ATTENDEES

Tom & Kathryn Cullen, Judy McAdam, Margaret Harper, Kathy Salisbury, Rosalie & John Cowan, Sue & Rob Metcalf, Sheila Corkill, Ursula O’Brien, Anne Snobelen, Jan & Gary Schlee, Zen & Mike Skibinski, Marion & Wilf Boyce, Eleanor & Peter Heinz, Judy Grout, Carolyn Deeth, Anne Barber, Carol Coiffe & Bev Camp, Pat Deacon, Terry Doran, David Lander.  (Please let me know if I missed anyone!)

 

AGENDA

Start

Finish

 

12:00

12:20

Lunch

12:20

12:25

Recap:  The Fairlawn Green VISION

12:25

12:40

The PROCESS for implementing the Green Action Items

12:40

1:10

Follow the Process: In a breakout group for each of the 6 Action Areas, considering the following:

- Brainstorm ACTION ITEMS within your Green Action Area (building on ideas from Feb 25th)

     - Select ONE Green Action Item  (ensure it supports the Green VISION)

     - Describe the OBJECTIVE for your Green Action Item

     - Begin to plan the STEPS required to successfully achieve your Objective

     - Describe the SUSTAINMENT plan to ensure ongoing support for the Action Item

     - Next steps: IMPLEMENT after approval from FAUC.  Then Celebrate and Repeat!

1:10

1:25

Present your chosen Action Item and Objective to the group

1:25

1:30

How the Green Team can assist

Your next meeting / next steps

 

VISION for FAUC Green Activities

Fairlawn will be a green community that leads by example, and becomes a voice to educate ourselves and others in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions at church, at home, in the community and in our workplaces

 

ACTION AREAS

Work on one of the following action areas:

1.  Property improvements / LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)

2.  Gardening

3.  Buying locally-grown food

4.  Communications, promotion to educate and create excitement

5.  Waste - R R R (reduce, reuse, recycle)

6.  Advocacy and Activism

 

MARCH 25TH WORKSHOP GOAL:

Determine one ACTION ITEM from within your Action Area, write an OBJECTIVE STATEMENT and begin to plan the STEPS to successfully complete the Action before the start of summer.

 

Select an ACTION ITEM

Brainstorm and document a list of possible action items, considering ideas from Feb. 25th.

Select one action item that is within your control to complete by June 9th!

 

The Action Items were chosen because they fit the VISION for FAUC Green Activities

(1) – Lead by example: Our church can be a role model for other churches, for our congregation, and for the community by implementing in the church premises as well as recommending greening actions at home.

(2) – Educate: We will notify the congregation and the neighbouring community of our activities and encourage households to follow suit.

(3) – Reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions: CFLs provide 75% to 80% reduction in energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions, and last 10 to 20 times longer than incandescent bulbs.  Using less water means less energy to treat and move the water.  Buying locally grown food decreases use of fossil fuels for transportation.  Communicating our learnings will help others implement green actions and reduce GHG in their homes and/or workplaces.  Recycling reduces the need to create new products; composting eliminates “garbage” completely and produces a useful product to replace purchased garden fertilizers.  Letter writing campaigns help influence governments to have the political will to implement green legislation to reduce GHG.

(4) – Area of focus: one or more of the following: (a) Fairlawn Avenue United Church facility, (b) home, (c) community, (d) workplace. 

 


 

Action Area

Action Item

Team

Property improvements

INSTALL COMPACT FLUORESCENT LIGHTBULBS (CFLs) in the church by May 30th for fixtures that don’t require modification -- with the help of the custodians -- in a variety of locations to be determined.  An inventory of CFLs will be made available in future, and a variety of fixtures will be tested in certain areas such as the sanctuary. 

 

Educate the congregation and the neighbourhood as to the wisdom of using CFLs.

 

John Cowan

Mike Skibinski

Sheila Corkill

 

Gardening

USE LESS WATER ON OUR GARDENS by composting and mulching with three carloads of mulch and at least 12 volunteers for work on the church gardens (excluding the Neighbourhood Centre gardens) on May 7th from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm by spreading compost first, then 2 inches of mulch.  Then encourage individuals or groups in the church to “adopt a garden” for maintenance of the gardens on an ongoing basis.

Rob Metcalf

Sue Metcalf

Peter Heinz

Carolyn Deeth

Judy McAdam Anne Barber

Jan Schlee

 

Buying locally-grown food

BUY LOCALLY-GROWN FOOD by first educating ourselves, then educating the congregation and facilitating partnerships with local farmers for weekly delivery of food baskets of seasonal produce to interested consumers in the congregation, and advocating that grocery stores stock more local foods.

 

Kathy Salisbury

Ursula O’Brien

Marion Boyce

Rosalie Cowan

Judy Grout

Pat Deacon

 

Communications …

CREATE A “FAIRLAWN GREEN ACTION” LOGO before the end of April to represent our greening program that is recognizable in the community and can appear on our church sign, in our web site, and on all printed communications.

 

SHARE THE GREEN RESOURCE LIBRARY COLLECTION by bringing a library cart of FAUC green resources to Coffee Hour for browsing and borrowing, and continue to add to this collection in our FAUC library.

 

Gary Schlee

Anne Snobelen

Terry Doran

Wilf Boyce

Carol Coiffe

Kathryn Cullen

Waste

Reduce the number of black garbage bags created by the FAUC facility that are put out to the curb by better WASTE DIVERSION INTO RECYCLING, GREEN BINS AND COMPOSTING bins.

 

Margaret Harper

Eleanor Heinz

Advocacy and Activism

Implement “the power of one” by providing a May workshop to encourage LETTER WRITING by members of the congregation to government bodies on topics related to global warming.  This will be supported by a local “letter writing campaign” resource group, and followed up with a lawn party celebration and expanded to community involvement.

 

Bev Camp

Zen Skibinski

David Lander

 

TAKING ACTION DETAILS

When planning the STEPS required to meet the objective, consider the following:

Note: Do not begin implementation until your plan has been reviewed by the appropriate FAUC committee

- Do your research  

- Consider which committees should be involved

- Leverage existing resources & capabilities

- Obtain background info from the Green Team, committee members and experienced FAUC members on what has been done in this area before, what resources are already available, if there are any sensitive issues, etc.

- Document the impact on the FAUC facility, staff, neighbourhood centre, etc.

- List required resources to complete your objective such as:

$ (how much is required, and where it will come from)

People – RECRUIT OTHERS IN FAUC TO HELP YOU!

Equipment

Inventory

Transportation, delivery

Advertising

- Prioritize (e.g., which lightbulbs to replace first – e.g., those most frequently turned on)

- Source and price what you need to complete the objective

- Draft a budget

- Consider fundraising

- Consider sustainment issues so that the activity will be ongoing

- Document your plan

- Present your plan to the Green Team

- Review, revise your plan as required

 

Action Item

Steps

Sustainment

Install CFLs

 

By May 31st – CFLs:

John Cowan will contact the Property Committee (Tom Cullen) to discuss limitations or ideas, read the Energy Audit, discuss who would buy lamps, where, install, and how to fund lamps for FAUC and broader distribution/sale.

We will aim to have all fixtures, that don’t need modification, refitted with CFLs by the end of May.

After May 31st - Educate others:

Prepare a test panel for the entranceway where people can compare different types of lamps and learn about their differences. John will ask the Property Council if there are any constraints on location or construction of “Mike’s Panel.”

Mike will look into artwork that might be put on this portable panel to make it attractive. John will build it. We have to prepare some educational pieces to help people see the value of converting at home. This will probably not be complete until the fall.  By then members should be used to the lamps in the Church and ready to be helpful advocates with their friends.

John will talk with Scout/Guide leaders (Tom Clarke) about ways we might have Scouts or Guides deliver a message to the community about CFLs.

 

We will meet after Church next Sunday (April 1) to discuss action plans, based on feedback from Property and Scouts/Guides. We need to consider:

- Who can help us do the CFL refit, and how to recruit them

- When to develop our PR message once lights are being changed.

 

Mike –look into the City “Environment Day” to find out what they do re CFL sales and when.

 

John will also see if his nephew, who does community marketing for the Argos, can link this CFL idea with the Canadian Football League (CFL).

 

When to develop long term strategies of purchasing, protection from theft, and disposal so that FAUC can ‘sustain’ the use of CFLs naturally

 

Use less water on our gardens

Plan the gardening event

-          Church gardens fall under the Network committee

-          Talk to Sharon Barrett Ewing

-          Get volunteers

-          pick a date: May 7th

-          lay composted material on gardens first

-          put dandelions, clover, pine needles in compost

-          obtain wood chips from City of Toronto: 3 carloads for 2 thick – available Monday to Friday 8:00 to 2:00

-          leave leaves and sticks

-          use leaf bags to get mulch

 

Investigate the use of rain barrels

Plan a process to get FAUC organic garbage into the composting bins

Buy more composters

Introduce an “adopt a garden” campaign

Create a gardening team

 


 

Action Item

Steps

Sustainment

Buy locally grown food

There are 3 phases to our initiative.

  • Education
  • Facilitation
  • Advocacy

Education – Our group first needs to educate itself about the importance of buying locally grown produce, about what it means to be organic and what the certification process is, and where we can buy local produce, whether it be organic or not.  We also need to research which local grocery stores stock local produce.

 

Once our group has completed this, we will plan a strategy for educating the congregation.  This will include

  • Display table at coffee hour
  • Bulletin "facts and figures"
  • Announcements/skits during the church service
  • Fairlawn web page
  • Community Life
  • FNC program brochure

Facilitation - This may include the following:

  • partnering with local farmers to arrange for the delivery of weekly food baskets of seasonal produce to interested consumers in the congregation
  • organizing a small weekly farmer's market on the front lawn.
  • providing the congregation with a list of farmer's markets
  • partner people in the congregation who are unable to access the markets with people who can.

Advocacy -

  • letter writing or petitions to local grocery stores to encourage them to stock more local foods.

 

Investigate idea for a farmer’s market on the Fairlawn front lawn.

 

Encourage local grocery stores to sell locally grown produce.

Communications …

Logo: Gary Schlee will investigate existing logos used by (a) other green initiatives,  (b) Faith and the Common Good, (c) Greening Sacred Spaces, etc.  An image that is immediately recognized as a greening image is our priority. 

 

Gary will discuss with a graphic designer to come up with some sample visual images, that work in both colour and black and white, and may include text such as “Fairlawn Green Action”.

 

We will evaluate the samples and make a recommendation to the Green Team.

 

Green library resource: Carol Coiffe has pulled together a green resource collection for the Fairlawn library.  Kathryn Cullen will work with Carol to have the library cart available at the Green Table at coffee hour April 8th.

 

Determine budget requirements and source.

 

Use the logo consistently on all green communications in future to be immediately recognizable, and to unify all our green activities.

 

Continue the Green Table at Coffee Hour each Sunday and add the library cart.  Continue to add new resources to the library’s green collection.


 

Action Item

Steps

Sustainment

Waste

Audit the quantity and contents of the black garbage bags by opening them at curbside.  Do this twice.  Meet at 4:30 pm in front of the church on the night the bags are put out.  Get volunteers to assist.  Wear old clothes and bring gloves (recommend double gloving with rubber inner gloves and outer garden gloves.)

 

Based on our findings, take appropriate action.  For example,

-      make new signs

-      provide better bins

-      approach users of FAUC building re diversion of appropriate garbage into recycling and composting bins

-      make a poster of our findings

-      talk to all users of the building; i.e., office staff, FNC, nursery school, etc.

 

We will be successful if by June 9, 2007, the number of black garbage bags have been reduced by 25%

 

Continuing education:

-      Have a quiz on the Green Table at Coffee Hour

-      Invite speaker from the city

-      Look at recycling issues for dwellers of apartment buildings and condos.

Advocacy and Activism

Recruit more people for this initiative.

Select a global warming topic.

Plan a letter-writing workshop.

 

Celebrate

 

 

 

IMPLEMENTATION

Before starting, each Action Team will discuss details with the Green Team chair who will then work with the Action Team to approach the appropriate FAUC Committee to obtain approval to proceed.

 

CLOSE-OUT

Share the news of your success! 

Celebrate! 

And repeat with a new Action Item!

 

 

BRAINSTORMING FUTURE ACTION ITEMS

 

-          Tree planting

-          Sustainable plantings

-          Vegetable garden

-          Participate in Environment Day

-          Capitalize on the Environment Day municipal hazardous waste depots that are opened throughout the city on various dates. 

The closest to Fairlawn are:

o        Apr. 21— Earl Haig School, 100 Princess Ave. (south of Empress, east of Yonge)

o        May 26 — Toronto Parking Authority Lot, 3885 Yonge, south of York Mills

o        June 23 — North Toronto Memorial Arena, 174 Orchard View Blvd (off Yonge, north of Eglinton)

o        Sept. 29 — Ramsden Works Yard, 1008 Yonge Street (across from Rosedale Subway Station)

-          Plan something for Earth Day

-          Use Environmentally friendly cleaning products in the church building

-          Improved signage on existing recycling bins

-          Weekly visual quiz at the Green Table highlighting a type of discarded material, and asking people to indicate the correct Recycling category (e.g., recycling, compost, garbage, etc.)

-          Promotional campaign (seminar, guest speakers, weekly bulletin item, web site, bulletin board, handout, church announcement, green table, Community Life, email note to the distribution list, etc.) to help educate individuals in the congregation regarding green topics (re recycling, etc.)

-          Guest speaker to discuss how to be “green” in a condo or apartment

-          Guest speaker to discuss how to insulate/caulk your home

-          Guest speaker to demonstrate bike repair to encourage biking rather than driving

-          Guest speaker on environmentally friendly cleaning products for home use

-          Organize a bulk purchase and fundraising sale for the congregation with the sale of green products such as

o        Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs

o        Environmentally friendly cleaning products

-          Urban garden

-          LEED certification (Leadership in energy and environmental design)

-          Organizing a “refurbishing day” or participate in an existing “Furniture Bank” where people exchange household things instead of discarding and buying new (e.g.,  http://www.furniturebank.org )

-          Carry over recycling and other ideas to our work places

-          Educate our trustees and congregation in “ethical investing”

-          Obtain rain barrels to water our church gardens

-          Advocacy for carbon credits

-          Community Life articles

-          Staff job descriptions to include handling compost and recycling

-          Find a link to some websites on the internet that provide lists of sources and companies that are “green” for a variety of products

-          Provide links from the Green web site to other useful web sites

-          Networking connections to other churches who are also doing green activities