Springstein Mennonite Church Carbon Sequestering and Community Building Initiatives!

• Springstein Mennonite Church has been getting active about climate change. We participated in two learning and discussion groups hosted by Sandy Plett and through this, we have started some actions.
  
  
• One action we are taking is putting a note in the bulletin each week that brings awareness to the climate crisis, educates us about it and gives ideas of things we can do to help move toward a cleaner, greener future.
  
  
• A second action we have begun work on is reimagining how we use and care for the property the church building is on. We have a lot of lawn for mowing, and we thought we can do something more with the space we occupy. So we came up with a plan to include a prayer labyrinth in the lawn and to plant a “forest” of trees on a large part of the property. We hope this project will not only help sequester carbon from the atmosphere but give people in the congregation a tangible climate action, as well as a place for the church and the Springstein community to connect with creation, learn about the climate crisis and get involved in building a greener future. It is visioned to be a place of healing, education, and hope.
  
  
• Our vision is to have a small forest with trails and benches. There will be signs throughout to educate about the climate crisis and how we can reconcile with our neighbours, both human and non-human and the creation that sustains us all. We have started by cutting the labyrinth into the lawn and inviting the community to enjoy and use it. Our next step will be preparing the site for planting trees and securing funding for our future forest. (Contributed by Carla Bergen Joyce)