Faith communities –
creating sanctuaries for the living world
Coming into right relationship with the rest of the living world includes making room on the land we occupy for other creatures to thrive. Faith communities can provide wildlife habitat and demonstrate environmental stewardship on the land around their buildings as public witness to their devotion and care for Creation.
Let your life speak: Join the movement in Northern Virginia.
We invite all faith communities to join us
in this simple plan:
1. Educate yourselves.
Share the good news about how we can each play a part in rescuing the birds, frogs, butterflies, and all the threatened wildlife of Northern Virginia. Do a book reading using Nature's Best Hope by Doug Tallamy. Or show a 25-minute segment of the movie Hometown Habitat to your congregation followed by discussion, either online or in person. Find other suggestions here.
2. Apply the principles of Earth stewardship to your landscaping practices.
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Plant native plants to feed the wildlife.
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Click here for landscaping ideas for faith communities (or other institutional settings).
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Plant native canopy trees to cool the environment, capture carbon and stormwater, clean the air, and reduce A/C costs.
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Remove invasive introduced plants.
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Protect the creatures you are attracting: go pesticide-free.
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Reduce your lawn. Use it only where it is actually needed.
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Reduce storm water run-off.
3. Host a public dialog.
Hold the same Hometown Habitat showing or other educational events in a public forum and invite other congregations to join you.
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Playgrounds
Give them a play space
that connects them to nature
June 2020 Faith Community Symposium
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Herndon Friends Meeting
Help us help each other.
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Get on our email list for periodic updates about this movement. Use the form on the footer below to sign up.
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Share your ideas and progress on our Facebook forum, Sowing Seeds of Stewardship (NOVA).
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Let us know of your plans so we can report on and coordinate this effort in Northern Virginia.
Need help?
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Grants are available from the state and elsewhere
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Get free advice on landscaping for habitat from Audubon-at-Home volunteers.
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Websites which can help you connect your ministry to Care of Creation.
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Get inspired by the stories and photos from other faith communities.
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Sample maintenance contract
Unity of Fairfax
Native plants for the sanctuary
Members of the Unitarian-Universalist Church of Arlington have been decorating the church with native plants - cut flowers in the growing season, and berries and seedheads in the winter.
