Earth Care News
September 2018
In this newsletter:
Registration Now Open for VTIPL’s 2018 Conference!
Congregations Invited to be Sponsors of VTIPL’s Conference
Celebrating Sacred Waters, Shelburne Bay Park, September 8
Rise for Climate, Jobs, & Justice – Sept. 8 Vermont Climate Actions
Vision for Vermont Summit on Sept. 15 in Ripton, VT
LEAP Electric Vehicle Fest – Sept. 26 in Duxbury
Message for the Day of Protection for the Environment – Sept. 1
Sept. 1 World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation Message
Red Hot Planet: This Summer’s Historic Heat
Should Rivers Have Rights?
Guide to Stormwater Management
Registration Now Open for VTIPL’s 2018 Conference!
Registration is open for VT Interfaith Power & Light’s conference, A Just Economy to Achieve Climate Goals. Register now and encourage friends to come too! The conference will be on Saturday, Oct. 13 at Faith United Methodist Church in South Burlington (899 Dorset St.). From George Lakey’s Keynote, to the six workshops, music by a Counterpoint quartet, delicious catered lunch, wonderful sponsors with exhibits and information, the “bookstore”, and more – it’s going to be great! Here’s the link to the event page on VTIPL’s website – and more information will be added to the page soon. The link to register online is on the page as well as the attachment if you want to print the registration form and mail it in with a check.
Congregations Invited to be Sponsors of VTIPL’s Conference
VTIPL has invited congregations to be conference sponsors, and to date, the congregational sponsors are: All Soul’s Interfaith Gathering, Shelburne; Ascension Lutheran Church, South Burlington; Charlotte Congregational Church; East Corinth Congregational Church; and Weybridge Congregational Church. We thank them and invite other congregations to join them in sponsoring! Click on the Sponsorship Form For Congregations in the list of attachments near the bottom of VTIPL’s website homepage.
Celebrating Sacred Waters – Shelburne Bay Park, September 8
Come join us this Saturday, Sept. 8 from 9:30 am – 3:30 pm, and go on a trail walk in the morning, then paddle a canoe in Shelburne Bay and the LaPlatte River in the afternoon (or vice versa). Educational and sacred activities will be guided by faith leaders, field naturalists, educators, artists, and other talented souls. The boats are provided; please do not bring your own boat. The cost is $10 per person or $25 for a group of four. Register today since we need to know how many are coming to make arrangements for enough boats and for lunch. To order a sandwich for lunch, there’s an additional $10 fee or bring a bag lunch. Register (get tickets) and more details here. For more information, contact Barry Lampke.
Rise for Climate, Jobs, & Justice – Sept. 8 Vermont Climate Actions
Rise for Climate, Jobs, & Justice actions are happening across the U.S. and in six places in Vermont on Sept. 8. Join the action!
–Bennington: A Night for Action – 6:00 – 9:00 pm at Second Congregational Church. Come for a potluck, music, and film screening of The Reluctant Radical(about a pipeline “valve turner”), and discussion following. Details are here.
–Brattleboro: Windham County Rise for Climate – Rally & Ride! Walk, bike, and rally for climate justice! The event is from 3:00 – 6:00 pm and includes speakers, music, tables, face-painting, etc.. Host: Brattleboro@350vt.org The event details include the different meet-up spots for those walking and biking.
–Burlington: Paddle & Drum with Pride — Burlington Rises for Climate, Jobs, Justice, and Water! Event is from 12:30 – 6 pm starting with marching in the Pride Parade then joining kayaktivists, guest speakers, and indigenous leaders at Burlington’s Waterfront – raising awareness of the links between local water quality, climate change, and social/economic/environmental justice. Here are the details including the schedule.
–Manchester: From 10 am – 2 pm, make art, march with your neighbors, and hold local leaders accountable on climate action. State representative candidate Kathleen James and Paris Climate Agreement contributor Edward Cameron speak at Northshire Bookstore at 1 pm. Get the details.
–Montpelier: Picnic and Fair on the State House Lawn from 11 am – 1 pm.Connect with the community at this family-friendly picnic to inspire climate action, call for effective leadership from candidates for office, and explore hands-on educational activities for children and adults. Find info here.
–Rutland: Routes to Resilience — 9 am – 1 pm, VT Farmers Food Center.
Explore Rutland through sites addressing, or affected by, climate change: farms; rain gardens; renewable energy installations; and more — then come together for food, conversation, & strengthening the local climate movement! Get the details.
Vision for Vermont Summit on Sept. 15 in Ripton, VT
At the Vision for Vermont Summit, a diverse group of Vermont residents will work towards finding a common vision for Vermont’s future. Participants will learn from one another and share ideas about how to pool efforts to support Vermont’s people and environment. The fee is $10 – to cover the cost of lunch – payable at the door (but if $10 is a barrier, pay what you can). Pre-registration is required. It will be at Bread Loaf campus, 4265 Rt. 125, in Ripton, VT on Sept. 15 from 9:30 am – 4 pm. The Summit is open to all; if interested, register now! Get more information and register at the website.
LEAP Electric Vehicle Fest – Sept. 26 in Duxbury
LEAP, Waterbury’s Local Energy Action Partnership, is having a free Electric Vehicle Fest on Wednesday, Sept. 26, from 5:30 – 7:30 pm at Crossett Brook Middle School in Duxbury. Along with opportunities to ride in and get much information about electric vehicles, there will be free pizza and ice cream! Here are the details.
Message for the Day of Protection for the Environment – Sept. 1
In this year’s inspiring message of Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, for the Orthodox’s annual Day of Protection for the Environment on Sept. 1, he says in one place, “It is impossible to truly care for human beings while at the same time destroying the natural environment as the very foundation of life, essentially undermining the future of humanity.” The entirety of the message is recommended reading.
Sept. 1 World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation Message
Pope Francis also gave a message on Sept. 1, which in the Catholic Church is called World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. The Pope’s message has water as the focus; it is heartfelt and recommended.
Red Hot Planet: The Summer’s Historic Heat
This Washington Post article shows in seven maps and charts this summer’s historic heat in locations all around the world.
Should Rivers Have Rights?
This article in Yale University’s Forum on Religion and Ecology newsletter tells about places around the world where people are working for rights for rivers. In Chile, for example, indigenous people, citizens, and environmental activists are working to gain these rights for rivers, saying “the time has come to look at granting legal rights – a form of legal personhood – to the nation’s rivers.”
Guide to Stormwater Management for Homeowners and Small Businesses
This 48-page guide, released in June by Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources with Lake Champlain Sea Grant and Vermont Clean Water Initiative, has much helpful information.
VTIPL helps people of faith and spirit better understand the climate crisis and take action to care for Earth.
Vermont Interfaith Power and Light
P.O. Box 209, Richmond, VT 05477
info@vtipl.org 802-434-3397 www.vtipl.org
