UCC Webinar: From a Toxic Media to a Toxic Environment

December 21, 2024 in Faith In Action

Media in our society can have a decisive influence on everything from elections to the quality of the very air we breathe. It can shape and inform the demands of a public and the political will of those in office. In short, a toxic media can lead to a toxic government and, literally, a toxic environment. This is evident in the influence that media conglomerates can have on matters as vital as the climate crisis.

In this webinar, our guest panelists will help us to understand our current media landscape, how it impacts the climate crisis, and what we can do about it. Our three panelists will include Allison Fisher from Media Matters for America, Elyse Martin from the Environmental Defense Fund, and Cheryl A. Leanza from UCC Media Justice.

Even if you cannot make the webinar at its scheduled time, still sign-up, and we will send you a link to a recording of it. Register today!

UCC Webinar: Churches as Climate Refuges in Times of Trouble

August 24, 2024 in Faith In Action

As the climate crisis leads to more extreme weather events, faith communities can play a vital role as places of refuge and resiliency. For example, a house of worship with solar panels, battery storage, air conditioning, and an air filtration system can provide a place for community members to come during heat waves, power outages, or unhealthy air quality days. Faith communities not only can serve as drop-in centers, but they can also serve as evacuation zones, emergency shelters, and resource hubs in times of trouble.

In this webinar, we will learn more about the cutting edge of how faith communities are embodying a love of neighbor in very tangible and needed ways. We will hear from those leading the way in their local communities to make this happen with the help of government funding.

Even if you cannot make it at its scheduled time on Wednesday, September 11th at 1 pm ET, still sign-up, and we will send you a recording. Register now!

UCC Webinar—You Can’t Stop Justice: A Dialogue between Rep. Justin Pearson and the Rev. Benjamin Chavis, Jr.

November 24, 2023 in Faith In Action

In this Giving Tuesday event, two prophetic leaders will join in an online conversation about the never-ending river of justice that extends from one generation to the next. The Rev. Dr. Benjamin Chavis, Jr. coined the phrase "environmental racism" and helped lead the struggle for environmental justice, while Rep. Justin Pearson went from leading a grassroots environmental justice organization to serving as a state representative who made headlines around the world for his courageous stand in calling for commonsense gun legislation.

Read more here.

Join us on November 28th at 12 pm ET (that’s 10 am AZ/NM/EP) to hear from these two leaders. Register today!

UCC Webinar—The Climate Strike Movement 5 Years Later

August 26, 2023 in Faith In Action

Five years have now passed from when Greta Thunberg and others launched a movement that reverberated around the world. The movement continues as organizers prepare for the March to End Fossil Fuels in New York City on September 17th.

This webinar will feature faith-based organizers and activists who will reflect back on the movement and where we are today. Speakers will include Rev. Jim Antal, Aly Tharp, and Gabriela Martinez.

Even if you cannot make the webinar at its scheduled time on September 13th at 1 pm ET, still sign-up, and we will send you a link to a recording of it.

Getting Ready for Earth Sunday - updates

April 08, 2023 in Faith In Action

Many churches celebrate God's creation on the Sunday closest to Earth Day (April 22nd). To support making the most of this occasion, Creation Justice Ministries has created a resource that brings the lens of justice to food, the most immediate and tangible way that we connect with the natural world around us.

Looking ahead:

On April 22nd, join the UCC's first Earth Day Summit featuring the Rev. Jim Antal and an array of uplifting panelists and presentations focused on the theme "What's Possible?: Earth Day Stories of Hope." Sign-up today for this free event!

On April 29th, the UCC will be launching an effort to collect as many petition postcards as possible to seek government action for cleaner air and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Sign-up to get updates on the Climate Hope Cards campaign and this launch event.

UCC Webinar—The Indigenous Land Back Movement

January 21, 2023 in Faith In Action

The Land Back Movement has been succinctly described as the generations long struggle to put “Indigenous lands back into Indigenous hands.” In this webinar, organizers and practitioners within the movement will place the struggle within the context of dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery and the ongoing work of reparatory justice.

Speakers will include Katerina Gea from the Coalition to Dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery, Angie Comeaux from Hummingbird Springs Farm, and Sarah Augustine who authored “The Land Is Not Empty: Following Jesus in Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery.”

Even if you cannot make the webinar at its scheduled time on February 8th at 1 pm ET, still sign up, and we will send a link to the recording. Register now!

UCC Webinar—What Is a Sustainable Economy?

January 07, 2023 in Faith In Action

Our present economic system is a train barreling toward increasing environmental disaster, but what would a sustainable economy look like? To answer this question from a place of faith and values entails prioritizing matters of equity, justice, and the common good. To help us cast an alternative vision for our economy, this webinar will feature Edith Rasell who recently authored the book, “The Way of Abundance: Economic Justice in Scripture and Society.”

The webinar will be on Wednesday, January 11th at 1 pm ET/12 pm CT/11 am MT/10 am PT/8 am HT. Register for this webinar to learn more!

UCC Webinar—The Midterms and Beyond: A Path for Climate Justice

November 19, 2022 in Faith In Action

In this webinar, we will discuss the results of the midterms with an eye to what is possible for climate justice in 2023 and beyond. A full discussion of the midterms entails more than looking at a final scorecard of congressional contests. It entails assessing the power of young voters and voters who care about the climate crisis. It entails tracking the successes of state ballot initiatives. It entails bringing a lens of justice to the issues faced today. This webinar will equip faith-rooted advocates for advancing climate justice in the coming year. The webinar will be on Wednesday, December 14th at 1 pm ET/12 pm CT/11 am MT/10 am PT/8 am HT. Register for this webinar to learn more!

UCC Webinar—Restoring Nature: What People of Faith Can Do to Heal the Earth

February 26, 2022 in Faith In Action

Douglas Tallamy’s books have awakened thousands to the problem of wildlife decline and the solution that resides in habitat restoration. This is a solution of which you and your faith community can be a part. The solution can be as close as your backyard or the property surrounding your place of worship.

UCC Webinar—Movement Lessons: The First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit 30 Years Later

September 13, 2021 in Faith In Action

Wednesday, October 13, 10 am AZ/11 am NM&EP

One of the best resources of the environmental justice movement today is its own history. Leading scholars in the field of environmental justice have described the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit as one of the most significant events in the movement's history. It was an event hosted and organized by the UCC’s Commission for Racial Justice. In 1991, this summit literally re-defined the word “environment."