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Faith-based Climate Action 7/15/23

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hand holding a sign reading Climate Action Now at a protest

Good News

Climate Solutions Happenings 

Climate-action Opportunities

Of Note

Save the Date

Good News

Weekly Serving of Good News July 15, 2023

Good news is a powerful motivator for action, &  there‘s lots of  good news  about climate mitigation, adaptation/resilience, and justice. Here’s a sample…

The Oregon legislature delivered big for the environment in 2023

Oregon State scientists find better way to capture carbon from industrial emissions 

A Big Step Forward: New Breakthrough Could Lead to Cleaner Hydrogen Energy

Utah’s FORGE geothermal site proves it’s more than just wishing wells 

New Iceland Tech Shakes Up Global Geothermal Energy

France boosts tidal sector with €65m and revenue support for FloWatt

Amazon has 5,000+ Rivian EV delivery vans on the road 

‘Revolutionary’ solar power cell innovations break key energy threshold

TURBINES IN SSJID CANALS COULD GENERATE POWER

US approves construction for Orsted offshore wind project off New Jersey coast 

Sustainability: New catalyst makes chemical processes more efficient and less harmful to the environment

Norway’s new phosphate deposits are so massive they could guarantee solar power and electric cars keep running for the next 50 years

This Shell station removed all of its gas pumps

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July Climate Solutions Happening

The Oregon Climate Resilience Package! Deborah Clark

 The bipartisan Climate Resilience Package, which was recently passed by the 2023 Oregon legislature, is chock-full of climate solutions that will make life better for all Oregonians! Heat pumps powered by renewable energy will be more accessible. Homes and buildings will be safer and more energy efficient. Electric trucks & buses will replace diesel ones on our roads. Solar and storage will be more affordable for homes and businesses. Resilience hubs will be created by and for frontline communities. Farmers, ranchers, and forest owners will be able to adopt more sustainable practices. Our air will be cleaner. Jobs in the clean energy economy will flourish across the state.

The Climate Resilience Package incorporated climate solutions from about 20 climate bills.  The package included prioritization of Oregonians most vulnerable to climate change: people of color, low-income families, individuals with disabilities, and residents in rural areas.  By investing approximately $100 million, the Climate Resilience Package will enable the state to leverage at least 10 times that amount in federal funding.

This legislative success reflects the hard work of countless advocates such as you, volunteers, and of course, legislative champions.   Together we make a difference!

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Faith-based Climate Action Opportunities

To help assess the engagement of UUFC members and friends in faith-based climate action and to encourage such action, please anonymously  <Share> the number of the actions below you take this week. Optionally, you may  anonymously also share other recent climate action. 

The organizations whose calls to action we amplify, and the number from each organization, are listed <here>.

Sat 15 Jul

Citizens’ Climate Lobby  The PROVE IT Act

The bipartisan PROVE IT Act requires the Department of Energy to study the carbon emissions of certain goods produced in the U.S. compared to other nations.  You can think of this bill as step one in getting a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) in the U.S. We need to show a huge wave of support now to bring CBAMs across the finish line later so they can drive down emissions around the globe. Send a short, customized message to your House Representative and Senators asking them to cosponsor it. 

EarthJustice  Electric Grid

As we move towards a 100% clean energy future, we need to urgently build more power lines to move clean energy across the country. Thousands of solar, wind, hydropower, and geothermal projects in various stages of development are waiting years for approval to connect to the U.S. electric grid. More than 2,000 gigawatts of solar, wind and battery storage projects are languishing in the queue, according to the Department of Energy. That’s more power than the U.S. currently generates. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has a critical role to play in accelerating the transmission infrastructure we need to meet U.S. climate commitments. Call on FERC to act. 

Interfaith Power & Light  2023 Farm Bill

Urge Congress to prioritize the needs of communities and the climate, not corporate profit margins. These include:

  • Expand access to SNAP and other nutrition assistance programs 
  • Fund small-scale farmers, regenerative agriculture, and climate-friendly practices, from planting to packaging to delivery;
  • Eliminate food waste and invest in urban agricultural projects that allow all people access to locally-grown, sustainable fresh food; and,
  • Protect the dignity, health, and safety of those responsible for working the land.
  • Fund international programs that train farmers to adapt to climate change and provide emergency and developmental support to more than 4 billion people around the world.

This is our chance to improve this crucial legislation. It’s time for Congress to invest in long-term solutions that address hunger, food access, and climate resilience.  Petition Congress

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Of Note This Week, Sat 7/15/23

US DOE

Website Investments in American-Made Energy

UUA

Article UUA Board Statement, Post-General Assembly 2023, Regarding Divestment Reparations

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Save the Date

Sun 16 Jul, 6:00 – 8:00 PM, Avery Park (exact location TBD)

Whole Food Plant-based Picnic Potluck & Lawn Games: We are vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores attempting to eat and/or learn more about the health benefits of a whole food plant-based diet.  First time attendees do not need to bring a dish.  Bring your favorite lawn game. RSVP for more details about this monthly potluck; usually the 3rd Sun. 

Contact: 541-908-0864 or wfpbcorvallis@gmail.com

Sponsor: Corvallis Whole Food Plant-Based Support

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Energy Upgrades for Homes

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Energy Upgrades for Homes with Fossil (Natural) Gas. Nancy Evenson, a retired architect who offers Home Retrofit Clinics through the Corvallis Sustainability Coalition, will speak from personal experience to both the:

  • Technological advances that make heat pump and induction
    technology incredibly clean and efficient.
  • Homeowner experience in navigating the switch from fossil
    gas to electricity.

Monday 7 August, 6:30 – 7:30 PM in the UU Social Hall, also available by Zoom, Contact michael.a.hughes1951@gmail.com

Hosted by the Faith Based Climate Action Team

Banned Book Reading Club

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A reading club to discuss banned books and share insight as to why they have been banned. For a list of titles, please email Susie. Hosted by Susie Smyth. This is a Connect Up Event: connect@uucorvallis.org

Meets 2nd Wednesdays at 2:00 pm in the UU Library. August 9th and September 13th, 2023.

REMOVAL OF INCENSE CEDAR TREES

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Affected areas marked in red.

Sadly, many of the tall cedar trees along the east boundary of UUFC’s property will have to be removed this summer, probably in August. After 4 years of discussion, consulting, and much review the Board of Trustees has approved the removal of 30 trees from our east property line for safety reasons. The removal will start sometime in August, 2023. No oaks or other hardwoods will be removed. This is reduced from the proposed removal of 47 trees that was recommended by Corvallis Arborist LLC in 2022.

Because of the danger of the tall Incense Cedar trees falling on our or our neighbors’ buildings we have had to make the hard decision to remove them. We hired Corvallis Arborist LLC (JonPywell) to evaluate all of the trees on our property and he produced a detailed report in November of 2022.  The bottom line is that he recommended that we remove 47 trees because they are a threat to buildings. The threat is that as the trees get bigger, they are more likely to be blown over by strong winds.  Many are already leaning. The UUFC Board of Directors has reviewed this recommendation and had discussions with many of you and settled on a plan to remove 30 trees that appear to be the most threatening.  This is not something they have done casually.  These trees were planted in 1952 by two of our beloved congregants and have been a valued part of our campus for over 70 years.

We have contracted with a very experienced tree removal contractor, Mid-Valley Woodsmen (Josh Cantrell), who will have to climb each tree and cut small portions from the top and lower them down with ropes.  Josh is very aware of our desire to have as little impact on the remaining trees and vegetation as he can.

Because these trees have to be cut into small segments to get them down safely, we will not be able to sell the wood as sawlogs.  Most of the wood will be chipped and sold to a paper mill or used for landscaping.

Links to documents

Arborist Report

Map of Trees to Cut

Contract

Quote

Between Us (July 2023)

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My friends – all you who are members and friends of the UUFC – I’m thinking of you today. This is not a special day, not a holiday, but I’m thinking of you.  Because you, like me, are alive in this world, and there are so many challenges in this living.  There is beauty, and love and insight and compassion.  And there are so many challenges.

I’m reflecting on things I learned at the UUA General Assembly, and on the old understandings of the 4th of July which are outdated, and on the fact of how much danger some people are in from war, and politics, and other people.  And on the facts of climate change and the chaos and the realities of how the changes are affecting us all. 

In the summer months, I always try to spend more time in reflection – on the state of the world, on the state of the congregation, on the state of my energies, and on the needs among us that we call ministry.  I am greatly buoyed at the moment by the upwelling of new and needed relationships, ideas, and goals within the Fellowship.  I am heartened by movements within our UUA – toward more inclusiveness, and more acknowledgement of inequality.  I am inspired by visions of a future which build on the past, but keep us moving forward. 

In these summer months I invite you to reflect as well.  Reflect on how you are related to the Fellowship – to people and programs and visions.  Reflect on where you are uncomfortable – which may be just where you are ready to learn more.  Reflect on how you can add to the store of wisdom and compassion and strength among us.  And most of all – keep coming, keep connecting, keep meeting people, and keep learning.  This committed community which we share is a precious resource, which depends upon, and helps, all of us.   Jill

Women’s Retreat 2023: Save the Date (updated)

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The UUFC Women’s Retreat 2023 Planning Team asks that you Save The Date of October 13-14 for our upcoming Fall retreat at the UUFC building. Attendees need only identify as women in a way that’s significant to them. Our theme this year is “Mindful Compassion” and our keynote speaker is Jana Svoboda. We will share lunch and dinner on Saturday, and there will be three workshop hours for smaller interactive sessions. 

We look forward to being together again as a sisterhood!

Amy Ayers, Priscilla Galasso, Kris Egan, Ann Marchant, Joyce Marvel-Benoist, Kimi Mayo, Bonnie Morihara, Sharon Seabrook, and Heather Thomas. 

Email: womensretreat@uucorvallis.org

Daily Practice, June 30th, 2023

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Good morning friends – Between our house and the neighbor’s there are ten Douglas Firs and one small redwood.  A very small forest that we share and enjoy. This morning I watched awhile (breathing in the beautiful perfume of those firs) as the rising sun lit one side of the highest branches, and turned them a golden green. Meanwhile, a convention of crows was gathering in the field, then flying to high branches and back.  Once again the morning sky is bright and clear – this particular summer day,  another chance to be alive and thankful. 

On this last day of June we begin again, just as we are called to do every day. We are called to wake up from our assumptions and opinions into appreciation of the miracles of life.  We are called to be aware of the breath which makes us alive.  We are called to recommit to a path of compassion and peace, to create more justice, to choose to bless the world, knowing how blessed we are. 

A prayer for today, to encourage us to choose this path once again:  “Blessing of Hope”  by Jan Richardson.

“So may we know that hope that is not just for someday but for this day—here, now, in this moment that opens to us:

Hope not made of wishes but of substance, hope made of sinew and muscle and bone, hope that has breath and a beating heart, hope that will not keep quiet and be polite, hope that knows how to holler when it is called for, hope that knows how to sing when there seems little cause, hope that raises us from the dead—

Not someday, but this day, every day, again and again and again.”

Jan Richardson

Thank-you to all of you for being part of this circle of practice!  Next week Daily Practice will  transition to the UUFC website, where I’ll post it at least once a week, maybe twice sometimes.  More information about how to find it will be coming.  Until then, and always, I’m sending love to you all!     Jill

Services in July

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July 2

Fellowship member Susan Sanford: “For the Country”  Reflections on citizenship and interdependence

July 9

Rev. Jill McAllister, on meaning and what matters  OUTDOOR SERVICE

July 16

Rev. Jill McAllister, on being a blessing. With special music from  Johanna Beekman and Ben Leinbach

July 23

Rev. Jill McAllister, on climate action and justice, now

July 30

Wheel of the Year Celebration: Lughnasadh (Lammas) 

August 6

Ceremony for the trees before the cutting begins – also outside. OUTDOOR SERVICE

Photo by Maddi Bazzocco on Unsplash

July RE Events

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July 11 & 25

UUA Common Read, Defund Fear, 1130-12:30 on the back deck

July 13 & 27

Ukulele Jam,  7PM-8PM on the Fellowship lawn

July 23

Young Adult Pizza Hour, at noon

July 29

Outdoor movie night and camp on the Fellowship lawn,  showing Dumplin’, 9PM-11PM or overnight, Fellowship lawn

Sundays

Inquirers Series, 11:30 AM in Room 7

Photo by Maddi Bazzocco on Unsplash

Queerly Beloved

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recurring; 3rd Sundays 4:00 to 6:00 pm at UUFC

Join LGBTQ+ folx and allies for social gatherings centered on queer issues and themes. We understand the importance of queer community, and our goal is to provide a safe space where people can find that sense of belonging right here in Corvallis. We meet monthly on the 3rd Sunday in the afternoon. All are welcome! Questions: connect@uucorvallis.org

Check the weekly announcements for posts.