News Archive
HBC and global warming
Global warming is a topic which has been hotly debated in recent
months, and until recently my thoughts were ‘so what?’. But we need to
act before its too late. Here are some thoughts about what we can do as
individuals, and as a church.
Scientists agree that the Earth's climate is being directly affected by human activity, and for many people around the world, these changes are having negative effects. Records show that 11 of the last 12 years were among the 12 warmest on record worldwide. Meanwhile, it has been shown that global greenhouse gas emissions grew by 70% between 1970 and 2004. If current trends continue, atmospheric CO2 concentrations will increase to raise global temperatures by around 2°C to 5°C by the end of this century. This rise in temperature directly links to flooding, the extinction of animals and rising sea levels.
However it is not a hopeless case and scientists believe that we can still change the current flow. As Christians we should be stewards of the earth and want to care and protect it.
On Sunday evening, in small groups, we discussed how we as individuals or as a church could help to be more ‘green’ and help set an example for the community around us.
As individuals we can:
• Switch off lights,
• Turn off heating
• Recycle
• Give to groups such as Greenpeace,
• Take time to appreciate creation and care for it
• Vote for ‘green’ councillors
• Turn off lights/water
• Shower rather than bath
• Walk or cycle rather than driving
As a church we can:
• Use energy efficient bulbs
• Save paper by photocopying fewer bulletins (making use of church website instead)
• Have recycle points in the building
• Look at the materials for the new building - insulation etc
• Put a 'living roof' on the church
• Car lift sharing
• Have a Environment Czar whose main responsibility is for ‘environmental stuff’ (snappy title)
• Get involved in environmental projects
• Save water – brick in a cistern?
• Pray for environmental issues
• Switch fuel accounts?
• Have a 'walk to church' Sunday
• Look at the church’s consumption of fuel and work from there to limit its carbon footprint
• Review progress
• Buzz days with an emphasis on the environment e.g litter picks
• Share resources e.g lawnmowers – rather than buying a new one share with a friend
• Bible study – we need to understand our responsibility
Alongside the community we can:
• Hold visits to the parks for BBQs with a message on our duty to the environment
• Organize a distribution point for clothes
• Instead of buying new clothes hold swap sales in church (invite community)
• Distribute house plants that consume carbon dioxide
Over one third of the world's population claim to be Christian – imagine the effect if all of these people could act together in limiting greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide emissions. Just do what you can, then let others follow your example.