UCC* People Gather in Shared Commitment to Great Lakes

People from two “UCC”s -- the United Church of Christ in the US as well as the United Church of Canada -- came to Wisconsin in August from states and provinces all around the Great Lakes for a special gathering at UCCI’s Cedar Valley Retreat Center (West Bend). They met to explore how shared faith and the awareness of the importance of shared water resources – the Great Lakes and their watershed – could provide the basis for close collaboration. The group met under the aegis of the Great Lakes Collaborative, which formed through a meeting of members of several UCC conferences a year ago in Michigan.

With them they brought their accounts of bodies of water that are near and dear to them: a pond and creek where a beloved elder taught them to fish, a great river that created an intriguing boundary and invitation to travel, a marsh full of waterfowl, a lake for paddling and swooning at the cry of the loon. These experiences, and the awareness that they represent a vast watershed and a shared home, inspired the work of the group. Read the complete reflection HERE.

Great Lakes Collaborative - Comments from a Canadian 

As a Canadian going to meet our United Church partners in Wisconsin, my experience with the Great Lakes Collaborative Retreat was very welcoming, insightful and interesting. It was good to know that there are folks working across our borders to help protect the environment and our water as a precious resource.

There was valuable information shared that is not often what we hear in our news or common discourse, such as the Line 5 pipeline that is illegally running through Bad River First Nation and causing a threat to all of us. As well, the information regarding activism and those who are taking action against what is happening in their communities, such as those living in fear within "Cancer Alley" and facing many illnesses due to plastic-related chemical pollution. Beyond this, there was very comprehensive information about plastic, how much plastic is in our environment, in what ways plastic exactly harms us, what we can do about plastic and other environmental harms, supporting activist claims with Indigenous knowledge and other scientific knowledge, alternatives to plastic products, the correlation between plastic and our health, environmental policies in various American states and Ontario, and how we can tangibly take action as individuals or faith-based organizations.

The Great Lakes Collaborative Retreat was also intentional in noting that it is simply a stepping stone in a long process that hopefully will develop ongoing connections and reciprocal relationships between Canadian and American United Church members. As well, there was valuable insight into the idea that we should not be seclusive in faith-based Creation Care, but rather work with other community groups and non-profit organizations that are already leaders in environmentalism and climate justice work.

Aside from all of the teachings, there was time for discussion to get to know one another, develop rapport, and spend time in a very peaceful rural environment that even had llamas, swans, a pond, totems, a small chapel, walking trails and an apiary! Overall, I have taken away from this experience that there is much to learn about our environment and the Great Lakes, building relationships together is important in making progress together, and doing so in an environment that connects you with the Earth makes you appreciate and remember what it is that you are setting out to protect.

Thank you. 

Best regards, 

Amber Culley, HBA, MA/MDiv Candidate

Christian Education (CE) Program Leader

Forest Hill United Church, United Church of Canada

The Movie Bad River and Actions on Line 5

The second Great Lakes Collaborative meeting began with a discussion of the movie Bad River: A Story of Defiance. The movie not only details the incredible strength and resilience of the Bad River Tribe throughout a history of colonialism, intentional division, violence, injustice, and intergenerational trauma. 

Climate activist and writer for Sojourners, Bill McKibben, references the movie as "a powerful chronicle . . . and a hopeful picture of the emerging possibilities for power.”  

Particularly as we look for local ways that we might challenge the fossil fuel industry, Bad River calls into question the Line 5 pipeline which enters the United States through Wisconsin and exits back into Canada through Michigan, crossing the Mackinac Straits, what the Abishinaabe refer to as the belly-button of the world. 

Read more HERE. 

Life After Doom - An Evening with Brian McLaren

Wednesday, Oct. 30 • 7-8.30 p.mm\. (Eastern) • Online

$25 event registration - Includes a copy of "Life After Doom" for the first 100 people who register. Full and half scholarships are available for this event. Please contact Nicole Diroff at nicole@thebtscenter.org to inquire. Note: Those who register for the Life After Doom Book Study Group will be automatically registered for this public event and do not need to register separately. REGISTER

As we live into increasingly unstable times — climate chaos present in blisteringly hot days and alarmingly frequent floods and fires, political divisiveness, economic injustice and inequalities that only seem to get worse — many of us find our days infused with a sense of unease, disquiet, and anxiety. We know that the world is wildly unbalanced and that the powers which have long governed our society — political, religious, and economic — are only contributing further to the deeply unsustainable situation in which we find ourselves. How can we bear the truth of this moment and find our way forward in these times?

In his new book Life After Doom: Wisdom and Courage for a World Falling Apart, widely celebrated author, speaker, and activist Brian D. McLaren looks unflinchingly at this moment and names that feeling so many are experiencing as doom. Yet rather than stopping at that challenging feeling, McLaren dives deeply into Christian tradition and the Bible as an indigenous ecological text to ask what resources we can embrace to find a path into new ways of being. Drawing on the wisdom of philosophers, poets, scientists, and theologians, and with deep honesty and compassion, he invites us to embrace a contemplative stance and offers new ways forward for radical community, belonging, and resilience.

Faith in Place Grants

Faith in Place is now accepting grant proposals for up to $30,000 to support tree planting and maintenance projects! We are excited to help communities plant trees that promote healthier, cleaner, and more peaceful environments without disrupting buildings or sidewalks.

To be eligible, organizations must be located in an environmental justice community and be either a House of Worship or have a 501(c)(3) designation. You can learn more about eligibility and this grant opportunity here.

For more details about this opportunity or help with your application, please visit the Faith in Place website.

Questions? Reach out to grants@faithinplace.org.

Great Lakes Collaborative - A Song for Reflection 

Water Flowing From the Mountains - Sung by Christina Cichos. Music and words by Jim Hannah.

Listen to the song here

Week Without Driving Challenge

If you can drive or afford a car, you may not understand what it’s like to rely on walking, rolling, transit and asking for rides. But for nearly a third of people living in the United States – people with disabilities, young people, seniors and people who can’t afford cars or gas – this is our every day. 

We created the Week Without Driving challenge so that those who have the option to drive can learn firsthand about the barriers and challenges that nondrivers face and work with nondrivers to create more accessible communities for all. 

Where did the Challenge come from?

The #WeekWithoutDriving challenge was launched in 2021 by Anna Zivarts at Disability Rights Washington. After two successful years, in 2023 in partnership with America Walks we took the Week Without Driving national. More than 142 organizations across 41 states and the District of Columbia joined the challenge in 2023 and we’re already organizing so the 2024 challenge will be even bigger!

How can I participate?

Anyone can participate in the Week Without Driving – whether you want to participate as an individual, organize your coworkers, or sign up as an elected leader or an advocacy organization. 

If you’d like to find other organizations, look at our list of local and regional partners, and if you don’t see someone in your area, check out our templates and training to get started hosting the challenge. Sign up HERE.

Save the Date! The Dane County Youth Climate Conference 

The Dane County Youth Climate Conference is coming up on Saturday, Nov. 16, at Madison College. This will be the fourth annual conference which will empower and inspire local youth as they seek to create a sustainable world. High school and college students from across Dane County (and beyond!) are invited to attend. The conference will include networking, a great keynote speaker, an idea fair with booths from environmental groups, presentations by school green teams, door prizes, catered breakfast and lunch -- and it's all free. Registration will open soon, so reserve your spot! As of this printing the registration link is not available. Watch for it in an upcoming issue. 

Children's Book Review

We Are Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom/llustrated by Michaela Goade

Water is the first medicine. It affects and connects us all…

When a black snake threatens to destroy the Earth and poison her people’s water, one young water protector takes a stand to defend Earth’s most sacred resource.



Inspired by the many Indigenous-led movements across North America, this bold and lyrical picture book issues an urgent rallying cry to safeguard the Earth’s water from harm and corruption.

Carole Lindstrom is Anishinaabe/Metis and is tribally enrolled with the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe. She was born and raised in Nebraska and currently makes her home in Maryland. A fierce water protector herself, Carole writes about the connection between her culture and the land, speaking up for all the voices that cannot speak for themselves.

Earth Steward and Water Protector Pledge

• I will do my best to honor Mother Earth and all its living beings, including the water and land. 
• I will always remember to treat the Earth as I would like to be treated.
• I will treat… the winged ones, the crawling ones, the four-legged, the two-legged, the plants, trees, rivers, lakes, the Earth with kindness and respect. 
• I pledge to make this world a better place by being a steward of the Earth and a protector of the water.

GOOD NEWS! Court Win Protects Endangered Whales and Sea Turtles From Oil Drilling 

Earth Justice

August 20, 2024

What happened: Gravely imperiled whales, sea turtles, and other marine species just got a reprieve from dangerous offshore oil and gas drilling. On Aug. 19 a district court judge struck down a flawed federal agency assessment that allowed harmful oil and gas drilling to kill and seriously injure threatened and endangered marine species in the Gulf of Mexico. Earthjustice had challenged the federal assessment under the Endangered Species Act.

Why it matters: The judge’s ruling affirms that the government cannot continue turning a blind eye to the widespread, persistent harm that offshore oil and gas development inflicts on wildlife. Read more HERE.

Creation Care Team Offers Resources for Voters

The Wisconsin Conference Creation Care Team has assembled a short list of faith-based and other organizations working to get out the vote in November and, beyond that, sustain our creation justice ministries. The list is an important reminder that one of the most important ways we make a difference in a democratic society is through the ballot box, where we can vote for policies aimed at weaning us from the fossil fuels that cause global warming or that point us toward a more sustainable future.

 

EcoAmerica, a UCC partner, provides information about voting, evaluates candidates and policies, and organizes around environmental issues. 

Wisconsin Interfaith Voter Engagement Campaign helps congregations become more engaged around voting, though not exclusively around creation care issues. 

Faith in Place (formerly Interfaith Power and Light in Wisconsin) works in our state, Illinois and Indiana to educate and advocate around issues of environmental sustainability. 

Wisconsin Conservation Voters advocates for sound environmental laws and policies, for electing pro-conservation candidates, and for holding them accountable. 

Wisconsin’s Green Fire promotes science-based practices and long-term vision in environmental protection and natural resources management.

Citizens’ Climate Lobby is an international grass-roots organization that trains volunteers to develop relationships with elected officials in order to address climate policy at the local level. 

Sierra Club is one of the largest and most effective organizations in the nation addressing local and global policies to protect land, air and water, and endangered species, and to combat climate change. 

RENEW Wisconsin is a nonprofit that works on policies and programs that expand solar power, wind power, renewable fuels, local hydropower, building electrification, energy storage and electric vehicles. Its “Solar for Good” program has helped many of our churches install solar power systems on their properties. 

Here’s how you can get involved with Creation Care efforts within the Wisconsin Conference and beyond:

• Participate in the conference’s Creation Care Team – contact one of the co-chairs, Bob Ullman or John Helt.
• Provide content for and/or help prepare the Kairos Newsletter – contact one of the editors, Susan Webb or Joe Scarry.