Sixteen grants, totaling $123,910, have been awarded in the second round of grantmaking managed by the Advisory Council for the Stewardship of Creation and approved by the Episcopal Church Executive Council at its June meeting.

Grants were awarded to:

• Diocese of Delaware to begin a four-phase program of evaluating all churches in the diocese’s energy use and help with formation conversations around energy stewardship. This will be a model program for other dioceses:  $2,225.     

• St. Michael’s and All Angels, Issaquah, WA (Diocese of Olympia), to fund rain garden with a year-long theological educational program on water.  Liturgical materials to be prepared for sharing with the wider church:  $10,000

• Emmanuel Church, Newport, RI (Diocese of Rhode Island), to support hydroponic gardening with children; food to go to local pantry with important focus on developing meditation and worship materials to deepen reflection on God’s creation:  10,000.

• St. John’s, Stamford, CT (Diocese of Connecticut), to fund a reforestation program with the Parish of the Good Samaritan in Grose Morne, Haiti and will include a video which will be used with the re-planting program and formation within the community:  $10,000.

• Community of St. Brigid at the Church of Good Shepherd, St. Louis, MO (Diocese of Missouri).  Farm church program with strong focus on formation around justice, creation care and food security in a committed faith community. Educational materials to be shared:  $8,500.

• Cultivate, The Episcopal Food Network, applied churchwide through the Diocese of New York.  Development of a website, congregational resources for gardening, and liturgical materials for broad distribution around the church:  $10,000.

• Church of the Nativity, Raleigh, NC (Diocese of North Carolina), to support and develop low-carbon farming by building a network of interested stakeholders, hosting a farm summit. Program will include development of a white paper to cover theological and practical aspects of low-carbon farming to be distributed throughout the church:  $10,000.

• Support for the initial work at Bellwether Farm (Diocese of Ohio) consisting of formation materials and other educational resources which would be models for other communities seeking to institute similar programs.   Bellwether Farm is the new diocesan camp, retreat, and education center that will feature a working, sustainable farm:  $10,000.

• Support for the Rock Point Program (Diocese of Vermont) to develop bee pollinators in the area of an existing solar farm.  Includes a strong program to introduce people of faith and visitors to the concepts of creation care as well as a robust communication strategy which would be a model for other communities:  $10,000.

• St. Columba Conference and Retreat Center, Memphis, TN (Diocese of West Tennessee).  This collaborative program between the Center and Thistle & Bee will develop and expand a bee pollinator program and educate visiting groups about the theological and practical need for supporting bee pollination:  $9,765.

• St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Jamestown. NY (Diocese of Western New York).  As part of a town-wide green event, the church will offer educational information and materials to the community about creation care as a theological effort and eco-justice advocacy as a faith-based initiative:  $3,000.7000

• Kivalina Epiphany Church, Kivalina, AK (Diocese of Alaska).  Program to fund a pilgrimage from Kivalina to engage with Episcopalians in the Dioceses of Olympia, Oregon, and California. Through presentations at churches, home-stays and small group conversations, will build awareness of climate justice. This will be the beginning of developing relationships to foster a shared sense of mutuality and care for God’s creation.  Videos of presentations will be developed:  $8,000.

• Catedral de San Pablo (Diocese of Colombia), to build a partition wall and plant native plants to alleviate pollution in the area around the Cathedral. Project will also include an educational and formation program on greenhouse gas emission engaging the local community and the cathedral’s congregation:  $4,250.

• Grace Church, North Garden, VA (Diocese of Virginia), for a two-day conference entitled Exploring Bioregional Spirituality in the Rivanna River Watershed.  Papers and outcomes for learnings will be shared with the wider-church:  $8,000.

• Diocese of California – This program will help fund a conference on Eco-justice: Safeguarding Climate, Food and Water to engage the diocese and larger community in the intersection of these issues; will provide support for honorarium and logistics for the conference:  $3,500.

• Church Divinity School of the Pacific (Diocese of California). Grant funds to develop an intensive immersion class on climate justice and form a regional network to connect the students who are participants in the program:  $6,670.       

The Advisory Council was created by General Convention 2015, enabled by Resolution A030, and charged with the responsibility to develop a grant process to support local ecologically responsible stewardship of church-related properties and buildings.

Thirty-nine applications were received in this round. Applicants whose requests were not funded are eligible to revise and re-submit their requests in the third round of funding, which is open now.

Further information regarding this grant process and how to submit an application is available here.

Members of the Advisory Council for the Stewardship of Creation are: Bishop Marc Andrus, Co-Chair, Diocese of California; the Rev. Stephanie Johnson, Co-Chair, Diocese of Connecticut; Paul Anton, Diocese of Minnesota; the Rev. Jerry Cappel, Diocese of Kentucky; the Rev. Patrick Funston, Diocese of Kansas; the Rev. Luis Alberto Garcia Correa, Diocese of  Dominican Republic; the Rev. Esther Georges, Diocese of the Virgin Islands; Julia Harris, Diocese of Oklahoma and Liaison of Executive Council; Perry Hodgkins Jones, Diocese of Atlanta; the Rev. Martha Kirkpatrick, Diocese of Delaware; the Rev. Nurya Love Parish, Diocese of Western Michigan; Kelly Phelan, Diocese of Los Angeles; Peter Sergienko, Diocese of Oregon; Dr. Andrew Thompson, Diocese of  East Tennessee; Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, Ex Officio; President of the House of Deputies the Rev. Gay Clark Jennings, Ex Officio; the Rev. Melanie Mullen, staff liaison