Thank you to the Climate Stewards for the information below and their Lenten challenges for 2023. Sign up to receive emails from them through Lent: https://www.climatestewards.org/resources/carbon-fast/

This week’s challenge and prayer is quoted from their email below:

Week 4 Challenge: Fast from cheese, chocolate and coffee

We’ve completed two Carbon Fast challenges! This week is another hard one – sacrificing those high-carbon treats we love. 

You might be surprised to learn that kg for kg, the total supply chain carbon footprint of cheese, chocolate, and coffee are all higher than pork or chicken. According to a recent study, dark chocolate is second only to beef in total supply chain emissions per unit of weight! [Supply chain emissions include everything from land use change, transport, processing and packaging.] 

The Challenge: Fast from one or more of the delicious and satisfying treats that we often take for granted: cheese, chocolate, and coffee. If cutting out coffee completely is not feasible, reduce consumption to one cup a day.

Why? Two reasons: one, as stated above, the carbon footprint of cheese, coffee, and especially chocolate is significant. Secondly, climate change is having a significant impact on the coffee industry. Coffee trees are sensitive to temperature and precipitation changes. By 2050, half of land currently used for growing coffee is predicted to be unsuitable for production. Read more in this article.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we pray for those experiencing famine and food insecurity due to extreme weather events which are exacerbated by climate change; droughts, floods, and hurricanes which damage crops, livestock, and livelihoods. We pray you will continue to provide as you do for the lilies of the field, as you promise in Scripture. 

Thank you for your provision and generosity in our lives. We pray for all those working to use sustainable, organic methods of farming. We ask that you to inspire continued solutions and innovation in agroforestry and conservation agriculture and allow that knowledge to spread throughout the Earth so that we can sustainably provide for everyone.
Amen.

The Carbon Fast for Lent was created and is run by Climate Stewards.

Thank you to the Climate Stewards for the information below and their Lenten challenges for 2023. Sign up to receive emails from them through Lent: https://www.climatestewards.org/resources/carbon-fast/

This week’s challenge and prayer is quoted from their email below:

Week 3: Fast from meat or dairy

Well done for completing the first Carbon Fast challenge! How did you find it? Comment below.

This week we dive into a challenge which may be familiar to many of us: reducing meat consumption for the health of the planet.

The Challenge: Fast from meat and fish. If you are already a vegetarian, fast from dairy products this week. If you are vegan, choose a favourite sweet treat to fast from this week.
Choose delicious but basic meals, such as rice and beans with vegetables, dhal with naan or roti, vegetarian lasagne, or vegetable curry. Need a few recipe ideas? Check out BBC Good Food and Veganuary for easy recipes and inspiration. (Note: if you have health conditions or concerns, talk with your GP before changing your diet).

Why? Globally, livestock production accounts for 15% of all carbon emissions. We all need to eat much less meat and fish, and ensure that what we do eat is produced in a sustainable way. What we eat matters, and generally what is good for us is good for the planet. Beef is particularly bad; read more in this article.This is a complex issue and it’s important to point out that the carbon footprint of our food depends on how and where it is produced. The graphic above shows the ranges of carbon emissions for different foods.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank you that we have more than enough to eat, and for the pleasure that eating brings. Help us to consider carefully the impact of our food choices on the planet.  We pray for those near and far who are in food poverty, and for farmers and families around the world where climate change is causing floods, droughts and reducing yields. Give us wisdom and restraint as we seek to live more simply so that others may simply live.  
Amen. 

The Carbon Fast for Lent was created and is run by Climate Stewards.

Thank you to the Climate Stewards for the information below and their Lenten challenges for 2023. Sign up to receive emails from them through Lent: https://www.climatestewards.org/resources/carbon-fast/

This week’s challenge and prayer is quoted from their email below:

Week 2: Fast from consumerism

We’ve completed one short week and fasted from consumerism. 

This week, we continue the challenge of “Buying Nothing”!

The Challenge: Until 4th March, buy nothing unless you truly need it. Exceptions include food and necessities like toothpaste. 

Climate Stewards’ board chair, David, is doing the Carbon Fast along with us and says this: 

“As we get older I find I have done most of my consuming! I did my flying around when we didn’t realise how bad it was for the planet. I have now accumulated most of the things I want and find I am trying to dispose of a lot of stuff. In fact it gets quite difficult to think of something I would like for a birthday present. I think one of the biggest challenges is letting go of the accumulated wealth and “stuff” of a lifetime lived in a secure and prosperous country. Jesus tells us not store things up that are perishable but the challenge is to dispose of it in ways that are constructive and responsible. Rather than just throwing stuff “away” (there is no “away”) we need to take time to repurpose, recycle or just find a new owner for the accumulated possessions of a lifetime. So for those of us who have already acquired a lot, the challenge this week is to get rid of it responsibly. Time to go and rummage in the storeroom, garage, loft!”

If, like David, you find yourself thinking you already have enough (or too much) stuff, look at what you already own; can you find a new use or a new owner for it?

Why? Buying nothing for two weeks can open our eyes to how accustomed we are to fast fashion, next-day delivery, and the endless ways to consume material goods. Our collective societal appetite for new things drives wasteful practices and significantly contributes to climate change. Jesus was someone who lived with few possessions, focussing instead on receiving his joy and pleasure from God and community. Together, let’s turn our focus to gratitude for what we already have, while reducing our carbon emissions. Read more in this National Geographic article.  

Prayer

Dear Lord, thank you for your creativity, and for the vastness and complexity displayed in creation. We pray that you would renew our minds and reshape our hearts to care for the earth that you have so graciously and lovingly made. We confess we have failed as stewards of creation. We pray you would help us protect the ocean from further harm and restore what we have damaged. Bring innovative ideas to our minds to help creation heal and shift our focus from self-centeredness to the fruitfulness of all creation. Amen.

The Carbon Fast for Lent was created and is run by Climate Stewards.