GWIPL Newsletter: May 2007

IN THIS ISSUE
News
Upcoming Events

Join the Cool Capital Challenge
Last October, over 180 congregations in the greater Washington, DC, area participated in showing Al Gore’s Academy award winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth to record audiences, 30-300 people.

Imagine what would happen if everyone who saw An Inconvenient Truth took action to stop global warming?

By joining the Cool Capital Challenge you can see the impact of your cooling actions, while encouraging and supporting your community to do the same. The Challenge’s goal is to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions by 1 billion pounds in the capital region by Earth Day 2008. This is the equivalent of taking 800,000 cars off the road.

Here is how it works:
1. Sign-up for the Challenge at http://www.coolcapitalchallenge.org/ and register to be on your congregation’s team.
2. Have your bills ready and fill in basic information about your natural gas, electricity, and transportation use.
3. Start making pledges to cool the planet. It will include the amount of money and carbon dioxide you are saving through these actions during the year.
4. Talk about it and support each other within your congregation to make these changes.

Congregational communities that reduce the most CO2 will receive special recognition. To help make this a congregational activity we can provide you with brochures, sign up sheets, newsletter announcements, and even speakers. For more information, please contact Allison at Allison@gwipl.org or 202-885-8684.

Join the cool challenge community and help protect creation today!

Local Buying Guide
Did you know that the average meal travels some 15,000 miles from the farm to your plate? Have you heard of buying locally but you don’t know where to start? Our friends at Center for a New American Dream have put together this first addition of a local buying guide to help you start. Download the Guide: http://www.newdream.org/buyingwisely/DC_Local_Buying_Guide.pdf

This guide is a great resource, and contains information to include in your congregation’s newsletters about going green and saving the planet. At Center for a New American Dream, they are currently working to get more businesses involved in our region. If you would like to help please contact Julia Slocum at 301-891-3683 or Julia@newdream.org

Tired of using those toxic foam cups at events?
Thanks to our Unitarian Universalist friends, GWIPL congregations now have access to a special 5% discount to the Green Line Paper company. The Green Line Paper company offers 100% post consumer recycled office paper, non-toxic cleaning products, sugar cane waste fiber paper cups, and many other environmentally friendly paper products. Please contact Allison at Allison@gwipl.org or 202-885-8684 for more information and the special discount code. Visit Green Line’s website at http://www.greenlinepaper.com/

NEWS

Step It Up! On April 14, 2007, 1400 actions across the nation in all 50 states united in a single call to action: "Step It Up Congress: Cut Carbon 80% by 2050." At the action on the National Mall, GWIPL and our congregational leaders presented prayers for the earth. The prayers were read in Hebrew by Joelle Novey of Tikkun Leil Shabbat (Washington, DC), in English by Florence Heacock of Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church (Bethesda, MD), and in Arabic by Amr Desouky of the All Dulles Area Muslim Society (Dulles, VA). Thank you to everyone who was there and continue the good work!
Earth Day a Success We hope everyone had a very nice earth day. This year over 20 congregations in the GWIPL network participated in our “Global Warming on the Pulpit.” In their congregations, members listened to sermons about global warming, sold CFL light bulbs, and even served local food at coffee hour.
As a part of Days of Interfaith Youth Service with the InterFaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington and Earth Day Network, GWIPL helped to improve the energy efficiency of a home for a low-income family. We installed CFL light bulbs, which will save over $400 over the lifetime of the products, and caulked the doors and windows, which will help to prevent drafts. Thank you to everyone who participated and may we have even more to celebrate next Earth Day.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Are you confused about clean energy? Have year heard that it could be THE answer to stopping global warming? Do you want to know what more you can do to be a part of the solution?

Please join us as Susan Kirby of the Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection will answer all of your questions, and explain Montgomery County’s Clean Energy Rewards program, which allows you to buy clean energy at 30-40% reduced prices. Bring your energy bills and get ready to take action right at the workshops.

This event will be at 2 convenient locations and times. Both will be opened to the public so come and bring friends.

Thursday, May 17, 7:00pm at Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church, 8011 Old Georgetown Road, Bethesda, MD 20814. Corner of Glenbrook - 8 blocks from Bethesda Metro.

Wednesday, May 23, 7:30pm at Unitarian Universalist Church of Silver Spring, 10309 New Hampshire Ave, Silver Spring, MD 20903.

Go to the GWIPL Event Calendar

Support GWIPL today
You can make a secure online donation at http://www.gwipl.org/support_us.asp. Every dollar helps us to protect creation.

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