Earth Day 2010
What food choices can Unitarian Universalists make to build a planet that is both sustainable and just?
If you walk into an average supermarket these days, you’ll find thousands of choices of things to eat. Some things may be grown or produced in low-impact ways at a nearby farm, but chances are that many items for sale contain ingredients whose production has negatively impacted the Earth and her people. As Unitarian Universalists, we are committed to living in ways that respect the inherent worth and dignity of all people as well as the interdependent web of life of which we are a part. With so many choices, how can we find ways to eat ethically?
Fortunately, people all over the United States are thinking about just this right now. Several best-selling books have been written about authors’ deliberations about what to eat, and UU congregations have been engaging in the current Congregational Study/Action Issue, "Ethical Eating: Food and Environmental Justice." For the 40th anniversary of Earth Day this year, UU Ministry For Earth (UUMFE) is asking members of all congregations to think about what they eat and what food choices are available to those in their communities. While Earth Day is on Thursday, April 22, we encourage congregations to celebrate this special anniversary any time during that week or the weekend before or after. Check out the Earth Day Network website to see how the 40th anniversary is being celebrated around the world.
It's not too late to send us photos; and tell us about your Earth Day events and services. We will feature stories about Earth Day on the UUMFE website and in upcoming newsletters, as well as on the UUA’s website and the Inspired Faith, Effective Action blog. Many congregations shared their Earth Day plans with UUMFE. Here is the latest list of events.
We hope you find the following resources inspiring and helpful in finding ways you can celebrate the abundance of our planet in a just way.
A Call to Action for Ethical Eating – includes extensive resources and suggested actions for bringing your food ministry beyond church walls, developed in collaboration with the UUA, UU Service Committee, the Ethical Eating Core Team, Slow Food USA, and Food and Water, on these topics:
- Ethical Eating Resource Guide
- Ethical Eating Worship Supplement
- Local Considerations
- Labor
- Organics
- Slow Food
- Still Hungry for More Information?
In addition you can read about what other congregations are already doing and learn to engage your community through press and publicity for your Earth Day event.
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Certificate to Honor your Congregational Eco-Hero, with a choice of four beautiful background photos
– Version 1 (PDF 1.2 MB)
– Version 2 (PDF 1.3 MB)
– Version 3 (PDF 1.2 MB)
– Version 4 (PDF 1.2 MB) - Form to nominate your congregational Eco-Hero for the 2010 UUMFE Guardian of the Future Award to be presented at UUA General Assembly in Minneapolis this summer.
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Order of Service cover
– Letter size, color (PDF 948 KB)
– Letter size, grayscale (PDF 344 KB)
– Legal size, color (PDF 1.5 MB)
– Legal size, grayscale (PDF 416 KB) - Order of Service insert with UUMFE and membership information (print two sided and cut in half); may also be used as a handout at your program table.
- Nine Educational Posters on Environmental Justice and UUMFE from Earth Day 2009.
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 service and promote membership in UUMFE. Our continuing service to UU congregations is dependent on the generous support of individual UUs and their congregations.