Ely Cathedral has been awarded the prestigious gold Eco Church Award in recognition of their dedication and commitment to walk in step with nature and take action on climate change.
Ely is only the third Cathedral in the UK to achieve this outstanding achievement which was given by the Christian conservation charity A Rocha UK and reflects the Cathedral’s commitment to place creation care at the heart of everything they do.
Bishop Graham, as Lead Bishop for the Environment, wrote to congratulate Ely Cathedral on being awarded a Gold Arocha UK Eco-Award.
Bishop Graham wrote to the Cathedral, "I can see that Eco Church and Carbon Zero is front and centre of your work and mission, and creation care is embedded in all aspects of cathedral life, which is fantastic."
The Cathedral’s recent Annual Report illustrates 2023 as the lowest year so far in carbon emissions, being a reduction of 42% from the peak in 2019. They have achievements across all areas of the Eco Church survey that would be expected from a gold awarded church, but they also have many initiatives that demonstrate their creativity and forward thinking approach, including: cutting paper use by adopting downloadable service sheets, regular litter picks, an innovative approach to food waste and engagement with Fareshare - a national charity that turns food surplus into meals. The land and gardens around the Cathedral are being managed for nature and include recently planted hedgerows, being a release site for rescued hedgehogs and plans to plant an orchard.
Helen Stephens, Church Relations Manager, explained “Our huge congratulations to Ely Cathedral on their well-deserved gold Eco Church award. Everything about their approach sets them out as an exemplar of what it means to be a gold awarded church, and their strong engagement in local networks provides opportunities to share their learning and experience as well as explain what drives their care for the environment”.
The Cathedral has demonstrated a love and respect for God’s created world through prominent talks and events as well as behind the scenes action. Ely Cathedral’s community environment group, RENEW, was formed in 2019 and joined forces with the Cathedral Chapter’s Environment Working Group in 2021 to use the Eco Church framework to strategically and methodically progress their net zero targets and environmental action.
Chair of Environment Working Group Alison Binstead said “We are all absolutely delighted to gain the recognition of Gold A Rocha Eco Church Award. It really has been a huge team effort across every area of Cathedral life and has brough with it so many positive changes. As a heritage building, we are fully aware of the challenges ahead and remain committed to both the financial & resource investment required to improve our carbon footprint moving forward. The support we have received from Eco Church right through bronze, silver and gold has been excellent and we look forward to continuing our environmental improvement journey with the exceptional team of people we have here at Ely”.
Find out more about the work of Ely Cathedral’s Environment Group and how you can be involved.
The Very Revd Mark Bonney, The Dean of Ely summed it up in saying, “it is enormously gratifying that our care for God’s creation has been recognised in this way. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all those on our Environment Working Group, the Cathedral’s Surveyor to the Fabric and Archaeologist, our fundraising team, Ely Cathedral Trust and our decarbonisation engineers at JG Consulting. We especially thank those who have done so much towards this in an entirely voluntary capacity, first by establishing the RENEW group in 2019 and - since 2021 - as members of the Cathedral’s Working Group. The Revd Jenny Gage (formerly our Minister for Social Justice), who died in 2022, was instrumental in getting us started on this journey. This award is a fitting testament to her memory and a fantastic recognition of all that we do – and will continue to do – to respect the natural world”.