Interfaith Working Group
The Interfaith Working Group of FCAC works to encourage faith communities in Fairbanks to be faithful stewards of the earth, to care for one another, especially the most vulnerable among us, and to personally and collectively make the changes needed to make our community more sustainable and resilient.
As representatives of many different faith communities of Interior Alaska we offer:
Spiritual grounding for FCAC activities
Connecting with, and support for faith communities engaged in creation-care projects
A faith-based perspective on care and concern for the earth and a fair and just transition to a sustainable future for all.
news from our blog
Recent Celebrations
We’ve distributed over $60,000 to 19 different local faith communities through our mini-grant program, funding projects like energy upgrades, energy audits, infrastructure for food security initiatives, and an environmental camp.
We worked with Native Movement and Deenaadàį' Products to create a film series connecting faith to climate advocacy, and have continued to use this as a connection point and conversation starter for connection across faith groups.
We brought together 65 members and faith leaders from 14 different faith groups to sign on to a letter of support for a strong Climate Action Plan that we delivered to the Borough Assembly to defend the original version of the plan.
We’ve hosted prayer circles, earth day events, and soup and discussion events over the last few years which have brought together an increasingly diverse group of faith communities to act together for climate justice.
what we do
Grants for faith communities
The Interfaith Working Group has offered grants to faith communities in an effort to create a sustainable future for generations of Alaskans. Past projects have included installation of energy efficient windows, installation of LED lighting, installation of a water catchment system, eco-friendly property renovations, a community garden, a blessing box, and weatherization improvements.
Faith in Action
Check out our video series Faith in Action, created in partnership with Native Movement and Deenaadàį' Productions. This series features four local representatives from different faith traditions: Leslie Ahuvah Fails, Nanieezh Peter, Bishop Mark Lattime, and Pastor Johnathan Kenney. It explores how spiritual dimensions of faith, including Indigenous and non-Indigenous spirituality, motivate care for the Earth and for one another, and how spirituality is called upon to motivate action around climate change, food insecurity, and threats to cultural traditions. If you’re interested in hosting a screening and discussion of the film at your faith community, contact Molly Lemen at molly@fbxclimateaction.org
Prayer circles
We regularly join together with people of many faiths for an evening of interfaith prayer, reflection, and fellowship as we celebrate good stewardship of the earth. Each time, we are moved by the sense of unity in the messages about our responsibility to care for the Earth and all who dwell therein. If you want to get involved in planning the next prayer circle, or would like to attend as a representative of your faith community, email molly@fbxclimateaction.org.
Soup and discussion
We host soup and discussion events as a gathering space for faith leaders and members of different faith groups to come together and discuss ways that we can be better stewards of the earth, care for one another, and to personally and collectively make the changes needed to make our community more sustainable and resilient. We spend time breaking bread together and sharing about the climate action and eco-justice projects our faith communities are currently involved in and what projects we would like to be doing. To learn more, email Molly at molly@fbxclimateaction.org
What we believe:
Stewardship and reverence for creation are central tenets of all faiths. We believe that people of faith will respond more readily to a call to action on climate justice if they see it as a moral and spiritual issue rather than only a scientific, economic, or political one. To that end, we are working with faith leaders in our community to encourage them to commit to the statements endorsed by their national and international organizations regarding the moral imperative for immediate and decisive action.
Resources available
We have focused our attention on faith communities by showing films in a public gathering and encouraging congregations to show the film to their own groups and discuss how they might make changes to be more sustainable. The Interfaith Working Group has the following resources available to faith groups who wish to gather to consider ways their place of worship can be more sustainable.
Films on hand:
Happening: A Clean Energy Revolution. Directed by James Redford
Renewal A documentary about people of faith building a sustainable future. Statement from Bill McKibben: “The religious-environmental movement is potentially key to dealing with the greatest problem humans have ever faced, and it has never been captured with. More breadth and force than in Renewal. I hope this movie moves many more people off the fence and into action.”
Love Thy Nature Takes viewers on a cinematic journey through the beauty and intimacy of our relationship with the natural world. The film shows that a renewed connection with nature is key both to good health and to solving our environmental and climate crises.
The Human Element We humans are the fifth element, along with earth, air, water, and fire. From the producers of Chasing Ice, this film Features subjects who are often overlooked victims of climate change. The photographer, Jame Balog, argues that humans are part of the whole system of nature and not apart from it.
Bidder 70 Award winning documentary about Tim DeChristopher, who disrupted a controversial BLM Oil and Gas leasing auction by bidding on 22,000 acres of land he had no intention of paying for (or drilling on). “You can steer my commitment to a healthy and just world if you agree with it, but you can’t kill it. This is not going away. At this point of unimaginable threats on the horizon, this is what hope looks like. In these times of a morally bankrupt government that has sold out its principles, this is what patriotism looks like, and it will only grow.” Tim De Christopher
Paris to Pittsburgh A documentary of how cities across America, such as Pittsburgh, have taken up the mantle of adhering to the Paris Climate Accord despite the Trump Administration’s actions to withdraw the U.S. from the agreements made there.
Books on hand:
Rising to the Challenge: The Transition Movement and People of Faith, by Ruah Swennerfelt, 2016.
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer, 2013.
Sacred Instructions: Indigenous Wisdom for Living Spirit-Based Change, by Sherri Mitchell, 2018.
The Green Bible. Includes introductory articles on reading the Bible through a Green lens by the Division of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America, 1989.
50 Ways to Help Save the Earth: How You and Your Church Can Make a Difference by Rebecca J. Barnes
Suggested Talks Available Online:
How Climate Change Affects The Poor
Guides for congregations:
Guide to Energy Efficiency Practices for Your Faith Community
Suggested online resources
Relevant Newsletters
The Fifth National Climate Assessment
Evangelical Environmental Network
Recorded Webinars
Climate Outreach - has a large amount of recorded webinars and interviews ranging from current climate action policies science to talking points for climate action advocates.
Fairbanks Resources
Food Waste Recovery Dashboard - If your congregation participates in food recovery and sustainability you may want to list yourself on the dashboard so others can reach out. You can also utilize the dashboard to find others who have resources for food sustainability, composting, and animal feed.
