Diocese of Chichester

A new awards scheme, designed to help people better care for God’s creation, has just been launched. The scheme helps households look at seven areas of their life, to see where they are doing well, and give ideas for action to care for God's creation.

The scheme is based around a website (http://creationcare.org.uk) that households can use to see how they are doing at caring for creation in the areas of worship & prayer, home, garden, travel, food, possessions and community & global engagement.

Based on how they answer questions on each of these areas, households score points. If a household scores enough points in each of these areas, they reach bronze, silver or gold award level.

Churches can also register for the scheme, encouraging members to sign up and take action, and celebrating successes together. At St Paul’s Church, Dorking, which piloted the scheme, awards were presented during a Sunday service, and ‘through the keyhole’ videos were used to showcase some of the ways members were taking action to care for creation.

Bishop Ruth Bushyager, Bishop of Horsham, said: “As Christians we understand ourselves as stewards of the earth's resources and many of us have already made some changes to the way we live in the light of the climate crisis. But what next? This brilliant online audit helps us to assess the life of our households in ways that will inspire us with ideas and challenge us towards achievable next steps. It's great for if you live alone, with others, in a flat or a mansion. Together we can make a real difference."

A webinar introducing the scheme is being held on Thursday 10th December, 7.30pm, featuring talks from Bishop Ruth Bushyager (Bishop of Horsham), Revd Dave Bookless (Director of Theology, A Rocha International) and Annabelle South (St Paul’s Action on
Climate and the Environment). To register for the webinar, visit
https://bit.ly/creationcarewebinar