Delmarva people of faith explore Earth Day

On April 21, we will celebrate our 47th Earth Day. In the nearly half a century since the first Earth Day, environmentalists have worked tirelessly to enact rules, regulations and policies in defense of the natural world.

Anniversaries offer both an opportunity to celebrate and reflect. As we approach the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, there are certainly many victories to laud. Much headway has been made in improving our environment’s health, there is a greater awareness of environmental issues, and numerous organizations are carrying out amazing work, restoring and advocating for our natural world.

At the same time, after 50 years of work, environmentalists are still fighting many of the same battles they were fighting 50 years ago.

Why?

Perhaps there is something missing in the environmental movement: A more inward reflection on our relationship with nature.

If you were asked to close your eyes and imagine yourself in a place of total relaxation, what would that setting look like? Is it a place in nature?

My hunch is for many of you, it is. Why? What is it in nature that brings us peace, rejuvenates us, inspires us?

I don’t have answers to these questions, but their mere presence is indicative of a value that exists despite being difficult to describe, much less quantify.

The nebulousness of this value makes it nearly impossible to bring into policy discussions, but there are places where difficult to define, abstract ideas are talked about: communities of faith.

Here on Delmarva, faith communities are coming together to lend their support for the environment not only at a policy level, but also at a deeper level where we can reflect on this personal relationship with the natural world.

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On Friday and Saturday, April 21-22, the Wicomico Interfaith Partners for Creation Stewardship invite you to join them in Salisbury to celebrate Earth Day and examine one of the most pressing issues of our time: climate change.

This two-day event, also sponsored by the Wicomico Environmental Trust and Assateague Coastal Trust, will be hosted Friday at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church and Saturday at Asbury United Methodist Church. The event will offer information about the impacts of climate change on the Shore, as well as information about what the state of Maryland is doing to address them.

The faith leaders planning the event also hope to provide opportunities for reflection on that hard-to-define value in nature that’s so often found in our hearts and not our minds.

We hope you will join us.

Matt Heim is co-coordinator of Wicomico Interfaith Partners for Creation Stewardship. For more information, visit www.WicomicoEnvironment.org.

RISING SEAS: A RESPONSE OF FAITH

The Wicomico Interfaith Partners for Creation Stewardship, a project of WET and the Assateague Coastal Trust, will host its second annual Earth Day event Friday and Saturday, Apr. 21-22, exploring the local impacts of climate change and how communities of faith can respond.

Friday, April 21, 6:30 p.m.

WHERE: St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 115 St. Peters St., Salisbury

Friday evening program will feature keynote speaker Stuart Clarke, co-chair of the Maryland Climate Change Commission and executive director of the Town Creek Foundation, which supports numerous environmental programs throughout the Chesapeake Region.

Saturday, April, 22, 9 a.m.-noon

WHERE: Asbury United Methodist Church, 1401 Camden Ave., Salisbury

Presentions include:

• “Rising Seas, Warmer Seasons: Climate-Change Predictions for Maryland and the Delmarva Peninsula,” by Greg Farley, director of the Chesapeake College Center for Leadership in Environmental Education, who leads the college’s sustainability efforts, including renewable energy, carbon neutrality and watershed remediation, and works with community partners on climate change and resiliency planning.
• Deal Island Peninsula Project: Elizabeth Van Dolah, assistant project coordinator and researcher in a collaborative project that seeks to enhance the resilience of the Deal Island peninsula area in Somerset County to ongoing and future environmental changes.
• Interfaith Panel: Saturday’s adult program will conclude with an interfaith panel and open discussion about the impacts of climate change and how communities of faith can respond.
• Youth program: This program for children ages 5-12 will feature hands-on learning opportunities as well as arts and crafts.

INFORMATION: Call Ellen Sprouls at 410-546-4748.