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Local youth taking part in a climate program are putting what they learned into action by helping churches in Waterloo region and Guelph reduce their carbon footprints.
Lucas Shin, Esther Hope Pridmore and Amber Culley were among a group of young people who took part in the United Church of Canada’s Climate Motivator program earlier this year.
As part of the program, the group did an eight-week internship at local churches where they came up with ways to help the congregation take steps in becoming more environmentally friendly.
“Throughout that time, we create a community with our local church and we point them in the direction and motivate them toward environmental action,” Shin told CBC Kitchener-Waterloo’s The Morning Edition.
Shin’s project was an audit of the utilities at St. Luke’s United Church in Cambridge which helped create a proposal on greener ways to light and heat the church.
He also held an event, which Cambridge MP Connie Cody attended, to educate other United Church congregation members about the Climate Motivator program.
As part of his eight-week internship at St. Luke’s United Church in Cambridge, Lucas Shin held an event earlier this month that brought congregation members together to learn more about the Climate Motivator program. (Sophia Han)
Meanwhile Pridmore’s project focused on creating a pollinator garden at Dublin Street United Church in Guelph.
She said she helped the church grow the flower and plant canopy at the front of the property to help support Guelph’s bee population and other pollinators.
Her work even had an impact with the church’s congregation with many asking how they could start their own pollinator gardens at home.
“Many people were very interested in the garden and really wanted to start their own gardens and [I was] encouraging people to utilize what ever small space they had, even if it’s a tiny balcony,” she said.
Esther Hope Pridmore’s project focused on expanding Dublin Street United Church’s gardens to support pollinators in Guelph. (Esther Hope Pridmore)
Culley said her project focused on education at Forest Hill United Church in Kitchener. She helped create a summer camp where kids learned about the environment. She also helped draft different materials about how the congregation can lead environmental services.
“We also did some environmental services where we engaged the children and we were able to sign 53 campaign letters to send out to our local MP Tim Louis,” she said.
Culley said the letters asked for stronger climate action from the federal government.
“We wanted it to be specifically tailored to each person of the congregation so we left that blank so people could fill in what they’re ask would be, whether it be more solar panels or investment in clean energy,” she said.
LISTEN | How local youth are helping churches in Waterloo region and Guelph go green:
The Morning Edition – K-W9:50Local youth take part in United Church of Canada’s Climate Motivator program
Young people in our community have been working on climate projects with local churches. It’s part of the Climate Motivator program through the United Church of Canada. Hope Pridmore, Lucas Shin and Amber Cully tell us more about putting what they learned into action here at home.Hope for the future of Canada’s environment
Being part of the program has also given the group hope about the future of Canada’s environment, as the impacts of climate change are something something they worry about.
“As concerned as I am, I think this Climate Motivator program has shown me how many people out there really care about the climate and are really dedicated to fixing these problems,” Pridmore said.
Shin said the wildfires that continue to impact communities in northwestern Ontario should be a wake up call for change.
“Or else, this will keep going on and our future and future generations won’t have the great relationship with nature we’re able to have,” he said.
“That really saddens me, but seeing these individuals here as well as the 18 Climate Motivators … really inspires me and helps me keep going.”
Culley said it’s why she decided to focus on the educational component for her internship.
“In relation to wildfires, a lot of the issues we’re seeing today is due to over 100 years of the act that banned control burning traditionally for folks, so in my project I definitely incorporated traditional teachings I use to have [since] my grandfather use to do control burnings,” Culley said.
“I did somethings with folks, such as cedar weaving and teaching them about sustainability and I think when we get that education out there and that interaction, that there really can be hope.”