International Day of Forests 2018
2018 Events around the world
To celebrate this year’s International Day of Forests, this event will gather eminent speakers presenting innovative ideas on urban farming, the integration of trees in buildings, wood construction and architecture, showing that technology and ingenuityhave no limits.
Project Extraordinary is an inaugural award competition to make sustainability sexy for consumers. The brief is to develop a concept for a short-form video that demonstrates an idea that makes sustainability so sexy it cannot be ignored any more. This initiative is a collaboration between WiLD Studios and WWF, supported by UN Environment.
Distinguished guests will discuss ‘difference’ from diverse perspectives and how engagement with the natural world, each other, and diverse spiritual traditions may bridge the divide. The evening’s guests include Duncan Murdoch, host of forest walks throughout the state with his organization, Nature Connection Guide, artist; and Steven Parker owner and manager of High Reach Farm, a diversified tree farm in Danville, VT.
Soon it will be time again: On Saturday, March 24, 2018, the next EARTH HOUR will take place! Watch as the lights go off anywhere in the world between 8:30 pm and 9:30 pm local time – as a sign of protecting our planet and calling for more climate protection.
For a nature-friendly energy transition :
The oceans are warming up, glaciers are retreating, the deserts are spreading: in order to prevent the worst effects of climate change, we must consume significantly less energy, switch to environmentally friendly renewable energies and protect the forests and oceans for climate regulation. Politics must create framework conditions, companies must save greenhouse gases, but every single one is now in demand!
Together we can promote a nature-friendly energy transition, actively influence climate policy and promote sustainable lifestyles.
Join in:
- To be active even for climate protection
- Climate and energy tips
- Participation for companies as well as cities and communities
Largest climate protection action in the world!
The WWF EARTH HOUR is a simple idea that quickly became a global event: when the first time the EARTH HOUR was switched off in 2007, it only happened in one city: Sydney. Meanwhile, the number of participants is growing from year to year. In 2017, EARTH HOUR reached hundreds of millions of people in 187 countries and territories. More than 12,000 famous buildings have been darkened.
Pope Francis said “Bring the whole human family together . . . for we know that things can change.” (Laudato Si’, 13)
Celebrate creation during mass. After mass, encourage your diocese to shrink its carbon footprint by signing postcards together.
It’s surprising, but postcards really do work.
The diocese is a moral leader. It also coordinates activities in parishes that affect a lot of people. That’s why its commitment is so important.
On Earth Day we lift our voices as one. We’re uniting in a big global effort to encourage dioceses to reduce their emissions. Here’s how it works:
- Celebrate creation during mass. After mass, work together to write postcards to the diocese.
- The postcards will encourage the diocese to put Catholic teaching into practice by reducing their greenhouse gas emissions.
- The first step is to establish an office devoted to caring for creation.
Diocesan staff are invited to a webinar led by Vatican officials.
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PLACE Your Activities on the Peace Map!
We are in Peace Month (September) and the final countdown to the 37th annual International Day of Peace!
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It is especially important to share your Peacebuilding activities on the universal Peace Map! You can add your activities for the world to see, and for people interested in joining you, by clicking here: https://
Peace Month is particularly significant this year as we honor the 20th Anniversary of The UN Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace, which is September 13th: A/RES/53/243 B Adopted by the United Nations in 1999, The Declaration and Programme of Action serves as a reminder of the importance of making Peace Day every day. The theme for the 20th Anniversary Observance is: “Empowering and Transforming Humanity.” And, we know that you are committed to doing that every day!
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We have a number of ways to get involved this month and be part of The Peace Alliance’s peacebuilding movement.
Take Action with Creation Justice Ministries This September
Check out these different ways for you and your congregation to get involved. Come back every month for new ways to take action!
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#CareForCreation: September 2019
Share the Word
September 1, 2019
Online Prayer Service for Creation Day/World Day of Prayer for Creation
Creation Day, also called the World Day of Prayer for Creation, opens the Season each year. Pope Francis, Patriarch Bartholomew, the World Council of Churches, and many other leaders have called the faithful to celebrate it. Christians from around the world are invited to join an online prayer service to come together in a joyful celebration of our common cause.
September 16, 2019
Webinar
Learn more
10:00 Eastern US / 15:00 London / 21:00 Manila
Please join us for a webinar to explore the connection between biodiversity and Christian spirituality. Speakers include Rev. Dr. Dave Bookless or A Rocha International / Lausanne Catalyst for Creation Care, Rev. Dra. Neddy Astudillo of GreenFaith Latino America, and Celia Deane Drummond of the University of Oxford. The conversation will be moderated by Rev. Rachel Mash, Environmental coordinator for the Anglican Church of Southern Africa and Green Anglicans.
September 20, 2019
Global Climate Strike
Young people from around the world will come together for a remarkable day of strikes from school to demand urgent action on the climate crisis. Their parents, neighbors, teachers, and families will stand alongside them. The climate strikes were galvanized by Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg, and each strike to date has sent more than a million people into the streets. Learn more at Laudato Si’ Generation, the climate initiative by and for young Catholics.
September 21, 2019
International Coastal Cleanup Day
For over 30 years, communities have come together to remove trash from coastlines and waterways including ponds, lakes, and rivers. Together, these volunteers remove and catalogue mountains of litter every year. Your community is invited to join. To learn more, please visit the Ocean Conservancy.
September 23, 2019
United Nations Climate Action Summit
The UN Secretary General is hosting a summit devoted to climate change, with the aim of calling the world’s attention to the urgent need to implement the Paris Agreement. The Paris pact has been agreed to by every country–only the United States has said it intends to leave it. But countries have not made policies to meet its goals. Of the 197 countries in the agreement, only seven are on track to keep warming below 2 degrees celsius, and only two are on track to keep warming below 1.5 degrees celsius. Science tells us that every fraction of a degree in warming means more hunger, more sickness, more conflict. The UN Secretary General’s summit is a chance for the people of the world to rally around real, ambitious policies to solve this crisis.
September 23, 2019
6th International Conference on Ecological Theology and Environmental Ethics, Orthodox Academy of Crete Chania, Crete, Greece
Learn more
This conference will engage theology on key ecological concerns from a variety of religious traditions and perspectives. This year’s theme is “Ecological racism and prophetical voices for ecological crisis.” The conference will be a blend of learning and discussion, while attending to the magnificent Earth and cultural context of this region of Crete.
Guide 2019 – Season of Creation Theme – Web of Life
October 4, 2019 St. Francis Day Many traditions view St. Francis as an inspiration and guide for those who protect creation. October 4 is his feast day and the last day in the Season of Creation. Faith leaders from around the world will come together to reflect on how St. Francis has informed their spiritual journey and to celebrate our month-long journey together.
THINK KINDNESS, WE CHARITY, COUNT ME IN CHAMPION KINDNESS WORLD WIDE
There’s a growing crisis among young people today. One-in-five students report being bullied, cyberbullying is on the rise, and teen suicide is at a record high. As these problems continue to worsen, many adults may be left scratching their heads. How do we stop this crisis and help our youth?
There are a lot of possible answers, but there’s one that I’d like to pose today that I think is too often overlooked: kindness.
Yes, the simple act of kindness – not just witnessing it, but participating in it – has the ability to change people’s lives for the better. To make our world safer and happier for our children, we need to be teaching them how to be kind at home, at school, and in their communities.
This may seem overly simple, but science backs it up. According to research from places like Harvard and UC Berkeley, among others, acts of kindness release chemicals in the brain, such as serotonin and oxytocin, which reduce depression and anger and boost overall happiness.
Being kind isn’t something we should just mention to our kids in passing – it should be an integral part of their daily activities.
As the founder of Think Kindness, I am blessed to have an incredible job. I go into schools all across the country and help kids tap into their inner kindness potential. In my ten years here, I’ve seen some amazing results. For instance, after my very first speech, a student who struggled with suicidal thoughts wrote me to tell me how getting involved in helping others radically changed his life for the better.
Luckily, Think Kindness isn’t the only organization that makes kindness its mission.
There’s a group called Count Me In, founded and led by youth, which helps to connect young people with volunteer opportunities in their communities and around the world. To date, the organization has inspired over 100 million volunteer hours. In addition, Count Me In has an annual leadership summit which serves as a bootcamp training kids how to be volunteers and do good in the world. I am also blessed to sit on the advisory board for such a powerful and meaningful organization.
Similarly, there’s an organization in Canada called the WE Charity which does incredible work to connect kids to acts of kindness. For instance, WE offers volunteer trips to impoverished communities around the world, giving young people a powerful chance to make a real difference for people in need.
They also host what they call We Days, which draw hundreds of thousands of children into stadiums across the world to hear nspirational messages about doing good around the world.
Organizations like these and others are essential to turning the tide of anger, depression, and sadness among our youth today.
But they need backup, because according to one study, youth volunteering has gone down over the last fifteen years. All of us – parents, teachers, community leaders – need to promote kindness to young people.
We can do it in two ways: first and foremost, by showing kindness ourselves; second, by connecting our kids to groups which can give them the tools they need to be conduits of kindness everywhere they go.
Let’s get to it – it just might change the world.
With Kindness,
Brian Williams
President & Founder, Think Kindness
#BeKindTogether
The International Day of Peace (Peace Day) is observed around the world each year on September 21st – a day to commemorate and strengthen the ideals of peace both within and among all nations and peoples.
Please join us on September 21, 2019 when HeartMath Institute and partners align in heart-focused intention to create 24 hours of peace.
Peace One Day, Heart Ambassadors, Pathways to Peace, and Peace Direct will broadcast from London a 2-minute short film with a heart-centered meditation in between a series of live events celebrating the International Day of Peace. HeartMath’s Sheva Carr and Dr. Scilla Elworthy, Founder of the Oxford Research Group and three-time Nobel Peace Prize Nominee, are collaborating with Peace One Day to help anchor this Global Heart Meditation, which will further activate the vision of the Global Coherence Initiative. Learn more about the event and Watch the Live Broadcast on Sept. 21.
Peace Wave Meditation – Moments of Mass Mindfulness (MOMM)
MOMM is thrilled to be part of the Peace Coalition network of Peace One Day and a global partner of Pace e Bene’s Campaign Nonviolence. MOMM is organizing peace meditations around the globe, each beginning at midday in your local time zone, creating a “peace wave” which will flow around the world over 24 hours as each nation and location hits midday. Register your MOMM group for International Peace Day. Learn more.
Howard Martin, one of the original co-founders of HeartMath,
will lead the Moments of Mass Mindfulness World Peace Day Meditation
on September 21st at a HeartMath workshop event in London,
10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. (BST).
More details on the public workshop from HeartMath.
At 12 – 12:30 p.m. London time,
join Howard Martin World Day Peace talk live-streaming and meditation.
You can join others on the Global Coherence App.
The HeartMath Institute and Global Coherence Initiative
We will be joining communities around the world in mass meditation using the Global Coherence app. To create this peace wave, our hope is to synchronize together and radiate heart to the world on Sept. 21, 2019 at 12:00 noon at your location.
The Global Coherence App created by HeartMath Institute connects people from all around the world who have a sincere desire to add heart to their daily lives and the world itself. The app enables anyone to join public groups. The app is free and does not require a sensor for you to actively participate. With a HeartMath pulse sensor, you can measure your individual coherence and view the coherence contribution to the Global Group as well.
Global Coherence App
You also can access guided heart-focused meditations and see your pink marker on the global map. If you have not already, sign up for the Global Coherence Initiative app. You can download the free app from Google Play or the App Store.
As part of this event, The Global Consciousness Project will be observing random number generators to see the degree to which our collective coherent fields can facilitate patterns as they evolve from chaos to coherence. Learn more.
The Global Coherence network is a community of people who strive to awaken the higher mental, emotional and spiritual capacities in themselves and the global community through genuine love, care and heartfelt compassion.
We hope you will join us and others around the world for 24 hours of Peace.
HeartMath Institute <info@heartmath.org>
21 DAYS OF ACTION:
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Join us each month on the full moon for the profound Earth Treasure Vase Full Moon Global Healing Meditation series, with Cynthia Jurs and David T. Nicol.
Fri Sept 13 // Sun Oct 13 // Tues Nov 12 // Wed Dec 11
Our mailing address is:
Alliance for the Earth
PO Box 8031
Inspired by an ancient Tibetan Buddhist tradition, the Earth Treasure Vase Global Healing Project brings healing and protection to the Earth by filling consecrated clay vessels with prayers and offerings, and ceremonially burying them in the Earth in collaboration with indigenous elders, young activists and grassroots leaders in places where healing and protection are most needed around the planet.
The project began in 1990, when Cynthia met a 106 year-old lama living in a cave in the Himalayas and asked him, What can we do to bring healing and protection to the Earth? He gave her this practice and since then, 49 Earth Treasure Vases have been planted (5 of these are in process now) in sacred places, war torn communities, mountains, forests and sources of rivers on every inhabited continent. The vases form a living global mandala of prayers and intentions for the healing of the Earth. With 21 vases still to go, the practice continues with pilgrimages to many new locations. On every full moon we gather for a guided meditation to direct our prayers and intentions into the vases and energize the global mandala, embracing Gaia with our heartfelt presence and sacred offerings.
Meet Your Facilitators
Cynthia Jurs
Cynthia Jurs, is a Lama in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition and a Dharmacharya in the Order of Interbeing of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. She is the guiding teacher at Open Way Sangha in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where she teaches a dharma path of sacred activism in response to the call of the Earth. In 1990 she made a life-changing pilgrimage to meet the hermit and meditation master, Kushok Mangden Charok Rinpoche, a 106-year-old lama living in a cave in Nepal, from whom she received the practice of the Earth Treasure Vases. Cynthia’s nonprofit, Alliance for the Earth is dedicated to facilitating a global community committed to planetary healing and collective awakening through the Earth Treasure Vase Global Healing Project and is also engaged in numerous peace-building and women’s empowerment efforts in Liberia, Africa. Cynthia directed the film, Turning Prayer Into Action: Indigenous Grandmothers Meet the Bioneers and is currently at work on a book and film entitled, Summoned By The Earth.
David Nicol, Ph.D.
David T. Nicol, Ph.D., is the executive director and co-founder of the Gaiafield Project, and co-founder of BeThePeace and WiseUSA, two initiatives that have united tens of thousands of people worldwide for large-scale meditations dedicated to social change. He is the author of Subtle Activism: The Inner Dimension of Social and Planetary Transformation (SUNY Press), the first comprehensive study of the idea that focused collective meditation and intention can contribute powerfully and measurably to social change. David has taught on Subtle Activism at the California Institute of Integral Studies, The Shift Network, and the Institute for Subtle Activism.
for the ETV Global Healing Meditation are:
Fri Sept 13 // Sun Oct 13 // Tues Nov 12 // Wed Dec 11.
World Peace Card Meditations
September 18, October 16, November 13, December 18 at 7:30pm
You are invited to take part in the next World Peace Card Meditation. Please mark your calendar and forward this email to all your friends.
Thanks for Your Help!
International Center for Reiki Training · 21421 Hilltop #28 ·
Southfield, MI 48033 · USA
William Lee Rand
The International Center for Reiki Training
Because so many of you forwarded this email to your friends, there have been more than 396,500 downloads of the World Peace Cards. This is a tremendous increase in the number of people using the cards. So far the total number of World Peace Card sets downloaded, received from our free offer and from our magazine has been over 439,700! I hope you have been using your peace cards as their use brings blessings to the world as well as to you.
The next World Peace Card group meditation has been scheduled for SEPTEMBER 18 at 7:30pm. This is local time in your time zone. This method has been chosen because of the special effect it produces. As people meditate in each successive time zone the energy builds like a wave which gets stronger and stronger as it circles the planet. Because of the higher dimensional nature of consciousness, the energy of peace will be transmitted for a full 24 hours and continue long after this.
Reports from those who took part in the previous meditations indicate many had powerful spiritual experiences. As they united with those taking part in the meditation a feeling of peace developed within that stayed with each for a long time. Some saw beautiful golden light surrounding the planet and others felt that a web of fear was dissipating and being replaced with trust in others and for our future. All those who have received the cards are being asked to meditate on world peace at this time. By taking part in this group meditation, you’ll be joining thousands of people who will be using the cards to bring peace to the world. By joining together, the affect we have will be greatly multiplied. This powerful experience and will help shift the vibration of our wonderful planet into a higher state of consciousness. As you use the cards to meditate on world peace, you will be a beacon through which peace will spread around the planet which will have a positive uplifting effect on all people. Please set aside this time to meditate with the cards. The suggested meditation period is 15 minutes, but of course you can meditate longer if you’d like to. The technique I’d like you to use is based on allowing yourself to be a beacon of peace. The World Peace Cards hold the vibration of the World Peace Grids which have been placed at spiritually significant locations and are relay stations for higher consciousness. By simply opening to their energy, you’ll become a channel for their love and peace which will flow through you to all the people on Earth. To do this, hold the cards in your hands or place them in front of you. Then simply meditate on peace. We are entering a new era. Our entire planet including all the people and living things are moving into a place where it will be much easier to solve our problems and to create peace, prosperity and happiness for everyone. The World Peace Card meditation will quicken this process, making it easier for people to experience this new quality of higher consciousness and will provide great benefit for all people. Since this benefit will be flowing through you out to everyone on the planet, you’ll be blessed by this experience as well. Many have received the cards in the mail or in the Reiki News Magazine while others have downloaded them from our web site. If you would like additional copies of the cards, please download them using this link and print as many copies as you can use. Please feel free to give them to your friends. Also, forward this email to anyone you feel would like to take part in the meditation.
World Peace Card Download
Additional World Peace Cards – https://www.reiki.org/WPCM.
Note: This is a larger file and it may take several
minutes for it to open, so please be patient.
When printing the cards from this file, print page 2 first, then place this page in your printer and print the image of the peace grids on the back.
New Reiki Grid – Send Reiki to Others
We also have a new image of the World Peace Crystal Grid that can be used for a Reiki Grid. By using it for your Reiki Grid you’ll be tapping into the energy of all the peace grids and this will add to the energy that is sent to all those whose names or photos you place in the grid making the Reiki more effective and adding wonderful feelings of peace and harmony. And each time you charge your grid, you’ll be charging the peace grids for world peace! With this system you’ll use 12 crystals around the outside – placing 1 crystal over each of the crystals in the photo plus 1 crystal in the center and 1 as your master crystal for a total of 14 crystals. The additional crystals will also hold and transmit more energy. Also, remember you can place your goals into the grid as well. I suggest printing it on glossy photo paper if you have it or you could get some at your office supply store. You’ll need to trim the one side of the grid after it’s printed. https://www.reiki.org/
Read the story of the World Peace Grids
Reiki and World Peace
by William Lee Rand
This is a pdf file of an article that appeared in the Winter 2004 issue of the Reiki News Magazine. It describes the World Peace Crystal Grid program, and the adventures William experienced placing them at the North and South Pole and in Jerusalem. The article contains lots of pictures Thank you for taking part in this group meditation.
Sincerely,
William Lee Rand
The International Center for Reiki Training
ECOLISE
The European Network for Community-led Initiatives on Climate Change and Sustainability, is the initiator and main organiser of the European Day of Sustainable Communities. We have 46 member networks and organisations across Europe
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A celebration of local communities taking action for a zero-carbon, regenerative and inclusive Europe.
This is an ECOLISE flagship event. #EDSC19 #SustainableCommunity
Become a co-creator of the day! For details see https://www.sustainable-communities.net/
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The time is now more than ever to be the change and stand up for peace and nonviolence. Our communities deserve to live their daily lives peacefully and together we can strive to make that happen. As partners of #Gandi150 and believers in the power of peace, we invite you to be part of the movement on October 2. More information here.
How to get involved on October 2:
1. Nonviolence Champion – Nominate a faculty member from your educational institution, as the champion for the event.
2. Nonviolence in Action – On October 2, host a screening of the documentary film, “From India with Love”, followed by an interactive discussion to promote peace.
3. Nonviolence in Classrooms – Lead an experiential learning module on nonviolence in the classroom and promote peace.
Join us on October 2 and share your activity with us at The Peace Alliance. Find our Facebook page here and/or tag us on Twitter at @PeaceAlliance. Use #Gandhi150 and #RethinkPeace to join the worldwide social media conversation on peace!
Thank you!
In peace and partnership!
Jelena Popovic, Teaching Peace in Schools Council Lead
and The Peace Alliance Board of Directors and Leadership Council
About The Peace Alliance
Mission:
The Peace Alliance empowers civic action toward a culture of peace.
Who We Are:
We are an alliance of organizers and advocates taking the work of peacebuilding from the margins of society into the center of national discourse and policy priorities.
We champion a comprehensive, collaborative approach to peace and peacebuilding.
