In this month's Meetings and Conventions magazine, the Unitarian Universalist Association is named one of five "eco-conscious" groups integrating environmental awareness into their meeting practices. Jan Sneegas, Director of General Assembly and Conference Services for the UUA, was interviewed by Meetings and Conventions along with representatives from Intel, Oracle, Sprint, and the Environmental Defense Fund.
Read the entire story online at http://tinyurl.com/5rtfb9n.
Consumer-backed effort to label genetically engineered food releases video by Food, Inc. filmmaker Robert Kenner
Join Pam and Mark along with current and prospective facilitators for a conference call on Thursday, Jan 12 at 7:15 pm Eastern or Monday, Feb 6 at 7:00 pm Eastern time. Meet with other facilitators from around the country! Click here to register for an email invite. We’ll answer
Looking for a way to deepen your congregation's commitment to the Seventh Principle? Wondering how to link sustainability efforts with your congregation's interest in anti-racism/anti-oppression education? Want something fun and meaningful that engages teens and adults? Would you like to help with Green Sanctuary action planning or taking that work to a new level? Check out UUMFE's new 5-session environmental justice curriculum: "Our Place in the Web of LIfe."
(Nov. 2, 2011) Join Maude Barlow from the Council of Canadians for a dialogue on the Campaign to Establish the Great Lakes as a Commons. Can a commons framework be used to protect the resource rights of local communities? Join us for this tele-
(Oct. 31, 2011) Over 4,000 friends have signed on to encircle the whole White House to ask President Obama to reject Keystone XL and live up to his promise to free us from the tyranny of oil. Listen to the Voices of
(Oct. 22, 2011) The latest issue of the UUMFE newsletter is now available. Articles include information on the 2011 Guardian of the Future Award recipients, the Tar Sands Action, two book reviews, and much more. Check it out!
Learn about this exciting new opportunity for congregations to understand and engage in environmental justice. The curriculum will be posted on the UUMFE website in early November. In the meantime you can learn more by viewing the powerpoint and Q and A from webinars introducing the curriculum here.
How will you and your congregation respond to the calls to action found in this congregational study/action issue? Check out our Food Days 2011 . In addition to the CSAI and the study guide, both World Food Day and Food Day have ideas you can use.
Help demonstrate the power of global movement on September 24, when we'll help get the planet moving! Read more about the goals of the day on our Moving Planet page...We hope you will share your story and photos with others by sending your story and photos to the UUMFE offfice.
Meet Dr. Mark A. Hicks and Pamela Sparr, the curriculum designers. Participate in a walk-through of the curriculum in general and Module 1 in detail. Ask questions about how you can shape the material to meet the needs of your congregation. Second Webinar Date: Sat., October 15th, 1:00-2:00 pm EDT. To register, click here [Registration is closed for Tues., September 20th.]
What would lead an ordinary person like me to the White House fence?
My immediate inspirations were three: Tim DeChristopher, my daughter Erica, and Bill McKibben.
I found Tims actions to be truly inspirational. His civil disobedience in 2008, for which he was sentenced to two years in prison this year, and his words upon being sentenced - "I do not want mercy; I want you to join me" were powerful.
August 30th, 2011 – Washington, DC – People of faith from across the country converged in Washington, DC yesterday for the Interfaith Day of the two week long peaceful civil disobedience to stop the construction of the Keystone XL Tar Sands Pipeline. Read more in the blog Inspired Faith, Effective Action at http://socialjustice.blogs.uua.org/
The UU Ministry for Earth, All Souls Unitarian in Washington, DC and other national and local UU groups are joining with interfaith leaders from Jewish, Catholic, Christian, and Buddhist communities on August 28th and 29th to protest the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline (also known as the Tar Sands). Click Read more for the details...
Bill McKibben and the 350.org crew are at it again! Following up on last year’s 10-10-10 Global Work Party, the 350.org is building a global movement to demand action from world leaders. Begin here.
Our $5,000 fundraising goal to qualify for the challenge grant for the Environmental Justice Curriculum has been met. Thank You!
Leaders from 28 organizations concerned about climate change, environment and health have joined eleven veteran environmentalists calling for public demonstrations to urge President Obama to block the Keystone XL Pipeline that would be used to move tar sands oil from Canada to the U.S. The demonstrations
Vince Pawlowski, a member of the UUMFE Board, was in Salt Lake City for the sentencing of Tim DeChristopher, a climate change activist from the First Unitarian Church of Salt Lake City. His reflections on his time with supporters of Tim are posted here on Vince's blog, http://uumfe.org/blog/38
(July 26, 2011) Tim DeChristopher, the Salt Lake City UU who disrupted an illegal federal oil and gas lease auction, has been sentenced to two years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Tim made a statement to the Court before sentencing that has energized his supporters for further involvement in climate change work. The statement and information about additional actions can be read at the website www.peacefuluprising.org .
Reports and updates will be showing up as attendees recover from the whirlwind of activities, sort their notes, and get set for the next steps. Here are a few other places you can get information that was of great interest to those of us at the UUMFE booth. Additional reports will be put up as we get them...
(May 17, 2011) The latest issue of the UUMFE newsletter is now available. Articles include information on environmental justice workshops and events at GA, the status of the Ethical Eating SOC process, two exciting new fall events, and much more. Check it out!
(May 2, 2011) Even though Earth Day 2011 has come and gone, UU Ministry for Earth hopes that this year's water justice resources will continue to aid congregations in their justice making activities for years to come. Use this table of Earth Day activities from registered congregations to find ideas for future projects or, for a quick summary, see this list of highlights of activities by category from several participating congregations...
Is there an UUnsung environmental hero in your congregation? We invite you to nominate this person as a UU Ministry for Earth Guardian of the Future. The winner will be honored at General Assembly 2011. Often grassroots activists in our midst go unrecognized, yet their efforts...
Almost ninety congregations registered activities and events for Earth Day. Check out the Earth Day video of UUA staff sharing their 40/40 for Earth pledge commitments. It's not too late to register your events. After your event ...
40 days of commitment to the earth; 40 UUs in each congregation take action; and your $40 gift toward a special UUMFE challenge match. Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth is offering Sacred Waters, 2011 Earth Day resources, to enrich your congregation's experience and the personal path you take to celebrate and protect ...
(April 6, 2011) When you need some ideas for reading materials to support your acitivities for Earth Day and beyond, UU Ministry for Earth has put together several sources for you to consult. For starters, the UUA Bookstore is a partner in providing Earth Day resources for your use in your celebration and activities. One suggestion includes this volume of "Eco-Spiritual Reflections and Practices."
(April 3, 2011) To help you out, UUMFE's Sacred Waters resources and 40/40 for Earth Challenge are available on this site. For ideas, here is a list of Earth Day events (updated May 2) that congregations are planning. When you've decided, be sure to register your plans and we will add your congregation to the list.
(Jan. 30, 2011) For Earth Day 2011, UU Ministry for Earth is asking congregations to celebrate the sacred waters that sustain us and to commit to 40 days of actions that will make our world more just. We've put together information, resources, and ideas for action on water justice, with links to congregational stories, worship materials, and much more. Get started here!
(Jan. 12, 2011) When you log in to make a comment, you'll now be asked to type the letters that you see on the screen. This feature is supposed to allow people, but not other computers, to create logins to our site. Now we have a whole bunch of computer-generated logins that we have to delete, and we might accidentally delete a real user, especially if you have created an unusual username. If we accidentally delete your login, simply set up a new one. We want to keep all of you as active users!
In six months, the UUA General Assembly (GA) will likely pass a statement called “Ethical Eating: Food and Environmental Justice.” This statement will influence the path for UU justice work on issues like climate change, immigration, human rights, animal rights, trade, labor, and consumer and citizen responsibility for years to come. The draft Statement of Conscience was released this month.
On October 10th, UUs from almost ninety congregations joined people in 188 countries to participate in 7,347 Global Work Party events. We'd love to hear about your congregation's project! Check out those already...
Thanks to the support of the Johnson Foundation at Wingspread, we are having a different kind of Water Communion at our Ingathering Sunday this September. Many Unitarian Universalists use water as a symbol for our individual lives – gathering our waters into one stream as we come together each fall for a new church year. How many of us, however, as we enjoy this ceremony, truly take a hard look at the freshwater crisis in our nation and our world, and the water cost of the way we live?
Each of the three Districts received a $500 matching grant. Individuals and congregations within each District are helping to fund the $500 match. The Districts have administered a survey of the environmental interests and needs of their congregations and all are planning fall conferences to address those needs. http://uuministryforearth.org/Support_for_Districts.
The Green Sanctuary Program of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations (UUA) and the Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth (UUMFE) invite you and your congregation to dedicate a few moments, a worship service, a month, or a year to reflect on the recent disasters in the Gulf of Mexico. Many congregations...
Lutherville, Maryland, July 20, 2010 — Today, Interfaith Power and Light announced the winner of this year’s Cool Congregation contest. Towson Unitarian Universalist Church (TUUC), in Lutherville Maryland, accepted the $5,000 cash prize for the most reduction in energy use. Carel Hedlund, Chair of TUUC’s Green Sanctuary Committee,said, “our actions focused on three areas: energy efficiency of our building, educating our members on ways...
UU Ministry for Earth is pleased to announce the selection of Lori Sands of the Ginger Hill Unitarian Universalist Congregation (GHUUC) of Slippery Rock, PA as the 2010 Guardian of the Future. This year congregations were asked to nominate someone who: inspires new understanding and behavior in others; builds environmental justice within their congregation & community; makes care and celebration central to their life; and has a transformative impact on the congregation and/or wider community.
Let's start a conversation; add your comments to each of the papers. UUMFE is making these green papers available at no charge,but we ask you to consider a donation to help cover our costs to produce them and our ongoing earth justice work. Thank you! Donate link
Thursday, Jan 12 at 7:15 pm Eastern or
Monday, Feb 6 at 7:00 pm Eastern time. Coaching for Facilitators of EJ Curriculum. Meet with other facilitators from around the country! Click here to register for an email invite.
Feb. 1 - UUMFE Earth Day materials available.
March - GA registration opens
April 22 - Earth Day
Genuine politics -- even politics worthy of the name -- the only politics I am willing to devote myself to -- is simply a matter of serving those around us: serving the community and serving those who will come after us. Its deepest roots are moral because it is a responsibility expressed through action, to and for the whole. ~ Vaclav Havel

We are pleased to announce Barbara Ford's Gaia Workshops.

The handouts from the UUMFE GA workshop are posted here.
Meet Dr. Mark A. Hicks and Pamela Sparr, the curriculum designers. Participate in a walk-through of the curriculum in general and Module 1 in detail. Ask questions about how you can shape the material to meet the needs of your congregation. Next Webinar is Sat., October 15th, 1:00-2:00 pm Eastern Time. To register, click here