Eco Church at Epworth

Litter Picking near Epworth Church

In June 2021 Epworth registered as part of the Eco Church scheme with the charity A Rocha UK.

A Rocha UK is a Christian charity "working for the protection and restoration of the natural world and is committed to equipping Christians and churches in the UK to care for the environment."

Eco Church is a "learning community of churches of all shapes and sizes open to all denominations. It is an online framework to support and inspire churches and their leadership to take practical action on caring for God's earth."

Eco Church "runs an award scheme for churches in England and Wales who want to demonstrate that the gospel is good news for God?s earth." We, at Epworth, have been awarded a silver award in June 2024.

Visit: ecochurch.arocha.org.uk for further information. (All quotes have been taken from the A Rocha UK website)

We have put the following into place as part of our work towards an award but mostly because we feel at Epworth that this is what we should be doing to care for God's earth.

• Use of environmentally friendly cleaning products and recycled paper products.
• Church services and Junior Church sessions which teach about climate change and caring for the environment - making bird boxes and bird feeders in Junior Church and bug hotels in Stay and Play and Brigades.
• Our Brigades have completed their Climate Change badge in May 2024.
• Provision of a recycling bin in the church foyer to collect items that can be recycled.
• Monthly litter picking sessions in the community.
• There is a weekly energy saving tip in our notices.
• We have a dedicated noticeboard in church for Eco Church activities and information.
• We have twinned some of our toilets through the Tearfund Toilet Twinning scheme, hosting a coffee morning to raise funds.
• We have been holding a Plant and Produce share table once a month throughout the summer after church services.
• We have been feeding the birds throughout the year.
• We have been planting bee and butterfly friendly plants and wildflowers in the church garden and at Easter the church congregation planted wildflower seeds, sunflower seeds, tomato and cucumber seeds as part of the service.
• We have hosted a speaker from Tearfund to talk about the environment and Climate Change and hope to host other speakers shortly.
• Our choir recently held a concert with songs celebrating our wonderful world.

You can check out your carbon footprint on many websites ? just type "carbon footprint calculator UK" in your search engine and lots of calculators will come up for you to use. If we all try to reduce our carbon footprint, then this will all help towards tackling climate change.

Lots of websites have suggestions for reducing your carbon footprint but here are a few of the main ideas:

Look at what you eat ? could you try and buy locally produced, seasonal food which will reduce your food miles? Could you try and eat less meat and more plant-based food? Could you look at buying organic or Fairtrade products if available?

Look at how you travel ? could you walk those short distances, use a bicycle or public transport instead of your car? Could you car share or give lifts to people?

Look at your energy use ? could you reduce your energy consumption and save yourself money in the process? Lots of websites have lots of ideas about how you can reduce the amount of energy you use. Could you switch to a renewable energy supplier? Could you insulate your home more?

Look at recycling ? recycle as much as possible and what about "make do and mend"? Could something be fixed or upcycled instead of being thrown away? Could you buy second hand clothes or other items?

Look at your garden ? could you replace paving with grass and plants, grow your own produce or grow plants for wildlife? Could you feed the birds or install a pond and provide water for wildlife?

Look at your water use ? could you cut down the amount of water you use a day? This will help the amount of water available for wildlife. Could you shower less, install a water butt or save water in other ways?

Look at the plastic you use ? could you buy produce that is not wrapped in plastic? Could you use a reusable water bottle or coffee cup when you are out and about? Could you use less plastic film and use reuseable containers for storage? Could you refill your reusable container with a product?

For further information on any of the Eco Church activities at Epworth, please speak to Carole Everard.