Green Sanctuaries Booming! (Earth, church)

[Green Gaia]

http://www.uuministryforearth.org/cg....cgi?record=15

Green Sanctuaries Booming!

In addition to the growth in actual candidates and new Green Sanctuaries, 141 Green Sanctuary manuals have been purchased since June of 2006. Please email UU Ministry for Earth at office@uuministryforearth, if you need help in making YOUR congregation a Green Sanctuary.

[lilithu]

Originally Posted by Green Gaia

http://www.uuministryforearth.org/cg....cgi?record=15

Green Sanctuaries Booming!

In addition to the growth in actual candidates and new Green Sanctuaries, 141 Green Sanctuary manuals have been purchased since June of 2006. Please email UU Ministry for Earth at office@uuministryforearth, if you need help in making YOUR congregation a Green Sanctuary.

Yup, we are hoping to be certified this year. Kinda embarrassing that we're not already.

[Green Gaia]

Originally Posted by lilithu

Yup, we are hoping to be certified this year. Kinda embarrassing that we're not already.

We're working on it too. I wish I could be more involved with the GS committee, hopefully I will be able to this summer.

Oh, and we're starting a community gardern, I'm so excited!!

[applewuud]

The green sanctuary movement is great, but the practical issues of insulating and heating/cooling our church buildings are overwhelming, especially in the Northeast. I'm a member of a UU church built in 1894, a beautiful place with high ceilings, stained glass, and stone walls several feet thick. Heating in the winter is a major congregational expense (7,000 gallons of oil), so we've started to retrofit the building...covering the stained glass with plastic storm windows, replacing old electrical wiring so insulation can be blown in (where it can be), and getting more efficient boilers. We're even thinking of putting solar hot water collectors on top of our bell tower. But I can tell you, from a building committee standpoint, the investment of time and money seems overwhelming at times. In these antique buildings, there are all kinds of difficult details...every insulation has to be custom-built.

My goal is to cut energy use to 20% of 20th-century levels, but that's going to be difficult.