small(er) blog

Bottled Water Backlash

2007-10-19T17:47:00.000-07:00

Just wondering if anyone out there has seen a similar Bottled Water Backlash in their faith community?

Lose "environmental"

2007-08-29T09:15:00.000-07:00

"...there is a soullessness to the word "environmental" that lets even crappy preachers run roughshod over it. I cherish men and women who live as if the statements "The kingdom of heaven is within you," and "Hate ceases by love," and "Worship God as though you see Him" are true. And are these words by Jesus, Buddha, and Muhammad "environmental statements"? Not really. They're much more. Those of us engaged in the earth's battle for survival need deeper, higher, more lovable descriptions of our daily efforts. The "environmental movement" is a caterpillar in the process of being transformed into a much more beautiful butterfly. It's time to let the e-word go and find a butterfly of a word."

David James Duncan from By Book and by Hook
ht: Malcolm Johnson

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Small(er) summer camp

2007-07-03T12:53:00.000-07:00

Jordan blogs today about the small(er) steps Camp Qwanoes is taking to reduce it's impact on the environment. Is anybody else out there hooked up with a summer camp that's doing anything similar? If so, we'd love to hear about it!

A Rocha videos and talk

2007-06-16T11:13:00.000-07:00

As part of a series we're doing on the move from "doing missions" to "being missional" we spent an evening last Sunday looking at the church's mission to the created world around us. Markku "Dr. Soil" Kostamo from A Rocha Canada came and spoke to the challenge/responsibility. You can give his talk a listen here, and we've also posted two videos he brought along with him below.

Enjoy!

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Small(er) Landscaping

2007-06-07T09:43:00.000-07:00

Does anyone out there know of a church community using small(er) landscaping practices like reel/push mowers, rain collection, hand-weeding? If so, we'd love to hear your stories.
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It's sunny outside

2007-06-01T13:13:00.000-07:00

Seems to be the same forecast right across the country. Make sure you're playing in it.
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Hallowed Ground | Thursday May 31st

2007-05-26T10:01:00.000-07:00

Who: Church leaders, stewardship teams, environmental committees, interested churches and community members

What: Hallowed Ground: The Church and the Environment
A workshop about making your church green-er

Where: Ontario Street Baptist Church

When: Thursday May 31st | 6:30-8:30 pm

If you're around Southern Ontario, this looks like its going to be an excellent night of inspiration, networking, education and general overall fun. To find out more visit the C.A.R.E Stratfod site or read the press release below.

Join the Stratford & District Council of Churches, CARE Stratford and Stratford's Energy & Environment Committee to learn how to green your world and your church.

We invite church leaders, stewardship teams, environmental committees, interested churches and community members, to work together to reduce the environmental impact of worship spaces in Stratford.

Listen to Don Eaton of the Elora Centre for Environmental Excellence share his expertise on energy efficiency for church buildings; view local environmental information displays; share ideas about how energy can be saved in church facilities; and contribute other environmental practices to your fellow community members.

The event takes place on Thursday, May 31st from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Ontario Street Baptist Church. Please RSVP Terry Hastings at thastings@knoxstratford.on.ca

Refreshments will be served beforehand. Doors open at 6:30 pm and the program will run from 7-8:30.

If you have planters (3-6"), used cell phones, printer cartridges or socks that you no longer need, please bring them with you.

For more information contact:
Terry Hastings
Minister, Knox Presbyterian Church
Stratford, ON
thastings@knoxstratford.on.ca

Kerry McManus
C.A.R.E. Stratford
(519) 271-4500 ext. 24
carestratford@cyg.net

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Clean Air Day | June 6th

2007-05-25T06:49:00.000-07:00

National Clean Air Day is around the corner. If you've got any witty things planned to help celebrate the day (or the rest of Canadian Environment Week) let us know and we'll pass the word around.
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BC/Everyone Turns it off

2007-05-15T15:13:00.000-07:00

If you're in BC, you've probably heard of tomorrow's (May 16th) BC Hydro sponsored "Turn it Off!" event. Basically, they're encouraging businesses and homeowners to turn off and unplug any unnecessary electrical equipment as part of their 30 Days of Sustainability initiative.

But why keep this party in BC eh?! No matter where you're reading this from take a quick lap around the house tomorrow (heck, even now) and unplug the stereo you aren't listening too, turn the lights off in the room you just left, take your cell phone charger out of the wall...

Happy turning-off'ing!

Join the facebook group.

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Re-thinking Mission | Thinking Small(er)

2007-05-06T19:34:00.000-07:00

Although there is a growing debate surrounding the whole concept of short-term missions, the reality is they are still a powerful and effective way to reach out to people in the name of Christ around the world. Let's leave that debate aside. Our concern is about thinking small(er) missions. If your church is anything like my church, trips to far-off, exotic locations have often been glamorized as the epitome of short-term missions. They require lots of fundraising, expensive flights and all that jazz. Why emit oodles of carbon dioxide when "the least of these" - the poor, the hungry, the imprisoned, the naked - are mere kilometres from us?

This summer, we'll be trekking a couple of hours north of Toronto to a Native Reserve on the shores of Georgian Bay to run a day camp for a week under the umbrella of DayStar Native Outreach. Did you know there are 27,000 orphans from Native Reserves? The rates of suicide, depression, mental illness, alcoholism and drug abuse sky-rocket among Native Reserves. As Parliament debates about offering a formal apology for the travesties that occurred in the residential school system, we have an opportunity to re-think short-term mission: think small(er)!

We'll camp on a Provincial Park site for the week. Total cost per person: ~$300. Total transportation required: 1 or 2 vans. Don't get me wrong, we are all called to different places, but our neighbours near us need God's Body reaching out to them as much as our neighbours in far-off places. That's Small(er) Missions.

Summer Conferences

2007-05-02T16:57:00.000-07:00

If you're attending, hosting or planning any gathering of sorts near the intersection of faith and all things good and green and small(er), we'd love to hear about it....feel free to use the comments to this post, or send us something bigger and we'll see what we can do!

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Walk to work day/less is often more

2007-04-26T08:42:00.000-07:00

The cool thing about this idea is that it realizes that many people live so far from work that to walk the whole way would equal a day off! In light of this, the campaign encourages long-distance commuters to figure out a way to fit in at least 30 minutes of walking along the way (in between bus stops etc).

This is the kind of compromise that will actually garner more involvement if you ask me. A "let's get closer" attitude is yet another example of the power of taking small(er) steps toward bigger goals rather than commanding "all or nothing" out of "everyone." Most people want to affect change - they want to make a difference - they don't want to be kicked out of the party because they can't stay for the whole thing.

Ask for more and you'll often get nothing. Ask for less and you'll often get more...

(cheers to Spacing Wire for the link)

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Next Up: Small(er) Summer?

2007-04-25T11:38:00.000-07:00

Possible ideas we're kicking around for some small(er) Sundays over the summer:

Sunday June 17th - Small(er) Solstice
cheeky tagline: "Shine a light by turning yours off!"
In anticipation of the longest day of the year (June 21st) we turn the church lights out on Sunday the 17th and inspire everyone to do the same when the 21st rolls around too.

Sunday August 12th - Small(er) Service
cheeky tagline: "God is on the side of the powerless"
Mark the Northeast Blackout by going unplugged for your Sunday Gathering. Enjoy a sermon with no powerpoint, create a mood by keeping the lights off, pull out the acoustic guitars and wear a t-shirt because (gasp) you've turned the air-conditioner off!

Got an idea for a small(er) event? Leave it in the comments to inspire others, go out there and do it!

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How'd Earth Day go for you?

2007-04-23T22:32:00.000-07:00

News of carpools, 40-minute skateboard journeys, travel mugs and the like are slowly trickling in from this past weekend's Small(er) Sunday: Earth Day Edition, and it's pretty rad to hear the great ways people celebrated. So, how did you kick it? Any crazy-fun/sparkle-fresh noteworthy things happen in your neck of the woods on Sunday? I mean, telling the story is often half as much fun as the act itself!

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Happy Small(er) Sunday/Earth Day

2007-04-22T00:01:00.000-07:00

Wishing you a smooth bike ride, a leisurely stroll, a conversational carpool, an interesting busride, a great skate etc...

Have a great small(er) Sunday!

Here's to the big difference many small actions can make!
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Small(er) Sunday this weekend!

2007-04-18T20:54:00.001-07:00

Walk, Bus, Carpool or Bike to church this Sunday.Join the party!

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Earth Day party continues to spread

2007-04-18T09:14:00.000-07:00

With a few days left before Sunday's "I'm going to carpool, bus, walk or bike to church on Sunday April 22nd" event, we wanted to pop by and let you know that so far we've got people joining the party from all across Canada including: Calgary* , Edmonton, Kitchener, London, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver** and Victoria.

If you know anybody out in the maritimes or farther up north it'd be great to make this a coast-to-coast-to-coast thing! And it's rad to hear that the word has already jumped borders and oceans and spread as far as Atlanta, Georgia and Austrailia!

*Go Flames Go!
** Go Canucks Go!
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"I'm going to carpool, bus, walk or bike to church on Sunday April 22nd"

2007-04-12T17:53:00.000-07:00

We're currently trying to spread the word about some upcoming stuff to "do" on Earth Day (April 22nd). Seeing as how Christians believe Sundays are "a day of rest" we figured why don't we give our parking lots a rest and encourage everyone to pick up a few friends on the way to church that Sunday. Better yet, why not make it a leisurely stroll or meandering bike ride?! Whatever you choose to do, we'd love you to share your stories with us....

Need more help? Follow these instructions

Step 1: Carpool, bike, walk or bus to church on Sunday April 22nd.

Step 2: Convince some friends to do "Step 1" with you.

Make it a small(er) Sunday!

On facebook? Join the party here.

Fivelimes, Clean Air Foundation, Greendeals.ca

2007-04-07T10:40:00.000-07:00

It's been a good Easter Saturday morning filled with adding a few more links to the "Less Talk, More Rock" section of the website. Dig in and familiarize yourself with the following green cats:

Fivelimes
Fivelimes is a very promising looking user-defined site connecting users with maps and info about business with a green twist. Its really both easy to use and contribute to and the "add-your-own" aspect to it is quite appealing. Social networking with a splash of green.

CleanAir Foundation
Home to a number of great energy-reducing programs including: Mow Down Pollution (lawn mower retirement and rebates), Car Heaven (car retirement), and Chill Out (appliance retirement).

GreenDeals.ca
As they say, this site is good for the pocket-book AND for good for the planet. They've got a great listing of government and private incentives for a wide variety of "lighter on the planet" technologies.

Torontonian Rain Barrels

2007-04-02T15:53:00.000-07:00

Greenopolis.ca has a great post about rain water today which is well worth the read. Apparently, Toronto's chipping in some change for anybody interested in making better use of rainwater. If you're in the GTA and find your church constantly getting rained upon....

BikeFriday > BikeSunday?

2007-03-28T12:55:00.000-07:00

How hard would it be to take a tip from Toronto's bikeFriday and pull of a "bikeSunday."

Any two-wheelers out there willing to check your tires and invite some friends to fill your church's bike rack on a Sunday?

Let us know and we'll spread the word.

On the paper towel note...

2007-03-28T08:02:00.000-07:00

Admittedly, this here post is a not-yet implemented idea, but it is in the works. I was just reading the These Come from Trees post - scary how much paper towel we use! However, for those of us in Toronto, not only can we reduce our consumption of it, but we can place all soiled paper towel in the Green Bins. So, with some well-placed signage and instruction, we are hoping to put small green bins in every washroom so that people will organicize (a new word) their paper towels rather than throw them in the garbage heading to landfills (read here for info on Toronto's garbage consumption).
And did you know you can put your paper coffee cups in the organic bin too? Roll up the Rim in the Green Bin!

Environmental Audit Guide

2007-03-27T14:22:00.000-07:00

The Guide to Developing an Environmental Audit for offices and institutional buildings provides a super in depth evaluation and analysis of just about every dimension of a facility's impact. This is a great do-it-yourself tool, that can easily be applied to church or religious buildings/facilities as well.

Change in Toronto's air

2007-03-27T07:06:00.000-07:00

It'll be interesting to see if any faith communities around the Toronto area will be getting involved in the conusltation and implementation phases of the city's "Change is in the Air" campaign. If you're from the area and are getting your fingers in the mix, let us know as we'd love the inside scoop. Learn more at Spacing Wire.

So far we've thought about...

2007-03-21T09:43:00.000-07:00

Although the Presence gathering isn't yet officially a month old, here are some of the things we've had to think through already...

Building...we're meeting in a public facility (an art gallery) that is used constantly during the week aside from us. Facility wise, our footprint is practically zero.

Coffee time...along with the fair trade coffee, we're also using ceramic mugs. (This works great for now, but if more than 70 people show up we're going to have to get some more mugs!)

Announcements...we're doing all our announcements and teaching notes on video screen and blog site - no printed paper.

Communion...did you know some churches actually just throw away the little plastic communion cups? We've adopted the tradition of dipping the bread into the wine/juice.

Future hopes...our aforementioned art gallery home is central to a majority of our city's bus routes, and we'd like to encourage the use of public transportation as an act of worship on Sundays.

Looking for contributors

2007-03-18T15:35:00.000-07:00

Now that this thing is starting to take on a shape of its own, we'd like to open it up before it has the chance to cement and get stuck.

To that end, we want to invite YOU to join in and see where we can take this. If you're interested in posting to this blog, shoot us an email.

As per "guidelines:" here's a rough idea of what we do know we want to steer toward (and conversely, away from).

1. We want to turn up the good and mute the bad.
Let's hear the GOOD NEWS of what people are doing/thinking.
Protest was for yesterday, Proposals are for today.

2. We're looking for more storytelling than opinion and/or theology
We're going to assume taking care of this earth is a theological given. Okay? Good.

3. This is a tandem bike, not a unicycle
If the wheel exists already: link to it rather than recreate it. This blog is not a brand so much as place to connect some dots.

4. And that's the just the beginning...
The shorter the better. In keeping with this blog's theme, we want our posting to subscribe to a "less is more" practice. Let's have the big discussions on facebook and around the dinner table.

These Come from Trees gets new look

2007-03-18T09:45:00.000-07:00

The dashingly common-sense-catalyst "These Come from Trees" stickers have just been given a beautiful new re-design, and the open-source story of how it all came about is worth a read...

Find us on VIRB and Facebook

2007-03-16T10:47:00.000-07:00

In case you're so inclined, we have started small(er) groups on both facebook and (most recently) VIRB.

Feel free to share stories, events, and ideas there too! We're not tied to any one of these virtual meeting places (this blog included):we're just trying to get the word out there and inspire!

The Power of Networks

2007-03-10T12:00:00.000-08:00

This paper on the power of networks by Margaret J. Wheatley beautifully sums up what we're trying to do with this blog - connect like-minded people and create an environment where we can encourage each other to keep things growing. Its worth downloading the whole thing, but the opening paragraph alone is great:

Despite current ads and slogans, the world doesn’t change one person at a time. It changes as networks of relationships form among people who discover they share a common cause and vision of what’s possible. This is good news for those of us intent on changing the world and creating a positive future. Rather than worry about critical mass, our work is to foster critical connections. We don’t need to convince large numbers of people to change; instead, we need to connect with kindred spirits. Through these relationships, we will develop the new knowledge, practices, courage, and commitment that lead to broad-based change.
(emphasis mine)

Thanks to Jonny Baker for the link.

Green Expos in Vancouver and Toronto

2007-03-10T10:52:00.000-08:00

Whether you're around Vancouver or Toronto, there's two green-consumer expos coming in the next few months you might want to take a field trip to. If you do make it, we'd love to hear your thoughts/reviews/discoveries.

The Sustainab le Living Expo runs March 16-18 in Vancouver
The Green Living Show runs April 27-29 in Toronto

Not just another program(?)

2007-03-08T17:40:00.000-08:00

Author David Fitch had a great post yesterday about the dangers of making "social justice" another program allowing us to keep the real issues - which in this case is people - at a distance.

We think there's a lot in his discussion that we could learn as we see our mandate to care for creation gain momentum. So go ahead and read the post here...

Greenopolis and tips for your office

2007-03-07T11:11:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Scott for the tip toward Greenopolis.ca . They're a website devoted to keeping "practical tips, ideas, resources and trends in one place, so you don’t have to search." And we'd have to agree that they're pretty dang good at it. So spread the word.

From a recent post of theirs about greening the office:

Use the energy saver mode whenever possible on your computer, printer and photocopier
Buy recycled paper with Forest Stewardship Council of Canada certification
Reuse paper for notes or in the printer / photocopier (turn used sheets over and print on the reverse for any draft documents)
Keep a reusable water bottle by your desk and use it instead of buying multiple water bottles through the week
Make sure you turn off your computer and all peripherals at night when you leave (even easier: put them all on a power bar so you only have to switch off one thing)
Recycle your printer cartridges
Only buy pens when you need them and then use them until they run out of ink. Better yet, use this as an excuse to indulge in a beautiful fountain pen which you can refill for years to come, keeping cheap pens from landfills, or look for new biodegradable pens made from corn.

So start small at home or start to be a role model at work - or do both. It isn’t that difficult.

Green byte: in 2005, Bic sold its 100 billionth disposable pen since 1945.

Comments: On

2007-03-05T09:05:00.000-08:00

We just realized we've been making it really hard to comment on this site.

That's done now - we've opened commenting ability to everyone.

So fire away.

Small(er) Earth Day | April 22nd

2007-03-04T09:10:00.000-08:00

We've got Earth Day Canada coming up April 22nd - which just happens to be a Sunday. Is anybody out there interested in trying to co-ordinate on a small(er) Sunday party to coincide? It'd be pretty easy

Step One: Think of a creative way to shrink your community's collective ecological footprint for one sunday.
Step Two: Tell us what you're gonna do (so the word spreads)
Step Three: Do it
Step Four: Share with us what you did (so we can inspire others).

Green Audits pay for themselves?

2007-03-03T13:18:00.000-08:00

Undoubtedly one of the biggest myths about "going green" is that it costs more.

Which makes it all the more inspiring to discover that after conducting energy audits, Greening Sacred Spaces along with Victoria BC's City Green found that churches "could exceed the 20% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions targeted by Canadians to meet our Kyoto Protocol responsibilities. What’s more, this [could be] achieved by investments in our church facilities that pay for themselves in just two years – almost a 50% return on investment." (emphasis ours)

Now there's something you don't hear everyday - but had a hunch was true.

Download, print (double-sided, of course) and share the rest of the report with your church's facilities managers.

NEW: Less Talk, More Rock

2007-03-03T12:03:00.000-08:00

As we continue to develop the small(er) blog we want to keep you up-to-date on what we're adding to the mix, and why.

Last week we introduced you to the "Inspiration" section. This week we'd like you to meet: "Less Talk, More Rock."

In essence, this section will feature the most practical list of do-it-yourself (DIY) resources which we can find to help you simply Get Things Done.

The first link we've added is from the David Suziki Foundation's Carbon Neutral page and we've included it because they've got a massive list of carbon offsetting resources (toward the bottom of the page) from both Canada and the world. So check it out...

One more thing...
If you've come across a site that fits the bill of "here's the goods - now do it:" let us know and we'll get the link posted pronto. Similarly we'd love to keep things as personal as we can. To that end we would love to have you share your stories with us - send us an email or simply leave a comment and lets get things rolling.

Interfaith Power and Light Campaign

2007-02-28T09:15:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Will for the tip regarding the Regeneration Project's Interfaith Power and Light Campaign.

They're a movement birthed out of an Episcopalian network in California which has spread into more than 20 states over the last 9 years. With their commitment to tangible results surrounding efficient lighting, solar energy, and less reliance upon fuel-hungry vehicles, their website has amassed quite a few good links and great stories of congregations taking up our challenge to be responsible to that which we've been asked to care for.

And we think their stained glass window featuring a wind-turbine is pretty nice too.

Green Roofs and Paper Use

2007-02-26T15:40:00.000-08:00

Does anybody out there meet in a building with a green roof by any chance? There's got to be a church somewhere that's taken the leap...

Also of note: Apparently these kind of stickers really do work.

We created a sticker ourselves last year (shown above) and have had it up around our building where it still gets quite a bit of talk. While we haven't really been keeping any hard-data on paper towel use, it is nice to know that people have been taking note. Thanks from the tip at "These Come from Trees" (see link above) we probably will do a little re-wording at some point...

Site Updates

2007-02-25T16:57:00.000-08:00

Now that the site has been up for about two weeks and we're starting to see interest increasing - we thought we should let our rss subscribers know that we've added a few links to some "inspiration" under the aptly named "inspiration" title, as well as a new label-cloud and a less pink-and-blue colour scheme.

We've also gone and tweaked our post about small(er) Sundays and given it a bit more definition...

More about lightbulbs

2007-02-21T12:50:00.000-08:00

On the heels of our post about St. John the Divine's light-bulb exchange, we thought we'd point you toward this article from cbc.ca regarding Australia's move away from incandescent bulbs altogether.

In our opinion, we think this move is both timely and not that hard at all really. To that extent, if there are any church's out there who've re-fit their buildings, or encouraged their congregations to re-fit their own homes we'd love to hear your stories.

Low-Energy Transfiguration

2007-02-16T12:57:00.000-08:00

At an upcoming service celebrating the transfiguration, St. John the Divine (Victoria, BC) are doing it themselves in the super-simple following manner:

"Since light is one of the symbols in this service, and we are looking for ways to respond to God's call to care for our planet, you are encouraged to bring one of your old-fashioned gas-guzzling incandescent light-bulbs from home. To replace that bulb, the members of the Care for Creation committee have personally purchased enough of the new low-energy light bulbs for everyone in the congregation to take one home. This can be one step for all of us as we begin the journey of adjusting our life-style so all creation can experience God's glory."

Small(er) Lunches: Less for Lent in Toronto

2007-02-14T11:14:00.000-08:00

Toronto communities Tilt and Spring Garden Church are spending the Lenten season this spring focusing on their ecological footprints and care for the world around us via a series entitled "Earthkeeping: Becoming Better Stewards of God's Creation." As well as some theological teaching and discussion, the series includes "litterless lunches," personal energy audits, and an introduction to more DIY resources.

Click on the image to the left for all the details.

What's a Small(er) Sunday

2007-02-13T16:30:00.000-08:00

The idea behind a small(er) Sunday is to to reduce the amount of resources we use up when we meet together.

Many of us gather on Sundays - and when we come together like this it takes a lot of energy. We heat our buildings in the winter, we cool them in the summer, we read off powerpoint, we amplify our music.... the list goes on.

But what would it show if we tried to use less?

What if we turned the heat down and threw on an extra sweater in the winter?
What if we opened the windows and let a breeze cool us in the summer?
What if we brought back the hymnal?

What would happen if we took small (or even smaller) steps toward reducing our collective footprints?

We think it would change the world. Worst case scenario, it would at least change us. And that's worth trying...

So what's a small(er) Sunday?
That's up to you - get creative, share your stories on this site and let's see what happens.

Get Involved/FAQ

2007-02-13T15:55:00.000-08:00

How do I/we get involved ?
Pick a Sunday (or whatever day/night you gather) and do something(s) creative to cut down on your corporate reliance upon non-renewable energy. Talk it up online and tell your stories via youtube, flickr or some other public site and we'll link to it here. Bonus points (which don't really exist) go to those who can convince our communities to throw these parties on the same day.

Eventually, when we get three communities pulling one of these things off, we'll consider the movement launched.

Why the number 3?:
Because it is a good whole number. No other reason.

This seems a little unclear still.
That's because it is. We want to encourage creativity, ingenuity and the sharing of stories to those ends. We're not here to direct so much as link. Inasmuch the only thing you need to be clear on is the determination to spend a Sunday worshipping with the aid of less non-renewable resources than usual.

Can You Give us a little hint/idea?
We're working on making a list. But for starters, keep these tips in mind:
Be creative.
Less is often more.
Keep it simple.
Don't try and save the world. Start with your postal code.

Can You Be more Specific?
Close your parking lot/encourage public transit.
Turn the heat off and spend the service in sweaters.
If you meet at night, leave the lights off and use candles instead.
Turn off the powerpoint and bring back the hymnal/print the evening's music on scrap paper and keep them for next time!

We're already dreadlocked, hemp-wearing and meeting outdoors.
Great. That's why we've got "er" in brackets after "Small." Put your creativity hats on and see what else you can tweak.

The Challenge

2007-02-13T15:30:00.000-08:00

1. Think of some creative ways to lessen your faith community's Sunday footprint.

2. Join with others across Canada/the World on _____ the ____ to put those ideas into practice

3. Share your stories (word of mouth, this blog, your blog , youtube, myspace, facebook)

4. Repeat as necessary