Presbyterians for Earth Care conference

Gah! I went into the Presbyterians for Earth Care conference anticipating a good opportunity to learn a little bit and connect with other Presbyterians who are interested in our planet's future. It turned out to be a great opportunity for conversation and company, and I left feeling a little more confident in my path. I think that assurance is crucial in my work, which occasionally borders on being life-crushingly depressing.

As I said, the company was great, especially this small cohort of younger women I found myself a part of. A small cohort of smart, gifted, passionate, fun women (there were no young adult men there). We had a "Roughly 40 and Under" gathering in the corner of the larger wine and cheese gathering one evening. One of the older members of PEC leaned over and said to me, "Promise me you're plotting a revolution, and us old folks will leave you alone." It made me laugh, but had some truth to it. It was good to have people my age to spend time with on a personal level, but it was also empowering on a professional level to connect with other people who are crossing conservation and faith.

It was frustrating to be referred to as "the youth" more than once, but I'll go on about that another time. (I know I look young, but I am an adult! And so what if I was 18? I still have good ideas!)

What I really enjoyed about the conference is that the session topics covered a pretty wide range of conservation-related issues, not just Plant trees! Don't pollute! Ride your bike! Go green! etc. That's why I feel so strongly about conservation-- it goes well beyond saving the earth. Environmental problems carry implications for health, food sovereignty, land loss, energy, politics and economies, and so much more. That's what I'm dealing with in southern Louisiana: it's not just that the land is eroding, it's that this puts people at risk for loss of livelihoods and cultures and food sources as well as health problems from interacting a little closely with the leftovers from the BP disaster (yes, that stuff is still here).

An interesting session that I took a lot of notes on was Environmental Justice Through Indigenous Eyes, with Dr. Dan Wildcat, a Yuchi member of the Muscogee Nation. Unfortunately it was via Skype, and the computer died, so part of it was via speaker phone, and I lost some of the discussion. What I did get was very centering for me as I consider other conservation issues and efforts. Some points:

• We live on a living planet. That in and of itself is deeply spiritual.
• The Iroquois in particular say something like, there are many persons living on the planet, humans are just some of those persons.
• "Natural resources" is a powerful term. To whom are they resources?
• Thinking of the environment not just as anthropocentric; think about things like the rocks being our elders! (They are a little bit older than us...)

And his powerful benediction, in which he charged us, "Give us the power to pay attention."

I'm trying my very best to pay attention!

I also attended sessions on advocacy (including one called "Eco Justice Advocacy: What Can We Do When Congress Isn't Doing Anything?, which was proposed a full year before this conference), fracking (which is seriously terrible stuff that I don't think we know enough about yet), food sovereignty, and community gardens. I had a chance to hike and plenty of good meals with good company. Our plenary speaker pointed out in one of his sessions that finding such a diverse group of experts at the grassroots level is uncommon. That really empowered me and was totally life-assuring. I feel like I'm doing the right thing right now.