A joyful celebration of churches that have engaged with the Cambridgeshire Churchyard Conservation Award and ARocha Eco Church Award schemes took place at Evensong at Ely Cathedral on Sunday 15 June. The beautiful service was led by The Very Revd Mark Bonney, the Dean of Ely, with readings by Bob Skelton (member of Ely Cathedral and Ely Diocesan Environment Groups) and Sallie Corrigan (Churchyard conservation lead at St Mary's Church, Woodditton). The Rev'd Imogen Nay (Bishop’s Advisor on Climate) led the Celebration of Award-Winning Eco Churches followed by an Act of Commitment.
We were joined by over 100 people from 37 churches across the diocese, including Ely Methodist Church. These people represented churches from all stages of the Churchyard Conservation and Eco Church Award schemes, whether registered, bronze, silver or gold award holders.
Following the service, everyone gathered in the Lady Chapel to celebrate and meet other eco churches, fuelled by a little organic wine and cake. We received some lovely feedback after the service, which sought to celebrate and inspire churches on their Eco journey.
"May I thank you and all involved for a beautiful, reflective service. Hopefully St Mary Magdalen will be inspired to move up to Silver."
"Thank you for a lovely Evensong last Sunday it was so nice to see all the churches that are doing such good works in their church's. Thank you from all the team at St Andrew's Church, Soham."
The Diocese of Ely hosts quarterly Eco Church Zoom sessions, enabling church eco groups to share challenges and successes, and to support progress through the award schemes. Nigel Cooper (Diocesan Environment Officer), Imogen Nay and Sacha Watson (Net Zero Carbon Officer) are usually there and we invite guest presenters, often Churches who are Eco church award holders, to talk about their experiences and expertise, with plenty of opportunity for questions and advice.
If you are interested in joining these zoom sessions, please keep an eye on our social media channels, newsletters, or contact Sacha Watson and she will notify you when they occur. If you’d like to become an Eco Champion, encouraging and supporting your church’s progress through the Eco Church award programme, please contact Nigel Cooper to find out more.
We would also love to hear from you if you have Eco Church experiences, good news environmental or net zero stories you can share with us.