St Peter’s Church, Lodsworth

St Mary’s Church, Easebourne

St James’ Church, Selham

‘in FAITH we FOLLOW + in HOPE we LIVE + in LOVE we SERVE’

Eco Church - Net Zero Carbon 2030

ECO TIPS for March 2025

02-03-25

Take time to reconnect with God and creation during Lent

Delve deeper into the Bible to see how we are not apart from creation but a part of it. There are lots of excellent resources to support you, including a new booklet, ‘The Whole Easter Story: why the cross is good news for all creation'. This new resource for Lent 2025 invites us to explore the broader impact of the Easter story for all of creation through Bible readings, reflections, and stories from A Rocha’s global conservation efforts:  www.arocha.org.uk/the-whole-easter-story  

For more practical ways to enjoy, nurture and defend nature, sign up to A Rocha UK’s Wild Christian email: arocha.org.uk/wild-christian    

09-03-25

Lent Week 1 - What a shower!

Most of us know that taking a shower instead of a bath uses less water and saves on hot water costs. Cutting your daily shower from 8 to 4 minutes saves around 36 litres of water. Adding a low-flow shower head could cut your water usage by 50% while retaining the pressure - look for one with a flow rate of less than 7 litres a minute. The Energy Saving Trust estimates that the average UK home could reduce annual energy bills by £60 by using these measures, plus a further £75 if your water is metered. https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/blog

16-03-25

Lent Week 2 – Celebrate Spring!

Immerse yourself in the sights and sounds of the season – breathe in the fragrance of blossoms, observe budding catkins, note different bird songs, spot footprints, identify spring flowers etc. Nature can boost our happiness, so spend time in your garden, on your balcony, and in local green spaces. Dedicate quality time to appreciate creation’s beauty and thank God for the hope that spring can bring.

23-03-25

Lent Week 3 - Use your LOAF!

The food we buy and consume contributes to our carbon footprint so use your LOAF and, where possible, try to buy food that is:

L  - Locally produced
O - Organic
A - Animal friendly
F - Fairtrade

30-03-25

Lent Week 4 - Mothering Sunday

Whose mum doesn’t like a bunch of flowers on Mother’s Day? For more eco or ethical options look for seasonal British grown, Fairtrade or organic flowers with plastic free, sustainable packaging. A flowering potted plant, rather cut flowers, would last longer and capture carbon therefore reducing impact especially if grown at a local nursery rather than from supermarkets that may well import flowers and plants from abroad.

For the Church of England, being ‘Net Zero Carbon 2030’ means that the carbon emissions of our buildings and travel will be reduced to less than 10% of our baseline levels. The remaining emissions will be offset in verified schemes that reduce carbon. That means overall, our buildings and travel will not contribute to rising carbon emissions: their contribution will be ‘net zero’. Responding to the climate crisis is an essential part of our responsibility to safeguard God’s creation and achieve a just world. The short animated video on the right highlights many of the steps that churches can take to achieve ‘Net Zero Carbon 2030’.

The Priory Churches journey towards Net Zero Carbon

    Actions completed so far (updated February 2025):

• Energy Footprint Tool completed for all Priory Churches.  St Mary’s 8.4 tonnes gross of CO2 produced, 87% of emission from gas
• Creation of Priory Churches Net Zero Carbon forum: meetings so far Oct 24 and Feb 25
• Reduce boiler burn at St Mary’s by 20% a week and maximum temperature reduced to 18C
• Attend Portsmouth Cathedral Net Zero Carbon conference (18 January 2025)
• Replace lightbulbs with LEDs: completed at St James’ and St Mary’s
• Energy champion to monitor bills and ensure switch off of equipment when not in use. (Phil Stringer)
• At St Mary’s, reduce use of east door and encourage use of main north door: reduces heat loss from draughts
• Net Zero information on the weekly church bulletin

A Rocha UK’s Eco Church scheme has made significant progress in encouraging local churches to care for creation as a core tenet of faith and to integrate this across every aspect of church life. It has played a significant role in enabling congregations across all denominations to embrace the responsibility of creation care and to see it as an expression of love for God and others, including the natural world.

A Rocha UK’s approach to Eco Church is one of facilitating the movement, encouraging a learning community, and ensuring that the programme behind it is dynamic, continuously developing to keep up with the science and options for action.

You can find out more from their website: https://arocha.org.uk

Climate Change - the facts - Sir David Attenborough

BBC documentary