Faith and the environment The Diocese of Lincoln is actively involved in a range of ways to protect and enhance the environment, which we believe is both an imperative and a responsibility given to us by God. As individuals, we are encouraged to adopt creation care as part of our everyday faith. As a corporate church, parishes are encouraged to embed creation care, supported by a network of deanery environmental champions. Parishes are supported and resourced in reviewing and enriching their environmental responses through the work of the diocesan offices and by building it into the strategic decisions of the diocese. Diocesan environment policy: Our vision for the Diocese of Lincoln is a healthy, vibrant and sustainable church transforming lives in greater Lincolnshire. Environmentally, this has implications for us as individual Christians, each of our churches and as a diocese together, becoming a place where: Every aspect of the diocese’s ministry and mission, including our worship, training, assets, churches, churchyards, schools and glebe lands, contribute to the well-being of creation through our stewardship of land, biodiversity, water, air quality, materials, resources and people Carbon emissions produced through the activity of the Diocese of Lincoln are reduced to net zero by 2030 in line with the motion agreed at General Synod in February 2020, using the Church of England’s ‘Energy Footprint Tool’ as a measure for churches. Diverse ecologies and habitats of all living creatures thrive, aiming that in the future Lincolnshire and its neighbouring seas will be richer in biodiversity Partnership working builds resilient communities able to respond well together to situations of environmental crisis. Our vision contributes to our diocesan mission through: Faithful worship adopting the whole-life activity of glorifying God our Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer supported through liturgy, teaching, training, worship, resourcesConfident discipleship inspired by Christ’s redeeming love for the whole of creation through building confidence and maturity in our Christian environmental stewardship and in our cherishing of all creationJoyful service bringing nearer the Kingdom of God through individuals, partnerships, parishes and as a diocese by engaging in our local contexts and acting as global partners in God’s mission in the flourishing of life in all its fullness. You can download the full policy at Diocese of Lincoln – Environmental Policy updated 2020 The Diocesan Advisory Committee has produced a wide-ranging document of how you might make your churches and churchyards more environmentally friendly, many fairly straightforward and at minimal cost. Why not download it and see what you might be able to do? Eco Diocese and Eco Church: The Diocese of Lincoln has committed to becoming an Eco Diocese and actively supports churches to sign up to A Rocha's Eco Church as a toolkit for change. To support our creation care below are some links and resources: Worship: Host a 'Climate Sunday' service - sample 'Climate Sunday' Liturgy and readings supplied by Revd Annabel Barber. Might you take part in Churches Count on Nature? This will run between 5-13 June 2021 and is a citizen-science event covering churchyards across the England and Wales. The project will see communities and visitors making a note of the animals, birds, insects, or fungi in their local churchyard. Their data will then be collated on the National Biodiversity Network. It is being jointly run by the conservation charities Caring for God’s Acre, A Rocha UK, the Church of England, and the Church in Wales. The week is open to anyone with a love of nature and churches are being encouraged to link with local schools, local wildlife groups, and those who may not have visited before to discover churchyards. It is thought church land, often uniquely unploughed and undeveloped, could be a habitat for precious and endangered plants and other wildlife. During Covid-19 restrictions, churchyards have offered a quiet space for communities particularly in urban areas. Environmental action in the parishes We regularly collect stories of environmental action in the parishes and these regularly appear on our website. A selection of these are available at Diocese of Lincoln – Environmental stories from around the diocese We also have a group of people who are actively engaged with environmental issues and are available to help and advise on many aspects of care for the environment, and in the work around the Church of England’s ‘Energy Foot-printing Tool' launched in April 2020. If you would like to know more, please contact Sarah Spencer, Diocesan Environmental Officer by email or by calling 07454 541061. Moana: Water of Life. Navigating Climate Change for Planetary Health In 2019, the Diocese of Lincoln jointly hosted a conference with the University of Lincoln. Entitled Moana: Water of life, Navigating Climate Change for Planetary Health, it explored the key role of water in the challenge of climate change from a scientific perspective and also from a Christian faith perspective. The conference talks were recorded and are available on YouTube Moana Water of Life Climate Conference, Lincoln UK here. In 2020, a book that serves as a record of the conference and which also seeks to provide further inspiration for individuals and faith communities, was published. Further details on Science, Faith and the Climate Crisis may be found here.