Horizon Green Sanctuary
By Horizon UU Church, Carrollton, TX
Horizon began the program in the spring of 2019, under the previous version of Green Sanctuary. When Green Sanctuary 2030 came out, we opted to continue under the format of the previous version, with the spirit of the new one, including its emphasis on collaboration within and outside the congregation and projects that focus on environmental and climate justice.
From the beginning, the task force was focused on engagement throughout the congregation. Church leaders, members, friends and family have all participated in and helped lead projects.
Projects we have done include:
- One Thing You Can Do: "green" action opportunities that were formerly part of the worship service and now feature in the weekly church newsletter
- Helping to plan Earth Sunday Services
- Learning activities and information for children and adults through such things as an Earth Weekend outdoor event, a Social Responsible Investing Workshop, a Justice on Earth book discussion series, and a "Think Resilience" course created by the Post Carbon Institute
- Utilizing a Write Here Write Now UUA letter writing initiative to mobilize members in support of food and climate justice
- Putting together a team to participate in the Drawdown Ecochallenge
- Creating and holding a "ethical eating" workshop entitled "The Power of Your Plate," and
- Our "Shingle Mountain" project, in which we partnered with Downwinders at Risk, Southern Sector Rising, and other groups and individuals to advocate for the safe removal of an illegal dump of toxic shingle waste, which was located beside a neighborhood in south Dallas whose residents are almost exclusively POC
At our worship service on February 26, 2023, entitled "The Climate Revolution" and featuring guest speakers from our Share-the-Plate recipients from Sunrise Dallas, we made the surprise announcement that Horizon had been formally recognized as a Green Sanctuary congregation.
Our future plans include evolving into an even larger, and less 'top-down' environmental/climate justice group, in which projects will be suggested and led by anyone. We envision a congregation in which "green" work is a component of all we do.
Address
1641 W Hebron Pkwy
Carrollton, TX 75010-6334
United States