Sustainability display at Meeting for Sufferings Photo: Trish Carn
Meeting for Sufferings: Meetings asked to measure carbon emissions
'Walking the walk' on climate change
An important decision has just been taken to help Friends not only ‘talk the talk’ on climate change but to take positive steps to ‘walk the walk’ in addressing it. Quaker Meetings around Britain have been asked to measure their carbon emissions. The request follows a decision by British Quakers to commit themselves to becoming a low-carbon, sustainable community.
The request was made on Saturday by Meeting for Sufferings (MfS), the national committee of British Friends. It follows a decision at Britain Yearly Meeting, which met in Canterbury in August, to ‘make a strong corporate commitment’ to sustainability.
MfS asked that ‘a baseline of current witness be established’. To make this possible, they want Local and Area Meetings to measure their emissions. The request is worded in terms of an encouragement, rather than a requirement.
In a lively morning session devoted to the subject, a few Friends expressed concern that Meetings might lose the ‘bigger spiritual dimension’ by ‘rushing to baselining’. One emphasised the ‘philosophical basis for a Quaker spiritual approach to conserving the environment’.
In response, another Friend said: ‘I hope it doesn’t have to be either a spiritual dimension or baselining. I feel that God should be in everything we do, even in baselining.’ Another representative agreed, insisting that ‘the spiritual side of sustainability is there through-
out. We have a spiritual relationship with the earth’.
Several representatives stressed that their Meetings have already achieved a reduction in carbon emissions. One urged Friends to ‘celebrate what people have already achieved as well as encouraging them to do more’. The minute stated: ‘We emphasise that the baseline is a measure of where we are and we will be committed to making a continuing effort’.
Sunniva Taylor of Quaker Peace & Social Witness (QPSW) introduced two new ‘tools’ that had been produced to help Meetings measure their emissions. The first is a Climate Impact Calculator, available both in paper form and online (http://www.quaker.org.uk/climate-impact-calculators) – although the online version is able to do the maths itself. There is also a Sustainability Toolkit, which includes advice on political actions as well as changes within Meetings. This has been sent, free of charge, to all Local and Area Meetings and is available for sale. It has proved so popular that a new batch is now being printed.
A few Friends mentioned the need for Meetings to share their successes. One said that, while this could be good, it may be frightening to those who felt they could not match them. Another spoke of the need to avoid competitiveness and to value all efforts.
There were many references to BYM’s ‘Minute 36’, agreed at Canterbury. In committing British Quakers to becoming a low-carbon community, it emphasises that ‘growing in the Spirit is a consequence of taking action, and action flows from our spiritual growth’.
MfS agreed to establish a ‘Minute 36 Commitment Group’. This will ‘do the detailed thinking on sustainability’. Sunniva said that this would include consideration of the political work involved. The group will ‘be answerable to MfS and… collate the reports from Local and Area Meetings’.
There was lengthy discussion on how the group should be appointed. It will include representatives of MfS along with QPSW staff and will have the power to co-opt specialists who understand Quakers and the issues involved. Other Quaker organisations in Britain will also be invited to appoint representatives.
Following a suggestion made during Saturday’s meeting, the final line of its minute makes a commitment to consider how to assess and reduce the carbon footprint of Meeting for Sufferings itself.
