{"id":8161,"date":"2023-11-27T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-27T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mwc-cmm.org\/one-new-step-each-year\/"},"modified":"2024-12-09T17:18:54","modified_gmt":"2024-12-09T17:18:54","slug":"one-new-step-each-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mwc-cmm.org\/en\/stories\/one-new-step-each-year\/","title":{"rendered":"One new step each year"},"content":{"rendered":"

You are invited! Join us for Climate Pollinators, a webinar series on creation care. See below!<\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n

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On a map of Green Churches in the Netherlands, there is a green dot for the Mennonite congregation in Aalsmeer. Another dot represents Arboretumkerk (previously Doopsgezinde Gemeente Wageningen), located a province over. <\/p>\n

\u201cSix years ago, the church (in Aalsmeer) thought about (climate change) and said, \u2018we have to do something\u2019,\u201d said Leo Bakker, a member of the sustainability committee at Doopsgezinde Gemeente Aalsmeer. \u201cOne of the first things that we did was connected to a country-wide network of Green Churches.\u201d <\/p>\n

That network, Groene Kerken<\/em>, includes 410 churches throughout the Netherlands. \u201cIt\u2019s a wide network for all kinds of different churches from all denominations,\u201d says Leo Bakker. <\/p>\n

Jan Joost Kessler, who served on the sustainability working group at the Arboretumkerk in Wageningen, says joining the Green Church network was an important part of his church\u2019s climate change response as well. <\/p>\n

\u201cAt the entrance of our church we have a sign which is quite big that says we are a Green Church,\u201d Jan Joost Kessler says. \u201cSo it\u2019s easy to recognize us.\u201d <\/p>\n

The Green Church website provides a list of actions for churches to take. To join the network and apply for a sign, churches have to commit to taking one new step each year. <\/p>\n

The actions fall into six categories: creation and nature; faith and inspiration; energy and climate; handling of money; policy and approach; and conscious purchases. When a church completes an action in one of these categories, it receives a badge on the website. <\/p>\n

Steps taken by the Aalsmeer congregation include calculating the church\u2019s carbon footprint, switching to renewable energy sources, organizing education events, publishing a newsletter with sustainability tips, using non-toxic cleaning supplies and organizing \u201cgreen\u201d services every year. <\/p>\n

Arboretumkerk has improved the building\u2019s insulation, installed double-paned windows, committed to purchasing fair trade products and invested its money in responsible industries. <\/p>\n

Every two years, Green Churches in the Netherlands gather to connect and share stories. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very useful because there\u2019s a lot of exchange and learning and inspiration,\u201d says Jan Joost Kessler, who usually attends the events. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s the network\u2019s goal. <\/p>\n

\u201cGreen Churches are contagious to other churches,\u201d reads a statement on the website. \u201cThey lead the way in joyful, simple coexistence and pull others along with (them).\u201d <\/p>\n

\u2014Sierra Ross Richer is a member of Waterford Mennonite Church, Goshen, Indiana, USA. She is an intern with the Anabaptist Climate Collaborative (ACC).<\/a> This story from the ACC\u2019s Lent Climate Pollinator Series: Global Anabaptist Stories on Climate Change<\/a> is reprinted with permission.<\/em> <\/p>\n

Click here for recordings from previous webinars: <\/h4>\n