Reverend Thomas Breidenthal, Bishop of The Diocese of Southern Ohio gave an Earth Day message from a butterfly garden by St. Johns Town street in Columbus. He reminds the audience of the privilege and responsibility that comes with caring for the earth, noting also that Earth Day is the only secular holiday that is observed around the world.
The Earth Day Network is an organization with a mission to diversify, educate, and activate the environmental movement. As they continue forward with their mission of building the world’s largest environmental movement, they recognize that faith leaders have been a driving force behind some of the most important social movements. They provide a plethora of resources to guide faith leaders and faith communities in their efforts of stewardship of the planet.
On Saturday, September 24, 2016 The School of Environment and Natural Resources (SENR) will co-host the 2016 Earthkeeping Summit with Ohio Interfaith Power and Light, the Methodist Theological School in Ohio, and multiple community and university partners. The Summit provides resources and inspiration for the creation care work of Ohio faith communities, and will be held at the Nationwide 4-H Center on OSU’s Columbus campus. Keynote speaker, Dr. Melanie L. Harris of Texas Christian University, will address the Summit’s themes of hope and renewal in environmental justice work, and panels and workshops will follow to highlight current examples of creation care work across Ohio faith communities.