(Marquette, MI) - Dozens of youngsters from across Michigan created recycled holiday cards and homemade tea bags for gifts this weekend during the Northern Michigan University EarthKeeper's Eco-Christmas Workshop at the Peter White Public Library in Marquette.
The Northern Michigan University EarthKeeper (NMU EK) Student Team hosted the workshop from 1-4 p.m. across from the children's library attracting several mothers from the Lower Peninsula and a teacher from Paradise in the eastern Upper Peninsula who plans to bring the idea into her classroom.
While finding ways to entertain and educate her children while her husband checked out job offers in Marquette, Tara Strong of downstate Grand Blanc brought her young daughter and baby son to the Upper Peninsula Children's Museum and then the Peter White children's library.
“My husband is here interviewing for a residency position for after med school,” said Strong. “We just found out about the project from the librarian.”
“I love it. I love the recycling idea. We're also on a very limited budget and so I really like the idea of recycling and hand making things. I think it's great.”
Strong said she and her daughter “are having great fun.”
“I've been making crafts,” said four-year-old Anja Strong. “I made a tea bag and I have a honey bear stick”
Joined by her brother and a friend, 18-year-old NMU EK Student Team member Ellen Lindblom said the end of the semester meant lots of scrap paper lying around the university.
“School just ended and people have lost of papers left over” that was cut into tiny pieces by NMU EK team members, said Lindblom, an NMU freshman “You put it in the blender with a little bit of water and you blend it until it looks a little bit chunky like this.”
“You put it in a screen flatten it out - pat the water out,” said Lindblom, while using a towel and iron to dry and flatten the multicolored wet paper as 21 year-old NMU EK Student Team Director Ben Scheelk of downstate Charlevoix used a small hair dryer to speed up the process.
“We took a towel and pressed the water out to speed up the drying process a little bit,” she said. “Then flattened it out a little harder with an iron. I think it looks nice.”
His hand atop the lid on a blender that whirred with red, blue, purple and white bits of paper, Mike Robinson, a 21-year-old NMU senior geography major, from downstate Grosse Pointe, said the project is a “good holiday craft.”
“We are taking some scrap paper from various places and construction paper and making it into some pulp in a blender with some water,” said Robinson, a member of the NMU EK Student team.
Pressing the bits of soggy paper into a screen with borders, 16-year-old Negaunee High School junior Phil Lindblom said “this is what they call extreme pulp.”
“I am taking this wet paper and putting it on these screens and pushing water out of it,” said Lindbloom, whose sister is a member of the NMU EarthKeepers. “I am making new paper which is pretty exciting.”
Escanaba native Carole Beck, who teaches in third through fifth grade at the White Fish Township Community School in Paradise, said she'll take the NMU EarthKeeper's idea into her classrooms and maybe make Valentines Day cards.
“We're trying to figure out how we could create the screen there that would be the only thing that we would need extra,” Beck said. “We should be able to do that.”
The students put out bowls with spearmint, raspberry leaves, juniper berries and rose hips that the youngsters used to “make a green tea - a detoxifying beautiful beverage,” said 21-year-old NMU EK Student Team Event Coordinator Amanda Emerson of Cary, Ill. “We also have honey sticks to go along with the tea.”
The herbs were donated by Catholic EarthKeeper Kyra Fillmore and the Marquette Food Co-op.
“You just wrap those up herbs in an eco-friendly coffee filter and tie it with a string in a nice little bow and there you go,” said Emerson, an NMU Senior Majoring in International Studies (emphasis on Latin America) and Earth Science (emphasis on rocks and minerals). “There's your gift - a homemade card and homemade tea bags.”
Protecting the earth and teaching the young to respect the planet are major goals of the EarthKeepers, said 21-year-old NMU EarthKeeper Leandra Dziesinski of Alpena, MI.
“It's very important to care care of your things and the earth is absolutely our thing - it's where we're at - so we have to take care of it we only have one earth, said Dziesinski, an NMU senior graduating in May with a bachelor's degree in marketing. I think if we have a happy, safe and a clean place to live that just makes our population that much more happy.”
In September, the NMU EarthKeepers cleaned up hundreds of pounds of litter at the Upper Dead River Falls, a popular student hangout, Scheelk said.
The NMU EK Student Team is the youth wing of the Upper Peninsula EarthKeepers, an interfaith environment group involving over 150 churches and temples across northern Michigan.
The EarthKeeper Initiative is co-sponsored by the nonprofit Cedar Tree Institute, the nonprofit Superior Watershed Partnership, the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community and 10 faith communities: Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, United Methodist Church, Unitarian Universalist, Baha'i, Jewish, Quakers (Religious Society of Friends) and Zen Buddhist.
For more information on the Michigan EarthKeepers email or call the following contacts:
Ben Scheelk, Director of NMU EK Student Team bscheelk@nmu.edu
231-675-0121
Rev. Jon Magnuson, Co-Founder of EarthKeeper Initiative magnusonx2@charter.net
906-228-5494
Greg Peterson, news reporter and volunteer media advisor for the EarthKeepers and other projects earthkeeper@charter.net
906-401-0109
Nonprofit Superior Watershed Partnership in Marquette, MI http://www.superiorwatersheds.org(Marquette, MI) - Dozens of youngsters from across Michigan created recycled holiday... more
The adorable K-6th grade Navajo children during the second week of school at the Navajo Lutheran Mission in Rock Point, Arizona.
Narrated and videotaped by Rev. Dr. Lynn Hubbard, executive director of the Navajo Lutheran Mission
Featuring K-6 students, teachers and staff.
1-928-659-4201 (Office)
1-928-659-4202 (School)
Navajo Lutheran Mission School:
NELM School Principal Felisita Jones
Kindergarten teacher Sharon Woody
1st grade teacher Lark Pettit
2nd grade teacher Jolene Wilson
3rd and 4th grade teacher Pauline Wagon
5th and 6th grade teacher Eileen Holiday
Tara Chee, NELM Community Services Coordinator and Navajo Language and Culture Instructor
2009 Board of Directors
Navajo Evangelical Lutheran Mission
Ron Augustson, Chair
Janice Lee Jim
Roger Johnsen
Jerry Thomas
Bill Heincke
Richard Wixom
David Ulibarri
Jeannie M. Harvey
Christel Badey
Clarence Begay
Sue Vogel-Herrera
Alice Natale
Carol Buckley, owner of Arizona Flutes and Native Arts in Camp Verde, AZ (high desert in Verde Valley) and a non-native flute musician specializing in American Indian music.
She has Michigan roots - lived in Davison and taught school in LakeVille Public Schools in Otisville, where she was a Speech and Language Pathologist.
In 1994 Buckley decided to refocus her life, escape from the cold weather, and move to the beautiful Verde Valley in Arizona’s high desert.
She is a poet and writer who plays Native American style flute music and has great respect for the Navajo and other Native American tribes and their respective cultures/heritage.
Carol also teaches classes on how to play the Native flute.
Songs used from Carol Buckley's “Rhythm Keepers” and “Raindrops on Roses” CDs
Navajo Lutheran Mission Second Week of School & Photo Montage:
Carol Buckley's “Raindrops on Roses” CD
Track 4 “Living Life”
Track 6 “Dancing Moccasins”
Cal Farley's Girlstown, U.S.A.
Situated on 1,425 acres of land eight miles south of Whiteface, Texas, (west of Lubbock) http://www.calfarley.org/girlstown/pages/default.aspxThe adorable K-6th grade Navajo children during the second week of school at the... more
(Rock Point, AZ) - During July 2009, volunteers from the Lutheran Church of the Cross in Sacramento, CA visited the Navajo Lutheran Mission in Rock Point, AZ to assist the Navajo people with the health of their livestock.
Despite the extreme summer heat and the remote Navajo homes, church members helped deworm and vaccinate 500 sheep and goats plus 200 horses.
The volunteers from the Lutheran Church of the Cross paid for the expense of vaccinating over 700 livestock.
The vaccination program badly needs funding and anyone wish to help should contact the Navajo Lutheran Mission (see contact info below)
The Navajo Lutheran Mission extends special thanks to Arizona Navajo musician Anthony Maloney, who music is featured in this video and will be used in upcoming videos (scroll down for more info and links about Anthony Maloney)
Songs by Maloney included in this video are "Our Warriors" and "A Better Life."
Pastor serves as a Chaplain at California State University Sacramento
Church is on the Board of Directors of the Sacramento Area Campus Ministry. http://www.sacacmin.com
Wikipedia on the Navajo Nation:
The Navajo Nation (Diné Bikéyah in the Navajo language) is a semi-autonomous Native American homeland covering about 26,000 square miles (17 million acres), occupying all of northeastern Arizona, the southeastern portion of Utah, and northwestern New Mexico. It's the largest land area assigned primarily to a Native American jurisdiction within the United States. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navajo_Nation
The Navajo Lutheran Mission extends special thanks to Arizona Navajo Musician Anthony Maloney, who music is featured in this video and will be used in upcoming videos
Songs by Maloney included in this video are "Our Warriors" and "A Better Life."
Navajo (Diné) singer, songwriter and poet Anthony K. Maloney, a member of the Navajo Nation (Diné Bikéyah) from Yuba City, AZ "Music City"
The Michigan Earth Keeper Initiative promotes interfaith environment projects and America's top Muslim Imam brought just that message to Marquette, MI
Imam Hassan Qazwini, head of the Islamic Center of America, spoke on Oct. 22, 2008 at the Lutheran Campus Ministry (LCM) Lothlórien House in Marquette.
Northern Michigan University (NMU) Health & Nutrition Professor Mohey Mowafy of Marquette introduced Imam Hassan Qazwini:
Imam Hassan Qazwini:
Quoting the Qur’an, Imam Hassan Qazwini said:
Corruption (Mischief) has appeared on land and sea because of (the meed) that the hands of men have earned, that (Allah) may give them a taste of some of their deeds: in order that they may turn back (from Evil).
“Corruption has appeared on the sea and on the land due to what the man did - or what the man does.”
Meaning that God created this very beautiful, splendid planet. And he gave it to us as a gift. But he asked us not to corrupt it, not to ruin it, not to destroy it.
Did you know that in this country, we only form five percent of the world’s population, but we consume 25 percent of the world’s energy. This means that I am taking my own share - yet I am taking the share of five other people in this world. I am using my own share plus the share that belongs to five other people - I am consuming.
It means that I am stepping over my limits. And I am doing such injustice to the environment. I am selfish. I want to enjoy myself. I don’t care about the environment. I don’t care about others. I want to use everything for my own benefit only.
Many of you love hunting. How many of you hunt?
Answering the Imam’s question, reporter Greg Peterson says “I am growing my beard (for deer season) right now.”
Imam Hassan Qazwini:
Hunting is a hobby that many people love to do. In Islam, my religion, two people can hunt only.
A hunter - meaning whose career is hunting, someone who makes a living out of hunting.
And the second one: A man who is wandering the desert or the woods. And he got so hungry, and he could not find anything to eat, he went and he hunted something. He ate. That’s fine.
But for someone to do it as a hobby - it’s prohibited (in Islam).
Because God allowed me, permitted me as a human being, he gave me the right to take the life of an innocent animal only when I need it. When I need to fill my stomach. When I am hungry. Or when I need to make a living because I have to make a living.
But for me to go out and enjoy myself with the cost of killing an innocent animal - God says: ‘Here your freedom is over.’ You can not take the life of an innocent animal simply because you wanted to enjoy yourself. Simply because you wanted to have some fun.
You may tell me: “I am not going to waste it.”
I know, but what was my incentive when I hunted this animal. My incentive was to enjoy myself not because I was hungry. My point that I am trying to say is this: That God want this equilibrium to be kept and to be preserved.
We Muslims refrain from eating so many kind of fish - the kind of fish that does not have scale on the skin - we cannot eat. Why?
Because we know that if we are allowed to eat everything in the ocean then the balance the equilibrium in the ocean will be upset.
Therefor - not only my well-being - the well-being of the environment will be in danger.
So the bottom line is - that Islam is one of the religions that emphasizes protecting the environment.
You can use from the environment as much as you need - not as much as you enjoy.
Imam Qazwini http://www.icofa.com/aboutus/imam.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hassan_Al-Qazwini
Qur’an and environment: http://www.blogtoplist.com/religion/blogdetails-17864-3.html http://theislamicscience.blogspot.com/2007/04/man-and-pollution.html
Lutheran Campus Ministry Marquette http://www.nmulutherans.org/
Rev. Jon Magnuson - Non-profit Cedar Tree Institute: http://www.cedartreeinstitute.orgThe Michigan Earth Keeper Initiative promotes interfaith environment projects and... more
The Michigan Earth Keeper Initiative and the Earth Healing Initiative promote interfaith connections.
America's top Muslim Imam brought that message to Marquette, MI on Oct. 22, 2008 at the Lutheran Campus Ministry (LCM) Lothlórien House.
Imam Hassan Qazwini, head of the Islamic Center of America, says all religions, people are basically the same.
Northern Michigan University (NMU) Professor Mohey Mowafy introduced the Imam:
Imam Hassan Qazwini:
“I was born in Iraq (1964) in a city called Karbala. It’s a holy city in Iraq. After that I went to Kuwait and then to Iran. (studied in Iran). In 1992 I came to the United States.
Up until I came to the United States in 1992, I knew there were Christians in Iraq but I never had any interaction with Christians. I never had any interaction with Jews in Iraq. I lived my own inner world. In Karbala, everybody is Muslim. There were Christians, there were Jews and obviously other denominations in Iraq, but I lived my own inner world. In Karbala, everybody is Muslim, so I really did not have any interaction beyond my little world.
It was in the United States when I have my first encounter with non-Muslims.”
Imam Qazwini told a story about riding in a car with his brother in California and stopping into a busy Christian church - and discovering that all religions believe the concept of love.
He said to Muslims - Jesus is as respected and revered as Mohammad.
Imam Qazwini said all religions and peoples basically “hold the same values - the same beliefs.”
“We passed by a church in a city called West Covina. So I see a church, it was Sunday, it was a church and the parking lot was full. Probably there was over 300 to 400 cars. So I asked my brother ‘What was going on here?’ He said the pastor is giving a sermon.”
“He said ‘Are you sure you really want to go inside the church?’
I said ‘Yes.’ He said “What do you do?’ I said ‘Come on, I’m not going to covert to Christianity. What’s going on here?” (laughter) I said ‘I have a chance to see what does the pastor have to say when he speaks to this congregation.’
“And I listened ...”
“All I heard him talking about was love. Jesus loving you. You love Jesus. And about the concept of love. So as he’s talking I am listening.”
“I said to myself ‘Look, in our religion we also talk about love.”
“Muslims believe that God has 99 names. And one of his names is Al-Wadud. And Al-Wadud is “The Loving One.”
“I said to myself ‘Look almost everything he is talking about is there in my religion.’ And how similar we look. And for every word he says quoting Jesus. I have a word to quote from Mohammad. As Muslims, Jesus to us - he is a prophet as well. He is as respected as Mohammad and as revered as Mohammad because we Muslims believe there are five superior messengers - Mohammad, Jesus, Moses, Noah and Abraham.”
“So we place Jesus almost in the same place - or status - as we place Mohammad.”
“In my mind as I am listening (to the Christian pastor) These words he was uttering are resonating in my mind. And reflecting my own faith system.”
“When we do not see each other, when we do not interact with each other. We think of each other - that we are weird. I think you are weird. You may think that I am weird. You may thing that I harbor some very weird thoughts. I could be a very weird person. I could be someone who does not think like you think. And probably I would have the same thought about you.”
“But when we meet, and we mingle, and we exchange thoughts, we find how striking our similarities are.”
Be Muslims, Christians, Jews or what else - non-denominational - basically we hold the same values - the same beliefs. And we worship God with different tongues and different languages and different styles - but the direction is the same.” www.icofa.com http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hassan_Al-QazwiniThe Michigan Earth Keeper Initiative and the Earth Healing Initiative promote... more
The Native Village website does stories on Native Village youth and education. Each month this unique website puts out an issue of news about Native youth. http://www.nativevillage.org
In the November 2008 issue, Native Village takes an extensive look at the Zaagkii Wings & Seeds Project in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
The Zaagkii Project thanks and honors Native Village and its Editor Gina Boltz for the excellent story and all the work and effort that went into creating the impressive layout.
Native Village is a supporter of the Link Center Foundation: http://www.linkcenterfoundation.org
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This summer, Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC) youth and Marquette, MI teens built the first of dozens of butterfly houses and planted 26,000 native plants that help pollinators thrive.
The three-year project is important because bees are disappearing around the world at a shocking rate.
It's called Colony Collapse Disorder and the cause is unknown although human impact is suspected.
If all the world's bees disappear - all plant and human life will vanish in about 4 years.
The second biggest pollinator are butterflies - and that's why the Zaagkii Project is protecting butterflies and teaching youth about bees.
The Zaagkii Project contributors include the Marquette Community Foundation, the Negaunee Community Fund, the Negaunee Community Youth Fund, the M.E. Davenport Foundation, the Kaufman Foundation, the Phyllis and Max Reynolds Foundation, with assistance from the Upper Peninsula Children's Museum in Marquette and the Borealis Seed Company in Big Bay.
The Zaagkii Project was founded by the non-profit Cedar Tree Institute (CTI) in Marquette whose other environment projects have included wild rice restoration (Manoomin Project) and Earth Day hazardous waste collections (Earth Keeper Clean Sweep).
The Zaagkii Project is sponsored by the KBIC, CTI, Marquette County Juvenile Court and the United States Forest Service (USFS).
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Keweenaw Bay Indian Community: http://www.kbic-nsn.gov
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Rev. Jon Magnuson, Zaagkii Wings and Seeds founder & Executive Director of non-profit Cedar Tree Institute
906-228-5494 http://www.cedartreeinstitute.org
CTI volunteer media advisor Greg Peterson:
906-401-0109
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Jan Schultz, Botany & Non-native Invasive Species Program Leader
USFS Milwaukee, WI
(414) 297-1189
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Terry Miller, forest botanist
Hiawatha National Forest
Escanaba, MI.
906-789-3319
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Deb LeBlanc, WestSide Plant Ecologist
Hiawatha National Forest
Munising, MI
906-387-2512 ext. 19
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Marquette County Juvenile Court: http://www.co.marquette.mi.us/probate.htm http://www.co.marquette.mi.us/courts.htm
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Upper Peninsula Children's Museum http://www.upcmkids.org/
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Monarch Watch:: http://monarchwatch.org
Please vote daily through August 30, 2009 for story about Rev. Jon Magnuson's nonprofit environment projects in Michigan's Upper Peninsula: Vote for the story by Donna Kumpula about the EarthKeeper Initiative and the Zaagkii Project
It was weekly winner in April but now its competing against about 19 others for the big prize . Money that would help fund the projects for a year.
You'll need to register - or login if you have voted before.
Its entitled:
Creating numerous environment projects that bring together diverse groups, students, American Indians
Brief summary of projects your vote would support:
The interfaith Earth Keeper Initiative:
The interfaith EarthKeepers planted twelve thousand (12,000) trees across northern Michigan for Earth Day 2009 thanks to over 100 churches/temples from 12 religions.
During past Earth Day projects, the EarthKeepers have recycled or properly disposed over nearly 400 tons of waste including cellphones, computers (and related equipment), printers, car batteries, poisons, pesticides, oil-based paint, pharmaceuticals and much more.
The Zaagkii Project:
This summer Native American youth and at-risk teens are repairing the ecosystem along a Lake Superior beach, built dozens of Mason Bee houses including some to be placed at the U.S. National Gardens in D.C.; Native American teens this month are helping build a greenhouse for native species plants on the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community reservation.
Last summer the teens built dozens of butterfly houses for migrating Monarchs.See Links to vote below:
Please vote daily through August 30, 2009 for story about... more
12th Anniversary Retreat
Spirit of Place
Encounters of Spirituality and the Environment
Nonprofit Cedar Tree Institute in Marquette, Michigan http://www.cedartreeinstitute.com/kayaktrips.html
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Wisdom in Wilderness: The Poetic Vision of Mary Oliver, a Spirit of Place kayaking trip retreat
Kayaking 40 miles along the shores of Lake Superior coastline
August 3-7, 2009
Cost: $850 (Limited to 10 persons)
Interfaith kayaking trip along 40 miles of Lake Superior shoreline, while reading journals of 16th Century Jesuit Missionaries to the Ojibwa tribe; discussions of spirituality and nature; hearty meals including smoked fish and homemade bread; Lodging in an Historic Inn and rustic lakeside cabins.
Facilitators: Rev. John Magnuson & Rev. Lee Goodwin
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God and the Bomb
Science, Faith and the Future of Nuclear Technology
Nov. 12-15, 2009
Pecos Benedictine Monastery, New Mexico
(20 miles north of Santa Fe and 60 miles from Los Alamos)
Historical perspectives on the development of the Atomic Bomb
Small group dialogues on the faith and science with psycho-social insights on the challenge of nuclear technology
Prayers and reflection with members of the Benedictine Community
Ethical considerations for the promise and threat of nuclear energy
Afternoons in Santa Fe and at the Los Alamos National Laboratory with daily hikes in the Sangre de Christo Mountains.
Presenters:
Larry Rasmussen, PhD., Reinhold Niebuhr Professor Emeritus of Social Ethics, Union Theological Seminary
Robert Kraus, PhD., Deputy Director of Research and Development, Los Alamos National Laboratory
Facilitator:
Rev. Jon Magnuson, Director, nonprofit Cedar Tree Institute,
Cost: $850
Limited to 12 persons
Registration Deadline: September 1, 2009
Requires a $250 deposit12th Anniversary Retreat
Spirit of Place
Encounters of Spirituality and the... more
An Earth Healing message, thank you and congratulations from Lutheran Bishop Thomas A. Skrenes about the success of the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge
A Lutheran Bishop who has participated in interfaith Earth Day recycling projects for four years in a row said "the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge has been a success."
Celebrate - what a great day Earth Day has been 2008," said Lutheran Bishop Thomas A. Skrenes of the Northern Great Lakes Synod (NGLS) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). "The Earth Healing Initiative has been a great success this year."
"Computers have been recycled, pharmaceuticals have been brought together for proper disposal," Skrenes said.
"What a great opportunity it has been to be part of the ecumenical work and interfaith work of assisting others to see the environmental concerns set before us," said Bishop Skrenes of Marquette, Michigan.
With hundreds of thousands of people participating across eight states in the Midwest and Northeast, Bishop Skrenes said interfaith environment projects like the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge will help ensure a better future for all humans.
"It is a sign of great significance that people can join hands and work together," Skrenes said. "So celebrate - it is a good day for the environment and it is a good day for all of us together."
Bishop Skrenes thanked the EPA, faith communities and "people of goodwill throughout the upper Midwest who have been a part of this work."
"It has been a great day, a great week, a great Earth day 2008," Skrenes said.
"The EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge has been a part of the lives and will be a part of the future of this whole area."
Bishop Skrenes is one of the original nine faith leaders who signed the Earth Keeper Covenant in Michigan's Upper Peninsula in 2004 that lead to many interfaith projects
Background: Earth Healing Initiative and the Michigan Earth Keeper Initiative
The Cedar Tree Institute (CTI) co-founded the interfaith Earth Keeper Initiative in Michigan's Upper Peninsula that works closely with ten faith traditions on a wide range of environment projects that include college students, at-risk teens, American Indian tribes and others.
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The CTI Earth healing Initiative is developing the same relationship with the same faith communities in northern Michigan and others across the Great lakes.
The faith communities include Roman Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, United Methodist Church, Unitarian Universalist, Baha'i, Jewish, The Religious Society of Friends (commonly known as the Quakers) and Zen Buddhist.
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For more information:
Bishop praises interfaith success of the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge
Marquette, Michigan - A Lutheran Bishop who has participated in interfaith Earth Day recycling projects for four years in a row said.
"Celebrate - what a great day Earth Day has been 2008," said Lutheran Bishop Thomas A. Skrenes of the Northern Great Lakes Synod (NGLS) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). "The Earth Healing Initiative has been a great success this year."
"Congratulations Earth Healers - you've done it, it has been a success," Bishop Skrenes said. "The EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge has been a great success."
"Computers have been recycled, pharmaceuticals have been brought together for proper disposal," Skrenes said. "Congratulations to those members of the faith communities and others who have been a part of this."
"We are all environmentalists," said Skrenes of Marquette, MI. "All of us want clean air to breathe, all of us want clean drinking water. We all enjoy the outdoors and nature."
"No matter our political understandings are, no matter where we are on the liberal and conservative line - no matter what we think of any of the big issues facing thee one of us - world today - all of us can agree that it is in all of our interests."
"We can all certainly conserve and save and bring back and then give to the next generation what has been given to us."
Bishop Skrenes said interfaith environment projects like the challenge ensure a better future for all humans.
"It is a sign of great significance that people can join hands and work together," Skrenes said.
Bishop Skrenes thanked the EPA, faith communities and "people of goodwill throughout the upper Midwest who have been a part of this work."
"Thanks to the Environmental Protection Agency for their help and assistance in all of this work," Bishop Skrenes said. The EPA challenge "has been a part of the lives and will be a part of the future of this whole area."
"It is a wonderful opportunity to begin to look at what it is that we hold in common," Skrenes said. "What we hold in common is this wonderful Great Lakes basin."
"This is a wonderful place with lakes and streams and forests everywhere in the Midwest, and the great plains and the great fields," Skrenes said. "We have been a part of saving some of this and making a difference."
"Sometimes we become so focused on what divides us, what disconnects us, what separates us - and there are important things that sometimes do that - but yet we can all have loyalty and allegiance to this world that has been our home and this of the world that we have been blessed with by God."
"God has given us the privilege of living here in the midst of these lakes and all of this beautiful nature," Skrenes said.
"When people of faith, whether they be of Christian traditions or of other traditions, gather together to work on what connects us. One of those things that connects us is respect and awe for the creation that surrounds us."
"We are part of a movement together in these early years of the Twenty-first Century to save what has been given to us by the generations before us and what God has provided to us," Skrenes said.
Bishop Skrenes is one of nine faith leaders who signed the Earth Keeper Covenant in northern Michigan in 2004 that lead to many interfaith projects.
The Cedar Tree Institute co-founded the interfaith Earth Keeper Initiative in Michigan's Upper Peninsula that works closely with ten faith traditions on a wide range of environment projects that include college students, at-risk teens, American Indian tribes and others.
The EHI is developing the same relationship with faith communities across the Great lakes.
The faith communities include Roman Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, United Methodist Church, Unitarian Universalist, Baha'i, Jewish, the Religious Society of Friends (commonly known as the Quakers) and Zen Buddhist.
"Everyday is Earth Day," Skrenes said.Bishop praises interfaith success of the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge... more
Residents of the Kalamazoo and all of southwest Michigan can to their part to protect the Great Lakes during a free public pharmaceutical collection later this month.
Old and unwanted medicines and personal care products will be accepted on Saturday, June 21, from 9 a.m.-1:00 p.m. at the Loy Norrix High School in Kalamazoo.
The event is sponsored by Kalamazoo County Health and Community Services, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that provided a grant for the project.
The collection is part of the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge involving over 100 projects in eight states across the Great Lakes Basin.
Southwest Michigan residents can rid their home of unwanted prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceuticals plus personal care products.
Items that will be accepted include:
Prescription medication, such as antibiotics, birth control, and insulin
Medication samples and over-the-counter medication, such as ibuprofen, aspirin, cold medicine
Personal care products, such as medicated ointments, lotions, and shampoos
Veterinary medications
Items that will not be accepted include:
Medical waste like sharps and syringes and products containing mercury like thermometers.
The collection is free to southwest Michigan households.
Organizers say the collection is important to protect Lake Michigan and other lakes/streams like Arcadia Creek.
An investigation by the Associated Press found a wide variety of pharmaceuticals, including antibiotics, mood stabilizers and hormones, in the drinking water of 41 million Americans.
Most medications pass untreated through wastewater treatment plants because those facilities are not designed to remove the chemicals.
The pharmaceuticals are discharged into local rivers or groundwater.
For more info call 269-373-5211.
The goal of the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge was collecting/recycling of one million pounds of e-waste plus the collection/proper disposal of a million pills. The goals were exceeded by 500 percent..
The Earth Healing Initiative (EHI) offered interfaith liaisons to volunteer and encourage members of local churches/temples to participate in the Earth Day events in their area.
This video on EPA Challenge projects was made possible by a grant from the US Environmental Protection Agency, the EPA Region 5 office in Chicago, the EPA Great Lakes National Program Office in Chicago with the non-profit Interfaith EHI in Marquette MI
The EHI involves American Indian tribes and a coalition of churches, synagogues and other faith traditions joining together to heal, protect and defend the environment.
I’m Greg Peterson Earth Healing TV
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Related Links
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Kalamazoo County Health and Community Services http://www.kalcounty.com/hcs
EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge removed a huge amount of electronic waste and pharmaceuticals from eight states.
The goal of the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge was the collecting and recycling of one million pounds of electronics (e-Waste) plus the collection and proper disposal of one million pills.
These goals were exceeded many times over.
A few examples:
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In Milwaukee, WI: 32 tons of electronic waste and 3.5 tons of pharmaceuticals were turned in.
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At the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin near Green Bay: Approx. 4 tons of e-waste was collected plus thousands of pounds of other trash cleaned from reservation Tribal members turned in over 23 pounds of medicines including 100 bottles of pills, more than 25 computers and dozens of related components like hard drives, printers, keyboards and speakers; televisions, radios, DVD players, 12 cell phones and over 100 small batteries.
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In Traverse City, MI: Over 28,750 pounds (over 12.5 tons) of computers and other e-waste was collected.
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The electronic waste is recycled, and the pharmaceuticals are incinerated in state-of-the-art EPA -license facilities.
So why is this important?
The old and broken electronics - like computers, cell phones and TVs - contain heavy metals that can leach into the groundwater if dumped into landfills.
The unused pharmaceuticals can end up in your drinking water if they are flushed or poured down the drain.
That’s because most wastewater treatment facilities are not designed to remove chemicals from these pharmaceuticals including hormones, narcotics, seizure medication and many more - that end up back in your drinking water.
In an April 2008 press conference in Milwaukee, EPA and other officials explained why the Great Lakes Challenge and similar projects are important to protect the environment and your health.
Pharmaceutical chemicals are sent back out into the Great Lakes, rivers and other places were people recreate and are the intakes for drinking water.
Studies show that the chemicals are appearing in the nation’s drinking water in small amounts - the long term effects are not known - however they have been linked to mutations in fish and other wildlife.
Also - these medicines can be stolen, diverted or accidentally ingested by children - if they languish in your medicine cabinet.
Around the country many e-waste and pharmaceutical take back programs have been developed by governments and local businesses.
Please check with your local officials to find out details for your area.
Because every day should be Earth Day.
This video on the projects connected to the Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge was made possible by a grant from the US Environmental Protection Agency in collaboration with the EPA's Region 5 office in Chicago the EPA Great Lakes national Program Office also in Chicago in cooperation with the non-profit Interfaith Earth Healing Initiative in Marquette, Michigan.
The EHI involves American Indian tribes and "a coalition of churches synagogues and other faith traditions joining together to heal protect and defend the environment" said EHI founder Rev Jon Magnuson of Marquette.
I’m Greg Peterson and you’re watching Earth Healing TVEPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge removed a huge amount of electronic waste and... more
Milwaukee area residents turned in 32 tons of electronic waste and 3.5 tons of pharmaceuticals during two events in EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge.
About 3.5 tons of pharmaceuticals were turned during Medicine Collection Day on Saturday, April 19, 2008 organized by the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD).
The Milwaukee Department of Public Works (DPW) organized an electronics collection on Saturday, April 26, 2008 that garner about 32 tons of electronics. The site off-loaded an average of three cars per minute. About 700 cars dropped off electronics called e-waste.
More than two thirds of the collection was computers and related equipment.
The DPW collected 643 computer monitors weighing over ten tons; 338 televisions weighing over 5 tons, over 7 tons of personal computers and nearly 5 tons of computer printers. Eight percent of the collection, nearly 5,000 pounds, involved miscellaneous e-waste like cell phones.
The challenge was important because scrap electronics are the fastest growing segment of municipal solid waste stream.
E-waste may contain hazardous materials including lead, mercury and heavy metals that can pose a risk to human and environmental health. The EPA awarded $500,000 in grants to numerous cities participating in the challenge including the city of Milwaukee.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said the "recycling televisions and computers reduces the risks of toxins contained in these products being released into our air and water."
Event partners included the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, city of Milwaukee Department of Public Works (DPW), Keep Greater Milwaukee Beautiful, the Italian Community Center, Midwest Computer Recyclers and WISN-TV.
About 3.5 tons of pharmaceuticals were turned during the Milwaukee area's Medicine Collection Day sponsored by the MMSD.
The collection name was a "prescription for clean water and safe kids."
Veolia Environmental Services incinerates non-controlled substances at a federally licensed facility.
Medicine collection partners:
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Milwaukee Police, Milwaukee Brewers, City of Milwaukee, Aurora Pharmacy, Columbia St. Mary's, City of Racine, Racine Police Department, Burlington Police Department, Western Racine County Health Department, Caledonia/Mt. Pleasant Health Department, Ozaukee County Public Health Department, Ozaukee County Sheriff's Department, Milwaukee Area Technical College, Village of Saukville, Washington County, Washington County Sheriff's Department, and City of West Bend Sewer Utility.
For more information call MMSD Public Information Manager Bill Graffin at 1-414-225-2077
The MMSD distributed nearly 200,000 postcards promoting the event that has been widely publicized by area media.
The Earth Healing Initiative (EHI) distributed the final 5,000 cards to interfaith contacts in the Milwaukee area.
The EHI local interfaith liaison is Rev. Brad Brown, campus pastor at Marquette University Lutheran Campus Ministry in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The Milwaukee events were among about 100 projects involving hundreds of communities across eight states around the Great Lakes basin that participated in the EPA Earth Day 2008 challenge.
The goal was the collecting and recycling of one million pounds of electronics plus the collection and proper disposal of one million pills.
The EHI assisted challenge organizers by offering interfaith liaisons to volunteer and encourage members of local churches and temples to participate in the Earth Day related events in their area.
This video was made possible by a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5 office and the EPA Great Lakes national Program Office in Chicago to the EHI in Marquette MI.
The EHI involves American Indian tribes and "a coalition of churches synagogues and other faith traditions joining together to heal protect and defend the environment" said founder Rev Jon Magnuson of Marquette.Milwaukee area residents turned in 32 tons of electronic waste and 3.5 tons of... more
The Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin contributed over 4 tons of electronic and pharmaceutical waste to the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge.
This is the first of several videos explaining the tribes numerous projects that included cleaning up the reservation, replacing gang symbols with Native American art, teaching youth about the legend of the sturgeon and its place in tribal culture.
In part one, the non-profit interfaith Earth Healing Initiative looks at the many recycling projects of the College of Menominee nation.
The Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin in Keshena is being praised for its massive cleanup projects during the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge - involving over 100 projects across eight states that comprise the Great lakes basin.
The college of Menominee Nation held a pharmaceutical and electronic waste collection as part of the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge.
Other tribal projects during the challenge included the clean up of two reservation communities by tribal school students, the Menominee Teen Court Panel, and many other volunteers.
All classes at the tribal school taught the students about the sturgeon, that is a vital part of Menominee heritage.
Called the protector guardian of Menominee wild rice, the sturgeon used to spawn on the reservation until a man made dam blocked the route to ancestral spawning grounds.
The students whitewashed gang graffiti at a skateboard park replacing it with American Indian art.
"The younger students put their hands in paint and made flower hand prints on the wall," said teacher Beth Waukechon.
Adults participated in the challenge in a big way - as the tribe's Solid Waste and Recycling Department held curbside e-waste collections during Earth week 2008 - and all month accepted e-waste at the transfer station.
Native American and other students also made garbage monsters at the Keshena Public Schools with help from their parents using common every day trash from home.
More than four tons of e-waste and other recyclables were removed from the reservation during April.
At the College of Menominee Nation, over 23 pounds of medicines were turned in including 100 bottles of pills, more than 25 computers and dozens of related components like hard drives, printers, keyboards and speakers; televisions, radios, DVD players, 12 cell phones and over 100 small batteries.
Sponsors include the tribe's Community Resource Center, Menominee County Police, Menominee Tribal Police, Tribal Clinic Wellness Program (Maehnowesekiyah), Probation and Parole, Community Recycling Project, Recreation Department and the U.S. Post Office in Keshena.
While hosting the collection, the college's Implementing Sustainable Development class found out they won the National Recycling Coalition Bin Grant through Coca-Cola, said professor William Van Lopik, Ph.D.
"One of premises of the class is to do things, not just talk about what we are going to do and how the world is going to be changed, but having students do things," Dr. Van Lopik said.
The grant pays for 50 recycling bins.
The class has participated in the ten-week Recycle Mania project two years in a row that involves weighing recyclables as they leave the building. This year, the class ranked 136 out of 200 colleges and universities with 8 pounds of recyclables per person, beating out Ohio State and Georgetown, Van Lopik said.
This video on the projects connected to the Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge was made possible by a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in collaboration with the EPA Region 5 office in Chicago, and the EPA Great Lakes national Program Office in cooperation with the non-profit Interfaith Earth Healing Initiative in Marquette, MI.
The EHI involves American Indian tribes and "a coalition of churches, synagogues and other faith traditions joining together to heal, protect and defend the environment," said EHI founder Rev. Jon Magnuson of Marquette, Michigan.The Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin contributed over 4 tons of electronic and... more
Some of Michigan's elected officials - like Governor Jennifer Granholm - are selling out the beautiful streams and lush forests of the Upper Peninsula in exchange for some quick cash.
Many people who once loved our governor - now think Granholm doesn't deserve to be a democrat - because she's acting like a Republican.
Granholm and others - like famous actor/director Jeff Daniels - proclaim their love for the Upper Peninsula but are remaining strangely silent in the fight to stop Kennecott Minerals and other mining companies from building sulfide mines nicknamed "acid" mines.
Granholm, Daniels and others with power should be leading the fight to stop the Eagle Project.
In fact - the governor's top Upper Peninsula aide - her point man on the mine issue - recently quit his job to take a lucrative position with Kennecott''s parent company. That speaks volumes as the gov remains tight-lipped.
The National Wildlife Federation has produced a documentary about the gallant fight to protect the Upper Peninsula.
The public is invited to a free showing of the film om Dec. 5, 2008 in Marquette at Northern Michigan University.Some of Michigan's elected officials - like Governor Jennifer Granholm - are... more
(Chicago, Illinois) - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Mary A. Gade celebrated Earth Day 2008 with crowds gathered at Daley Plaza in Chicago.
Gade encouraged everyone to participate in the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge that runs through the end of April.
While some events were held last weekend, many of the challenge electronic and pharmaceutical collections are this Saturday, April 26 across eight states.
During the event, Gade and other EPA officials dropped their unwanted medications into a collection barrel. Based on early results, the EPA says the challenge is a big success and they expect to reach the goal of one million pounds of electronics recycled and one million pills properly disposed.
Gade noted how far the fight to protect the environment in America has come over the past 40 years - reminding Chicago residents there was a time when it was necessary to turn on their car headlights to navigate through steel mill pollution that hung thickly in the air on the south side of Lake Michigan.
Gade reminded those gathered of the times when American rivers caught fire from industrial pollution in big cities like the infamous blazes on the Cuyahoga River in Ohio.
Gade thanked the city of Chicago, the Chicago Police Department, the U.S. General Services Administration, the U.S. Post Office, the state of Illinois, the Illinois EPA and many others for working with the USEPA to make the challenge possible and for helping to ensure the busy collection sites operate without a problem.
The city of Chicago has another pharmaceutical collection scheduled this Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3 pm on Goose Island at the Household Chemicals and Computer Recycling Facility, 1150 N. North Branch St.(Goose Island), Chicago.
(Marquette, Michigan) - The Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge is in its biggest week with help from interfaith groups and American Indians in reaching the goal of one million pounds of electronics and one million pills.
The EPA issued the challenge to Great Lakes basin residents participating in over 100 projects that are collecting pharmaceuticals, electronics and household poisons. The EPA awarded grants to some of the projects.
Interfaith groups are involved in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Ohio, New York and Pennsylvania. An EPA grant helped start the non-profit Earth Healing Initiative (EHI).
Trust between religions and interfaith environment projects are vital to protect the future of the earth, said a Lutheran bishop, who has participated in numerous Earth Day recycling projects.
"We are in an environmental crisis in many ways," said Lutheran Bishop Thomas A. Skrenes of the Northern Great Lakes Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. "The Great Lakes watershed is really a kind of a mother to all of us here in the upper Midwest."
The EHI involves American Indian tribes and "a coalition and partnership of churches, synagogues and other faith traditions joining together and sharing their projects and resources to heal, protect and defend the environment," said founder Rev. Jon Magnuson of Marquette, Michigan.
The Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin (MITW) is holding a curbside pickup of electronics for members during Earth Week, April 21-24. Over 1,000 pounds of electronics have been turned in at the MITW transfer station since April 1. The College of Menominee Nation hosts pharmaceutical/electronics collections on April 22.
On Friday, April 25, students at the tribal K-8 school are picking up litter and cleaning up the a reservation community. Students recently created "Garbage Monsters" out of bottles other items found in their trash, said Diana Wolf, MITW Solid Waste/Recycling Coordinator. Students gave presentations on other uses for the garbage.
"This interfaith earth healing effort is really a great gift that has been given to all of us," Skrenes said. “The church is called to bring people together to be part of the healing."
Examples of established interfaith organizations that are assisting the EHI include the University of Minnesota Lutheran Campus Ministry, the Duluth Arrowhead Interfaith Council, Marquette University Ministry in Milwaukee, several Catholic interfaith groups and the ELCA office of Ecumenical Formation.
The interfaith EHI is one of numerous environment and Native American projects founded by the non-profit Cedar Tree Institute in Marquette, Michigan including the Earth Keepers who removed more than 370 tons of e-waste, pharmaceuticals and household hazardous waste during three Earth Day clean sweeps.
The northern Michigan Earth Keepers belong to ten faith traditions with 150 churches and temples including Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, United Methodist Church, Unitarian Universalist, Bahá'í, Jewish, Zen Buddhist and the Quakers. The EHI is working with the same faith traditions.
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EPA: http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/earthday2008 http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/earthday2008/events.html
EPA Press Release: http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/dc57b08b5acd42bc852573c90044a9c4/bb279434e6f40c6e8525743200582794!OpenDocument
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Earth Healing Initiative: http://www.EarthHealingInitiative.org
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Interfaith graphics by Justice St. Rain (Bah'i Community)
Interfaith Resources - Special Ideas website: http://www.interfaithresources.com
1-800-326-1197
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Duluth
University of Minnesota LCM: http://www.d.umn.edu/lcm/index.html
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Arrowhead Interfaith Council: http://www.arrowheadinterfaith.org/home.html
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Milwaukee
Marquette University LCM: http://www.mulutherans.com http://www.marquette.edu/um
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Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin: http://www.menominee-nsn.gov
College of Menominee Nation http://www.menominee.edu(Marquette, Michigan) - The Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge is in its biggest... more
(Chicago, Illinois) - Faith leaders across eight Great Lakes states are urging their members to participate in an Earth Day 2008 challenge to collect one million pounds of electronics and more than one million pills because trust is needed between all people to stop “an environmental crisis.”
The U.S. EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge is in high gear with more than 100 projects involving hundreds of communities collecting pharmaceuticals, electronics and household poisons.
An EPA grant to the non-profit interfaith Earth Healing Initiative (EHI) is mobilizing religious communities in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Ohio, New York and Pennsylvania.
A Lutheran Bishop who has participated in numerous interfaith Earth Day recycling projects hopes people of all faiths will help protect the environment.
“We are in an environmental crisis in many ways,” said Lutheran Bishop Thomas A. Skrenes of the Northern Great Lakes Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). “The Great Lakes watershed is really kind of a mother to all of us" in the Midwest.
Interfaith environment projects like the challenge will help ensure a better future for all humans, Skrenes said, adding “sometimes it's trusting each other that really counts in environmental work.”
“The culture, the society and the environment are now connecting in some fantastic new ways to build relationships between people,” Skrenes said. “We are building trust along and across denominational lines.”
The EHI is a coalition of American Indian tribes and a "partnership of churches, synagogues and other faith traditions joining together and sharing their projects and resources to heal, protect and defend the environment,” said founder Rev. Jon Magnuson of Marquette, Michigan.
Saying “it’s not your grandfather’s environment movement anymore,” Skrenes said that environmental work is now more mainstream and no longer “an obscure thing for a certain group of people” unlike 40 years ago when he was in high school “and I dare say some of my relatives said it was kind of a hippie movement.”
“The church is called to bring people together to be part of the healing,” Skrenes said. “This interfaith earth healing effort is really a great gift that has been given to all of us."
Interfaith organizations assisting the EHI include the University of Minnesota Lutheran Campus Ministry, the Arrowhead Interfaith Council in Duluth, the Marquette University Ministry outlets in Milwaukee, several Catholic interfaith groups and the ELCA office of Ecumenical Formation and Inter-Religious Relations.
The interfaith EHI is one of numerous environment and Native American projects founded by the non-profit Cedar Tree Institute in Marquette, Michigan including the Earth Keepers, who removed more than 370 tons of e-Waste, pharmaceuticals and household poisons during three Earth Day clean sweeps.
The northern Michigan Earth Keeper project involves the congregations of over 150 churches and temples representing ten faith communities: Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, United Methodist Church, Unitarian Universalist, Bahá'í, Jewish, Zen Buddhist and the Religious Society of Friends commonly known as the Quakers.
The EHI is coordinating the same interfaith relationships. For more info call 906-401-0109(Chicago, Illinois) - Faith leaders across eight Great Lakes states are urging their... more
(Marquette, Michigan) - The new non-profit Earth Healing Initiative, based in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, is honoring faith-based and Native American environmental projects across the Great Lakes.
The interfaith Earth Healing Initiative (EHI) is currently collaborating with the USEPA to promote the Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge iacross eight states including providing faith community volunteers and spreading the word in churches and temples.
The EHI is one of several faith-based environment projects created by the non-profit Cedar Tree Institute in Marquette, Michigan.
Rev. Jon Magnuson said it's important for people of faith to protect the environment because the Christian church is at a “tipping point” in its relationship with itself and the Earth.
Quoting nineteenth century theologian Walter Rauschenbusch, Magnuson said “if a man or woman wants to be a Christian - she or he - must stand over and against things as they are and condemn them in the name of a higher conception of life revealed by Jesus.”
“I believe the environmental crisis that we are now involved in is a great tipping point in the church’s own evolution of its self-understanding,” Magnuson.
Roman Catholic theologian Thomas Berry “talks about three rivers converging at this time in human history,” said Magnuson, Cedar Tree Institute/Earth Healing Initiative founder.
“The first river is an avalanche and explosion of scientific knowledge that is pointing to the interconnectedness of everything,” Magnuson said. “The greatest polluter of Lake Superior (is) a major factory in China."
“We have atmospheric loading here where contaminants are carried over by wind currents and then deposited in rainfall,” said Magnuson. “The second stream is the health crisis that is facing us - the CDC (reports) 80 percent of all cancers are environmentally triggered."
“The third river Thomas Berry calls ‘Indigenous wisdom” - wisdom from the native communities around the world that is resurging,” Magnuson said. “For instance, their protection and use of plants both in Latin and South America as well in parts of north America - the protection of sacred sites."
“We realize now these are connected to protection of plants, animals and an ecosystem that holds great medicinal qualities for communities and individuals,” Magnuson explained.
“So these rivers are coming together,” said Magnuson. “It is an historic time - it is a tipping moment, a tipping point - the church needs to be here."
Magnuson recognized the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin that has three projects connected to the Earth Day Challenge and thanked the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community and other tribes that participated in Cedar Tree Institute events like the four-year restoration of Upper Peninsula wild rice beds by at-risk teens and tribal elders called the Manoomin Project.
The KBIC participated in the three Earth Keeper Clean Sweeps that saw the public turn in over 370 tons of hazardous waste, pharmaceuticals and electronics across northern Michigan. The annual Earth Day (2005-2007) collections were part of the interfaith Earth Keeper Initiative.
“The Native American community has been a partner with us from the very beginning on everyone of our projects,” Magnuson said. “They sent volunteers (and) provided several trucks to be able to haul polluted materials and hazardous waste.
“So we are thankful to many of the tribes here in northern Michigan for being partners and we look forward to working with tribes in the Earth healing Initiative,” Magnuson said.
The Cedar Tree Institute co-founded the Earth Keepers who work closely with ten faith traditions on environment projects that include college students, at-risk teens, American Indian tribes and others.
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The CTI Earth healing Initiative is developing the same relationship with these faith communities in northern Michigan and others across the Great lakes.
The faith communities: Roman Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, United Methodist (Marquette, Michigan) - The new non-profit Earth Healing Initiative, based in... more
Youth and adults at the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin plan three events as part of the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge
(Keshena, Wisconsin) - As the students of all ages plan a major hands-on clean up of a tribal community and the recycling of electronics and proper disposal of unwanted medications to honor Earth Day 2008, adult members of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin in Keshena, WI have already turned in several thousand pounds of electronic waste as part of a national Earth Day Project.
The Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin is collecting e-Waste all month including during the tribe's regular curbside bulk items Spring Cleaning collection on April 21-24 (Monday thru Thursday).
"We are getting lots of electronics right now," said Diana Wolf, the MITW Solid Waste/Recycling Coordinator.
The projects are part of the eight-state Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge sponsored by the USEPA. The events are being promoted by the interfaith Earth Healing Initiative that teams numerous faith communities and American Indian tribes with local challenge organizers to be volunteers and participants in the projects spread across the Great Lakes basin.
During the first week of April, the tribe’s drop-off sites collected several thousand pounds of electronics including 919 pounds of "low-grade circuit boards" removed from TV sets, stereos, high quality computers, cassette players and other electronics.
Wolf estimated that about two tons (4,000 pounds) of electronics will be turned in by the end of the month.
“We will do whatever it takes to do cradle to grave recycling,” Wolf said. "We are not making a profit off of it but it is the right thing to do."
On April 25 students at the Menominee Tribal School (k-8) will be cleaning the area around the school of litter and recyclables and other downtown areas of Neopit. The tribe's 234,000-acre reservation includes the communities of Keshena, Zoar and South Branch.
"The students will be picking up litter and recyclables - and anything that's on the roads or sidewalks or the yards," Wolf said, adding the students will be planting 50 saplings.
"We are inviting the parents to bring a potluck and there will likely be wild rice and other Native American dishes," Wolf said.
The lunch will include a drama performance and include Native Music involving the "Wind Eagle Drum" or the "high school drum" consisting of students who are learning the music of the Menominee tribe's history.
"Our school is very much a cultural-motivated school," Wolf said. "The school teaches about the Menominee culture and language. The students learn about our Menominee history and our language amongst the non-native teaching."
"My children speak fluent Menominee because they have been in the school for three years," Wolf said.
Menominee tribal college students are doing their part to protect the planet with e-Waste and pharmaceutical collections.
The College of Menominee Nation (State Hwy. 47/55) in Keshena, is accepting e-waste and unwanted medicines on April 22 from 9 a.m. to noon and accepting e-Waste from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the commons building.
The college’s Implementing Sustainable Development class is hosting the collection with help from the tribe's solid waste coordinator.
The e-Waste collection will accept electronics including old/broken computers, cell phones and batteries.
The pharmaceutical collection is accepting old and unwanted medications that must be in their original bottle or container.
