Carbon Emissions Reduction
The Vestry has adopted the goal for the entire Saint Mark’s campus and community to have a net zero carbon footprint by the year 2030. We encourage parishioners at Saint Mark’s to sign up with the Episcopal Church Carbon Tracker at www.sustainislandhome.org, a tool to help our community measure its collective carbon footprint and take action to reduce that footprint.
Click here for more detailed instructions about how to use this resource. See the resources and recording from a Climate Conversation about the importance of reducing our household carbon footprints and ways to better use the Episcopal Church carbon tracker tool. Why is measuring your carbon footprint is important? Listen to this excellent podcast about why our collective actions really do make a difference!
The Creation Care ministry has researched several carbon offset programs and suggests that parishioners donate to the Carbon Offset Fund here at St. Mark’s when making offset contributions. These funds will then be directly passed through to either the Carbon Offset Cooperative Mission | The Episcopal Diocese of Olympia (ecww.org) or to COTAP.org.
We were delighted to learn recently that a group of elementary students from Alabama used our Creation Care Ministry webpage in their research to learn about steps they can take to become more eco-friendly at home. They also shared another site they found to help in this effort - “Guide to Going Green at Home" at https://couponfollow.com/research/home-green-guide. Check it out and know that people are connecting across the country to help care for our Earth.
For an update and more information about the Carbon Offset Cooperative Mission partnership between the Olympia Diocese and the Diocese of the Southern Philippines, view this short webinar here.
Creation Care Newsletter
The Creation Care Ministry sends out a special newsletter every two months. It is full of events, reflections, recommendations, and interesting information. Sign up to receive future issues using this form (select "Creation Care" from the list of options), or, if you already receive emails from the Saint Mark's, click the "update profile" link at the very bottom any cathedral mass email, and follow the instructions.
Current issue:
Recent issues:
For older newsletters please visit the Creation Care Ministry Meeting Archive Page.
Reflections
Parishioner and literature professor Doug Thorpe and parishioner, writer, and environmental consultant Richard Hartung submit occasional reflections on the environment, faith, and current events:
Climate Conversations
SECOND THURSDAY OF THE MONTH, 6:30–7:30 P.M., online via Zoom
Looking for practical ways to reduce your impact on the environment? Saint Mark’s Creation Care Ministry is hosting Climate Conversations about everyday things in our lives. These monthly conversations are held on environmentally-friendly Zoom on the second Thursday evening of each month from 6:30–7:30 p.m.
Register to participate using this link. You can be part of any or all of these conversations with the same Zoom link each month. Learn more about upcoming conversations and find resources and video of past offerings here.
- MAY 9, 2024: Farms for a Sustainable Future and How to Support Farmers
Join others in our monthly Climate Conversation, when the topic will be Farms for a Sustainable Future and How to Support Farmers. Tyler Morse of Brier Patch Farm will join host, Richard Hartung for this month’s discussion. Farms across the state produce food for those of us who live here as well as for the nation and the world. Farmers are changing their practices to be more eco-friendly, which can save time, money, resources and the environment. We’ll compare traditional practices with modern ones, look at innovative solutions farmers use now to farm better, and consider organic farming. Along with learning about farming practices, we'll also explore how you can support farmers better through what you purchase, where, and how you purchase it.
- JUNE 13, 2024: Solar, Wind, and Geothermal Energy, and How to Tap Renewable Energy
- JULY 11, 2024: Heat! How to Stay Cool, Sustainably, and How to Prepare for Hotter Summers
- AUGUST 8, 2024: How to Cope with Seattle’s Shift from Water Deluges to the now-frequent Droughts
- SEPTEMBER 12, 2024: How to Reduce the Huge Impact that Homes & Building have on Climate Change
- OCTOBER 10, 2024: Plant Trees for Cleaner, Healthier, Cooler Air
- NOVEMBER 14, 2024: Eat Pizza for the Planet—Making Meals that Reduce Climate Change
- DECEMBER 12, 2024: Reduce Plastic to avoid Gigatons of Carbon Emissions
Creation Care Story Sharing
The Creation Care Ministry Story Sharing Project allows parishioners to share actions they are taking related to Creation Care, as a way for parishioners to share their good work and to encourage others to help reduce climate change. Stories can be about any action you are taking, large or small, to care for creation and mitigate climate change. Stories can take the form of a brief written essay, a video, a photo album, an infographic, or a piece of podcast-style audio. Sharing these stories can help others to learn, lead to new ideas about what to do, and be an inspiration for others to take action too. Find more details about sharing your own story here.
In the fist installment, Elizabeth Clark-Stern reflects on choosing to eat vegan, Marjorie Ringness shares a strategy for saving water in the kitchen, and Richard Hartung writes about buying second-hand.
In volume 2, Judy Raunig-Graham tell the story of her climate-related actions, Carolyn White on clothes-drying, and a delightful video from Nicole Thomson about motor vehicle idling.
In the latest installment, Sue & Ed Tierney share changed they've made in their house both big and small, Alexandra Thompson talks about choosing an e-bike over a second car... and more stories to come!
"Collective Impact" with Andrew Himes
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 7–8:30 P.M., in person in Cathedral House Room 210 or online via Zoom
The monthly meeting of the Creation Care Ministry in February will include a presentation from Andrew Himes, Director of Collective Impact for the Carbon Leadership Forum (CLF) at the University of Washington. Andrew was previously a long-time Saint Mark’s parishioner and former member of the Vestry. Andrew will share the CLF’s work building a global movement to decarbonize the building industry — the largest industry on the planet — and the impact of building materials and construction on climate change. Andrew asserts that, rooted in justice and compassion, working together to solve the climate crisis gives us the opportunity “to regain a sense of our shared humanity.” Please plan to participate in this informative and inspiring presentation, with time for Q&A afterwards.
A video and other resources from this presentation are now available here.
Greenbelt Update
Guy Oram, the Saint Mark’s Greenbelt Work Party Volunteer Coordinator, had written a summing-up of the work that was done on the Greenbelt in the recent series of work parties. Check out his update here!
