Earth Day 2012

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Immigration and Environmental Justice: Connecting the Dots

Earth Day 2012 update: Even though Earth Day 2012 has come and gone, UU Ministry for Earth hopes that this year's resources will continue to aid congregations in their justice making activities for years to come. Use this table of Earth Day activities from registered congregations across the nation to find ideas for future projects.

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Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations across the country are engaged with our denomination’s current Congregational Study/Action Issue (CSAI): Immigration as a Moral Issue. Climate change and environmental toxins disproportionately and unjustly impact the health and economic well-being of immigrants. Some environmentalists have even been leaders in anti-immigration movements (try Googling “immigration and environment”). As UUs, we are called to deeper understanding of these issues and to put our values into action.

For Earth Day 2012, UU Ministry for Earth (UUMFE) is asking congregations to connect the impacts that environmental issues and immigration have on each other and to commit to actions that will make our world more just. This year’s resources will help you in this effort. If your current environmental focus is elsewhere, we encourage you to use the materials for prior Earth Days, especially Earth Day 2010: Food and Environmental Justice or Earth Day 2011: Sacred Waters. The 2010 and 2011 tables of Earth Day activities from registered congregations contain hundreds of inspirational ideas for you to try.

This year's Call to Action at the intersection of immigration and environmental justice focuses on four main concerns – Health, Climate Change, Population/Scapegoating, and Border/Migration. Each section contains three parts – framing the issue, more information (web links and resources), and actions to help you get started. This web page will help you learn about environmental justice and immigration issues and plan your Earth Day actions.

Go to More Resources for books, films, and links to the extensive UUA resources on immigration. On the Congregational Stories page, you can read about what other congregations are already doing, and then learn how to engage your community through press and publicity for your Earth Day event on the Spread the Word page.

Launched in 2010 as the 40/40/40 Campaign to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, this year’s 40/40 for Earth Challenge is going back to its roots with the UUA Ethical Eating Core Team (now the President's Advisory Committee on Ethical Eating or PACE) as the 40/40/42 Campaign – 40 people in your congregation making 40-day commitments to environmental actions large and small in celebration of Earth Day 42. Additional information and materials are on the 40/40/42 website. (For action ideas from previous years, check out the Earth Day 2010:40/40/40 page on the UUA website or the 40/40 FAQs and Sample Actions from Earth Day 2011 on this website).

For your Earth Sunday service, you may find the following downloadable items useful:

Each year, UUMFE invites congregations to honor an Eco-Hero with a special certificate during an Earth Day service or other occasion. Your Eco-Hero is that dedicated, hard working person who has made a significant contribution to your church's Earth ministry this past year. We will publish the names of all Eco-Heroes, along with a one-sentence description of their work, on the UUMFE website. You may include the name and description with your Earth Day registration (registration closed).

We also invite you to nominate your Eco-Hero – or someone in your congregation who has done exemplary work not only in the congregation but also in the larger community – to be recognized as a Guardian of the Future by UU Ministry for Earth. Feel free to resubmit a past nominee. (Guardian of the Future nomination form)  

In addition to using these resources for Earth Day and beyond, we ask that you make your Earth Day service an opportunity to support the work of UU Ministry for Earth. Please include a special collection for UUMFE as a part of your worship service and promote membership in UUMFE. Our continuing service to UU congregations depends on the generous support of individual UUs and their congregations.

UUMFE developed this year's Earth Day resources in collaboration with the UUA, UU Service Committee, UU State Advocacy Networks, UU President's Advisory Committee on Ethical Eating, and UU Climate Change & Environmental Justice Action Coalition.

Happy Earth Day to our Earth Community from UU Ministry for Earth!