Four Eco Awareness Evenings were held in Rathfarnham Parish, Dublin in April and May and the final three evenings of the Eco Awareness Course will be held in Rathfarnham parish centre, Main Street, Rathfarnham village on September 16, 23 and 30 at 8pm.
The important issues of Future Transport; New & Built Buildings for Comfort & Sustainability; and Global Citizenship will be the themes for the three evenings. All are welcome, including non-parishioners, to learn and discuss. Attendance at the previous evenings is not necessary.
Discussion will continue to be based on clips from Cultivate’s Powerdown DVD and other sources. In the spring the themes were The Challenge Ahead, The Power of Community and Rethinking Energy. The group talked about the challenges of climate change and pondered the future needs of the locality as fossil fuel supply declined.
The importance of building community resilience was recognised and the need to find local solutions to the global challenges. Also, the urgency of finding practical solutions. We wondered could we survive burning 10% less fossil fuel each year.
Over the summer the group has been considering food security, organic meat and vegetables and locally-grown food versus food miles. With a desire to achieve something practical, a Local Food Directory is being compiled, which will be distributed to let people know which shops in the locality sell locally grown, artisan and organic foods.
The group looks forward to working through Eco Congregation Ireland’s module one – an environmental checklist – and to discussing the proposed Church of Ireland ‘Green Charter’ at a later date.
Supporting our friends at the 10:10 campaign and 350.org, the group is currently planning for the Global Work Party on 10/10/10. It has been decided to hold a Walk/Cycle to Church Sunday (for those who are fit and able) and to challenge everyone to eat a 50-mile dinner that day (eating only food sourced within a 50-mile radius). People will be encouraged to send in their menus (with details about where they sourced their food) – the most intriguing entry will be published in the parish magazine!
For further info talk to Fiona Murdoch (086 1706923) or Joan Forsdyke (087
9475548).