History of Creation Justice Ministries
Creation Justice Ministries started under the umbrella of The National Council of the Churches USA, and operated as the National Council of Churches Eco-Justice Program until 2013. Learn more about our history by following the timeline below.
1983
1983
- The National Council of Churches (NCC) Eco-Justice Working Group is founded to help national bodies of Protestant and Orthodox Christian communions collaborate on care for creation. The Working Group formed as a merger of committees on simple lifestyle and on responding to the acid rain crisis.
- NCC releases news article supporting the need to preserve the environment and seek balance between ecology and industry.
- NCC begins working with farming families in conjunction with efforts to deal with farm crisis issues
- NCC publishes statement affirming belief in God's purposeful creation and in the unique responsibility of humans to care for creation.
- NCC cosponsors environmentalists and social justice advocates from both church and secular organizations under common cause: Eco-Justice.
- NCC participates in regional glass recycling program in Washington DC called “Operation Igloo.”
- NCC weighs in on genetic engineering of food and the potential for serious environmental problems.
- NCC, along with other organizations, produce materials advocating to halt the ravaging of forests.
- NCC releases statement during Louisiana Toxics March, saying clean water is a gift from God.
- Article titled Ethics of Recycling is published in the Washington Post and receives positive feedback from public.
- NCC releases statement calling on companies to address effects of products and production processes on employees, communities and the environment.
- NCC helps to host hearings on toxic waste and pollution.
- NCC begins meeting regularly on environmental issues with its Protestant, Orthodox, historic black church, and historic peace church communions.
- NCC distributes 101 “suggestions for environmental action” to 350,000 Protestants.
- NCC commits to collaboration across denominations; environmental integrity and justice must occupy a position of utmost priority for people of faith.
- NCC establishes an office on environmental and economic justice.
- NCC helps sponsor the first of two People of Color Environmental Leadership Summits.
- NCC delivers environmental plea to Bush administration: cut gas emissions, protect forests, reduce toxic waste and preserve biodiversity.
- NCC sponsors National Black Church Environmental and Economic Justice Summit (Washington, DC).
- NCC joins with the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Evangelical Environmental Network, to form the National Religious Partnership for the Environment.
- Vice President Al Gore makes address to a two-day "environmental and economic justice" summit sponsored by the NCC.
- NCC participates in Toxic Tours and Hearings in El Paso, TX.
- A Lobby Day is organized for NCC communion representatives.
- NCC Eco-Justice produces Caring for Creation a video on the Endangered Species Act.
- NCC goes to Capitol Hill to deliver a message: “Organized religion is taking the environment seriously.”
- Environmental Justice Covenant Congregation Program and Environmental Justice Resource Distribution Center is developed.
- NCC produces It's God's World: Christians, the Environment, and Climate Change a study resource guide.
- NCC General Assembly passes a Resolution on Paper Use.
- Your Health and the Environment, a study guide with thirteen sessions exploring the impact of the environment on human health is published by Eco-Justice.
- NCC makes environmental health the theme for Earth Day Sunday.
- NCC receives $50,000 grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to make church buildings more energy efficient.
- Earth Day Sunday theme, Sustainable Living.
- NCC hosts Ecumenical Conference on Environmental Justice, “Christ is in Our Midst,” in Chicago.
- Energy Stewardship Guide for Congregations produced by National Council of Churches
- Earth Day Sunday theme is Good Stewards of God's Gift of Energy
- Earth Day Sunday theme, Witnessing to the Resurrection: God's Caring for Creation
- NCC sponsors three-day "Environmental Justice" conference and rally on Capitol Hill meeting here to promote ecological policies.
- NCC urges people to switch to fluorescent lightbulbs to help reduce carbon dioxide emissions by power plants
- NCC helps to sponsor the second People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit
- Earth Day Sunday theme, Caring for God's Creation: Making the World Safe for Children
- NCC launches Young Adult Eco-Justice Fellowship Program in Port Isobel, VA
- NCC admonishes Bush administration for failing to adequately protect God’s gift of air. It is covered on CNN, NPR and a full page New York Times ad.
- NCC collects hundreds of signatures opposed to the Roadless Area Conservation.
- Historic letter on global climate change (from the National Religious Partnership for the Environment) receives press coverage in the Wall Street Journal.
- NCC Eco-Justice Conference in Seattle theme is "Enough for All: Sustainable Living in a Global World"
- NCC conducts a Theological Gathering on the Environment with top environmental scholars.
- Earth Day Sunday theme is Waters of Life: Enough for All
- Clear Sky ad runs in New York Times New Initiatives
- NCC is invited to teach at the Iliff School of Theology
- Fourteen (14) congregations in the Denver area join resources to work on environmental projects, including mass transit.
- NCC drafts letter on the Clean Air Act to President Bush.
- NCC participates in open letter to U.S. Senate: Earth's Climate Embraces Us All
- "Summit Meeting" with major partners on environmental issues.
- Living Waters regional water gathering in Toledo, OH
- Theological Gathering at the National Cathedral
- Water Gathering & Clergy training in Annapolis, MD
- Launch of 6-week adult education curriculum: Our Place & Purpose in Creation
- Earth Day Sunday theme, Life-Giving Breath of God: Protecting the Sacred Gift of Air
- NCC places ad in Roll Call asking Congress to address climate change and join the Kyoto process.
- Launch of The Earth is the Lord’s, an online anthology of resources for study on land stewardship and wilderness preservation.
- Launch of searchable database for groups involved in Creation Care work.
- NCC begins management of the Interfaith Climate and Energy Campaign.
- NCC’s focus on Climate and Energy issues generates over 30,000 letters and calls to Congress
- NCC gets over 22,000 messages sent to the Senate and President Bush opposing the opening of western public lands and the Arctic Refuge
- NCC releases Open Letter to Church and Society, which appears in Washington Post.
- NCC conveys statement God's Earth Is Sacred, issued by group of theologians
- NCC Eco-Justice Working Group requests the full implementation of Executive Order 12898, to address Environmental Justice issues in Minority Populations
- Nationwide training for clergy and lay leaders on water issues
- NCC attends Interfaith Climate and Energy Campaign in Montreal
- NCC publishes its annual Earth Day Sunday educational materials, focus on Sacred Oceans and Seas.
- NCC begins training clergy and lay leaders on water issues and publishes water toolkit: Water Stewards: A Toolkit for Congregational Care of Local Watersheds .
- NCC publishes green building resources for congregations and denominations.
- Release of Rooted in God’s Word and Lands, a worship and education resource related to land stewardship.
- NCC releases Stewards of the Bay dedicated to the Chesapeake Bay.
- NCC becomes partner in presenting The Great Warming, a movie about global warming based on a three-part PBS series.
- Launch of ‘Green Church Program’ focusing on churches in the Gulf Region.
- Launch of Green Building initiative, focuses on the Gulf Region with “model” green church in Gert Town (New Orleans).
- NCC inspires Faithful Americans to send over 9,500 messages to their Senators and Representatives asking that EPA be accountable for toxic clean-up on the Gulf Coast.
- NCC and Church World Service file amicus brief with the Supreme Court; EPA responsible in failure to acknowledge the threat of climate change.
- Over 19,000 letters sent to Congress and the Administration speaking against drilling in the Arctic.
- Congress and the Administration receive over 13,600 letters calling for leadership to address global warming.
- Media coverage expands to include of 16 nationally ranked publications.
- The statement Renewing the Ground: A Call for Faithful Stewardship of Energy Resources on God’s Lands is released.
- NCC releases statement asking for toxic waste clean-up in New Orleans.
- “Eco-Justice for All” conference in New Orleans - “Connections & Reaching Out” conference at Loyola University.
- NCC assists the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) with forums on global warming; features religious, political, and business interests.
- Earth Day Sunday resource, Through the Eye of a Hurricane: Rebuilding Just Communities, guides churches through the environmental impacts of Hurricane Katrina. Used by a ground-breaking number of congregations (2,000+).
- Release of Building a Firm Foundation: "Green" Building Toolkit for congregations.
- NCC releases Bottom Line Ministries that Matter a report stating how congregations can cut carbon emissions while saving money.
- Release of At the Lord’s Table, a thanksgiving resource that includes sermon notes, liturgical material, and advocacy suggestions.
- NCC releases environmental justice resource: An Ecumenical Guide to Environmental Racism.
- NCC General Assembly makes a Resolution on Global Warming
- Foundation gifts increase by 27 percent.
- NCC launches Environmental Health Initiative.
- Spike in ‘Letters to the Editor’ on Climate, the result of campaign to energize Clergy and lay leaders.
- NCC Eco-Justice Program featured in an Associated Press story on climate and energy, which ran in The Christian Post and the Boston Globe.
- NCC expands its state-based work on Climate and Energy, increasing the number of states by nearly double.
- NCC focuses “green church” efforts on loan and investment programs.
- NCC member communion Presbyterian Church USA sends an appeal to their 2.3 million members to become carbon neutral.
- Episcopal Church Bishop Katharine Jefferts-Schori testifies on global warming and poverty to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on behalf of the NCC.
- Letters were delivered to every office on the Hill during House and Senate’s energy debates.
- Valentines Day e-advocacy campaign generates more than 19,800 letters to Members of Congress on carbon issues.
- NCC meets with Speaker Pelosi to discuss the need to include fuel economy standards and renewable energy standards in the Energy Bill.
- Briefing for the U.S. House of Representatives on climate change.
- NCC visits more than 50 House and Senate offices to highlight the need for effective energy policy.
- NCC supports Congressman Markey as he introduced his CAFE bill.
- House and Senate approve increase in CAFÉ standards with support from the NCC Eco-Justice team.
- More than 150 clergy in South Carolina endorse the NCC statement of principles on global warming.
- NCC supports protecting the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia.
- NCC leads team communities in Chalmette, LA—sight of the largest residential oil spill in the history of humankind—and the neighborhood surrounding the Agriculture Street Landfill—a designated Superfund sight.
- Climate and Energy Team help to organize “Step-it-Up climate events” in more than a dozen states.
- NCC holds two wilderness forums in Berkeley at GTU and training event in Arizona.
- NCC presents global warming message to five states in push to educate the community on issues concerning global warming.
- NCC conducts the second Young Adult Eco-Justice Fellowship retreat in Port Isobel, VA.
- Out of the Wilderness, a publication focusing on wilderness theology.
- Earth Day resource, Our Daily Bread focuses on agriculture and food systems.
- NCC releases Mindful Living: Human Health, Pollution, and Toxics, an education and worship resource dedicated to environmental health issues.
- Mindful Living becomes most popular resource in the history of the Eco-Justice Program, with 9,000 resources distributed.
- Lands and Wilderness campaign runs its first photo contest and chooses a winner.
- NCC begins education and advocacy efforts on improving safety of personal care products through the FDA.
- NCC delivers more than 2000 climate postcards to Congressional offices asking members to support climate legislation.
- Candle light vigils produced media hits around the country. African American communities in North and South Carolina contribute 4,000 signatures to join with 1,200 clergy and 17 major national religious organizations who have endorsed the Faith Principles on Global Warming.
- NCC works with representatives Solis and Butterfield to develop climate justice language for House Bill. NCC helps secure the International Adaptation Assistance for developing nations affected by climate policies.
- After discussion with Congressional leaders, language to protect people in poverty and vulnerable populations will be included in climate legislation.
- NCC pressures Consumer Product Safety Commission to enforce the new Consumer Product Safety laws before holiday toys are distributed.
- NCC helps obtain media on toxic toy event before Christmas.
- NCC invites people of faith to sign on to the Christian Principles for Healthy Body and Spirit.
- NCC succeeds in passing the National Landscape Conservation System through the House of Representatives.
- Eco-Justice puts together a U.S./African faith delegation for the Ghana United Nations climate negotiations.
- NCC attends climate negotiations in Poland leading up to UN meeting in Copenhagen.
- NCC hosts briefing for Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church on climate change and poverty.
- Hosted Theological Climate Briefing for House staffers in conjunction with the Rt. Rev. James Jones, Bishop of Liverpool. NCC staff hosts African delegation in the US on issue of international climate change.
- Ecumenical Advocacy Days gathers 700 people of faith across the country with a focus on the issue of climate change.
- NCC hosts biennial conference in Minnesota focusing on Environmental Health.
- NCC releases Climate and Church: How Global Climate Change will Impact Core Church Ministries, an account of the impact of climate change on churches' relief and development ministries.
- Earth Day Sunday education and worship resource The Poverty of Climate Change was distributed to over 3000 people. The Environmental Health Team releases Made in the Image of God: A Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.
- NCC produces Everyday Thanksgiving for holiday season. Release of Caring for Children, Caring for Creation a study guide and DVD.
- Interactive, web-based resource for hosting Blessing of the Animal services on St. Francis’ Day goes on-line.
- NCC launches Green Camp and Conference Center covenant.
- NCC’s web-based carbon reduction program is released.
- NCC works with EPA’s office of Public Affairs on strengthening environmental justice.
- Senate passes the Public Land Management Omnibus with NCC support.
- NCC meets with head of EPA, Lisa Jackson.
- NCC Eco-Justice staff and working group meet with White House staff and climate expert, Carol Browner. Eco-Justice staff joins White House task force on climate and environment.
- Over 300 African American clergy members sign on to Faith Principles on Global Warming. 13,000 individuals sign letter to President Obama calling for just climate action.
- NCC holds 18 candlelight vigils around the country focusing on climate change and the need for climate justice. More than 500 congregations add climate change to their worship or study over the coming months.
- 20,000 Countdown to Copenhagen postcards were delivered to United Nations.
- NCC organizes 70 environmental health and justice advocates in support of Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.
- NCC works on campaigns in WA, CT, and MN to ban bisphenol-A (BPA) in baby bottles and other food containers & succeeds, with partners, in passing the first state ban on bisphenol-a (BPA) in Minnesota.
- NCC rallies support for protecting the Wyoming Range in both House and the Senate. NCC supports the Clean Water Protection Act and Appalachian Restoration Act.
- The Green Building Program has reduced 271530.6 lbs of carbon and 71 individuals have signed up for the campaign.
- NCC attends U.N. Climate negotiations in Copenhagen.
- NCC sponsors presentation from Alaskan Natives on the effects of toxic chemicals and climate change.
- NCC Eco-Justice staff conduct over 70 environmental health presentations.
- NCC presents Green Building Program at the Greater Washington Interfaith Power and Light Gathering.
- Green Cleaning Toolkit and Gathering Guide downloaded by more than 2,000 people of faith.
- 2009 Earth Day Sunday: Celebrating and Caring for God’s Creation.
- NCC General Assembly makes a Resolution on Environmental Health
- EPA Administrator Jackson praises the Council's eco-justice witness at the National Council of Churches Ecumenical Centennial Gathering in New Orleans.
- NCC receives media attention for efforts to ban Bisphenol A (BPA) in The POLITICO.
- NCC receives grant to educate congregations about God’s Creation around the Chesapeake Bay (Maryland) to reduce polluted runoff.
- NCC is invited by the House Energy and Commerce Committee to participate in the new Toxic Chemicals Safety Act (TSCA) of 2010, and calls on Congress to address persistent toxics in TSCA reform.
- NCC and other groups meet with Doretta Reaves of EPA to review issue of Energy and Ecology. NCC works with ‘Restoring Eden’ on End Mountaintop Removal Week.
- NCC’s “Letter-a-day” campaign, targeted at the Senate, highlights our climate and energy campaign and exceeds all of our goals.
- NCC meets with White House to discuss green buildings/green jobs.
- Two day-long workshops educating churches how to build rain barrels and how to reduce their energy use.
- Climate leaders conference in rural Maryland.
- Study Paper Christian Understanding of the Environment in an Age of Environmental Crisis released.
- NCC publishes Tending the Garden, a general biodiversity resource guide.
- NCC completes Lenten series on “Climate Justice” which explores the impacts of climate change on food security, health, migration, development and economics.
- Earth Day Sunday still a major hit! – over 2,316 copies of Earth Day 2010’s Sacred Spaces and an Abundant Life: Worship Spaces as Stewardship downloaded or mailed.
- NCC releases purchasing guide for congregations, to help individuals make wise decisions when buying “green” products.
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