the year. More in my next column.
