Saturday 8 June 2019, 10am – 4.45pm
Brighthelm Centre, Brighton BN1 1YD
KEYNOTE SPEAKER:
Award-winning environmentalist Nicola Peel
All are welcome.
You are warmly invited to attend this interactive event. In the light of the challenges facing us from the impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss, we will explore our spiritual sense of connectedness to the earth and the actions we can take to contribute to earth and human flourishing.
Keynote Speaker: Nicola Peel
Nicola is a winner of the People’s Environment Award, filmmaker, speaker and ‘solutionist’ who has been working in the Ecuadorian Amazon for 18 years. She is passionate about biomimicry, which shows that nature is our greatest teacher.
Nicola will show us examples of solutions to environmental problems, found in tandem with local communities. These not only provide solutions to the issues, but also enable communities to flourish. Nicola will also address a range of practical actions that we can all take in our daily lives to contribute to the solutions rather than continuing the damage humans are inflicting on our life systems.
Workshops
Participants will be invited to attend two out of four workshops:
1. Green Grace. The practice of presence and the power of pause in the greening of things.
An African wisdom saying nudges us: “The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The next best time is today.”
This workshop will seek to engage participants with the active- contemplative dimension of garden as microcosm; with the awakening and deepening of the call of the Spirit to quiet change and an integral balance between effort and rest, wonder and wisdom.
Facilitator: Philip Roderick. He is founder of three networks: The Quiet Garden Movement, which now has over 300 affiliated Quiet Gardens in different parts of the world, together with Contemplative Fire and and Hidden Houses of Prayer.
http://www.quietgarden.org http://www.contemplativefire.org and http://www.hiddenhousesofprayer.wordpress.com
2. Top Tips for taking personal action to protect the earth
Exploring in greater detail the practical actions that Nicola suggests are most helpful, starting with divesting from fossil fuels and moving your energy company, supporting small, organic fair trade business, and saying no to Tetra packs as well as plastic.
Facilitator: Nicola Peel (see above).
3. “Saving the world is a spiritual matter”
Is it possible to find a way of engaging with the challenges facing the world that is joyful and affirming of life? What does spirituality bring to environmental action? At Brighthelm we are determined to discover an approach grounded in faith in God who promises life in its fullness, developing a vision of a world where all living beings flourish in the peace and love of God. In this workshop, we will explore some of these issues, drawing on our own experiences, spirituality and faith stories. How do we understand the spirituality that is part of our environmental concern? What are the stories that give us hope and in what ways do we put them into practice in our lives?
Facilitator: Alex Mabbs is minister of Brighthelm Church and Community Centre in Brighton. He also facilitates Open Sky Forest Church and is a trustee of Operation Noah. Alex has been to many protests. A minister of the United Reformed Church with a brief to explore Christian environmentalism, he recently started Earth Church, which aims to explore environmental action in the light of the life and teaching of Jesus.
4. The Great Water Challenge
Water is life. It is present in everything we eat, all our work, and what we shall become as a species. We will explore the impacts of climate change on water and sanitation issues and propose operational courses of action in developing countries, and for our lives.
Facilitator: Sandy Elsworth is a Geologist and Hydrogeologist now supporting water projects across Africa. He has been a Water Resource consultant over the past 30 years, and has assisted courses of action for climate change adaption and mitigation in the UK.
Event fee: £16.50/£11 for those with low income. We have kept the ticket prices as low as possible to enable wide participation. If you are able to pay the full price, please do so. Extra donations are also very welcome.
Booking: https://www.wegottickets.com/event/461951
Event enquiries: email petragriffiths@livingspirit.org.uk
Print version of event poster: http://www.livingspirit.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/poster_brighton.pdf
Full event information here: http://www.livingspirit.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/leaflet_brighton.pdf
Getting there: Brighthelm is a short walk ( 6-8 minutes) from the station , and 10 minutes from the sea.
Refreshments: Hot drinks are provided at 10 am and mid-afternoon. Please bring your own lunch or use local cafes and shops.
Enquiries: petragriffiths@livingspirit.org.uk
Event musician: Philip Roderick
This event is a collaboration between Brighthelm, Earth Church, Living Spirituality Connections and Spirit of Peace.
https://www.brighthelm.org.uk www.livingspirit.org.uk www.spiritofpeace.co.uk