Eco Church

September 2026

Over 9,000 registered Eco Churches, spanning 25 denominations.

Over 3,000 churches (88%) manage their land to encourage native wildlife.*

Over 2,500 churches (78%) have made a decision to invest their funds ethically.*

This year marks ten years of A Rocha UK’s Eco Church programme, and these are just some of the findings from a new report exploring the journey so far!

There is so much to celebrate about the first ten years of Eco Church. Working with Eido Research, we’ve explored the impact of Eco Church over the last decade, through programme data analysis and interviews with churches and denominational leaders. As well as celebrating what has been achieved, the report provides insights into what helps churches make progress, the barriers they encounter, and how A Rocha UK can continue to support churches as they respond to God’s call to care for creation.

So, grab a cuppa, find a comfy seat, and enjoy!

Read the report

August 2026

The climate crisis begins to bite

As I write, the news is full of catastrophic wildfires across Europe and here in the UK too; a friend told me the other day about travelling to Wales and seeing fires blazing both here in the Peak District and in the Welsh hills – even the Cairngorms are suffering after unprecedented heatwaves. The very wet winter has caused vigorous growth, which has then become tinder-dry in the excessive heat of this summer, creating perfect conditions for fires. We know that climate change is here to stay, with extreme events such as floods, heatwaves and violent rainstorms; and unfortunately our infrastructure is simply not equipped to withstand these things. Homes are still being built to outdated standards, whereas for example shade in summer, good insulation, two-way heat pumps and solar panels as standard, could make a huge difference.

I went to the People's Emergency Briefing film showing recently, in which Chris Packham introduces short presentations (interspersed with short chats with both well-known and ordinary people) by a wide range of scientists, academics and doctors about the implications of the climate crisis for all aspects of our lives. For details about more screenings locally, see www.nebriefing.org/peb, you put in your postcode, and it will show nearby events. The film was followed by a panel discussion with a local MP and councillors, as well as a retired GP. I was very struck by a comment in the film about the now-uncontested reality of the climate science: the speaker said, "Physics doesn't care about the politics, just the carbon dioxide". Another memorable word of wisdom was, "The twentieth century climate is gone now", which should give us all pause for thought.

 There are significant risks to food security as harvests will become unreliable, leading to food price inflation. Dietary changes could reduce this problem if we move to a more plant-based diet with less meat and dairy. Then the crops farmers grow could be used to feed us rather than feeding livestock, reducing the need for food imports and a much more efficient use of the land. 

New flashpoints of national security are also emerging, for example over exploitation of the Arctic and possible conflict over Greenland as nations seek mineral wealth. The military could also be needed to help in homeland emergencies such as is happening now in Scotland with the wildfires. And nature, our life support system, is breaking down; the UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries of the world, with only about half of our native species left. As we've noted before, Greenpeace is currently campaigning for protection of nature and for reducing the use of pesticides and chemical fertilisers, see www.greepeace.org.uk for much more about this and a petition for protection for nature that you can sign. Nature is critical infrastructure and protecting it is an economic and fiscal responsibility which underpins our whole lives both individually and as communities.

The final point to make is that there are already solutions to all these issues. Stopping the use of fossil fuels and transition to renewable energy needs to be placed at the forefront of government priorities, as wind and solar power are far more efficient than oil and gas, and are freely available. Amidst all the worry about tipping points, we should realise that there are also positive tipping points; I read recently about an amazing project to re-wild an estate, Boothby in Lincolnshire, which had been used to grow crops for animal feed. The new owner has "re-wiggled" the river to create wetland habitats for plants and animals, beavers are being introduced in a large, fenced area around the river, with the aid of government landscape recovery funding, supplemented by private finance such as the sale of biodiversity net gain credits to developers and builders, plus carbon credits for woodland development, and also tourism. Wildlife is already flourishing, with new species of small birds, plants, and even birds of prey appearing. The technology for positive changes exists already, only the political will is lacking. As the costs of renewable technologies fall, the issue is not so much "Can we afford net zero?", but rather, "Can we afford not to go for net zero?" 

Let's do all we can to urge serious government action, as well as thinking on an individual and local level – write to your MP or contact your local councillor with your own concerns about all this.  Thank you!

July 2026

The People's Emergency Briefing

Hallam Hall, Owen Building Level 6, Sheffield Hallam University City Campus, S1 1WB 

Film screening and discussion, free tickets via Eventbrite. Local councillors and MPs have been invited 

Sheffield, 16th July 2026, 7pm

I've been reading and hearing recently about this special event coming up here in Sheffield – and in communities across the country – which I'd like to highlight this month. The film is of a briefing session held in November 2025 when leading scientists, academics and doctors from many different disciplines spoke about the implications of climate and nature breakdown for health, food systems, national security and the economy. They were addressing an audience which included many MPs, industry and business leaders and the general public. The event was filmed and the film, released this April, is being screened across the country in community-led venues throughout the year. It highlights the choices that lie ahead due to climate breakdown caused by fossil fuel emissions over the last 170 years, and the role we will need to play as individuals, communities and institutions in shaping the future. Tickets are free, book online via Eventbrite and see all the details there. 

For more information about the National Emergency Briefing, see https://www.nebriefing.org/aims. And for a 26 minute video giving a summary of the film and its context, see this YouTube video: https://youtu.be/8sa7uh192r0?si=gs5wjQo6RZejalUx. Please do think about looking into this, thank you!

On a related theme, Greenpeace are campaigning to support nature-friendly farming and reduce the use of pesticides, herbicides and fertilisers which are driving biodiversity loss. They are working together with farmers and conservation organisations to drive political action through investigation and peaceful direct action. One in six UK species is now at risk of extinction, this includes pollinating insects and the birds that feed on them, hedgehogs, bees, butterflies, harvest mice and many more. The agrochemical companies which make and market these toxic chemicals have made huge profits, while one in three UK farmers made zero profit in 2025. Greenpeace are calling on the government to support farmers in adopting nature-friendly practices to restore wildlife, protect ecosystems and help future-proof their livelihoods. One thing we can all do would be to stop buying toxic pesticides and weedkillers in garden centres; if you want to do more, a letter to your MP would show the strength of public feeling. For more details about all of this, see Greenpeace's website and sign the petition there; and you could look up their report, "Our Poisoned Land".

June 2026

Great Big Green Week

Summer is here at last, so let’s make the most of the long days. This month’s special event in the Eco Church calendar is Great Big Green Week, which runs from 6th to 14th June, under the title “Together for Good”. Great Big Green Week has been running since 2021 as a means of helping communities come together to protect the natural world, to support our local neighbourhoods, and to show politicians and decision-makers that we care about the crisis in climate and nature. There are lots of ideas on their website, although sadly there don’t seem to be any events happening within easy reach of Grenoside; but hopefully we can still play our part by making time for thinking and talking about how we can support nature and make our community a better place for everyone.

Many of us are already involved in nature-friendly activities, in our gardens and allotments, in the woods and at Grenoside Green. What more could we do? Here are a few ideas:

• Plant pollinator-friendly plants in your garden or outside area, such as lavender, rosemary, thyme, comfrey, borage, chives, primrose and heather. Or plant one of the many bee-friendly seed mixes available. The bees and butterflies will thank you! 

• Do a litter-pick in your street or nearby – make sure to wear gloves, and take a bin-bag with you. Working with a friend or neighbour could make it even more satisfying. See Sheffield Litter Pickers Facebook page to find out about their work across the city, and maybe even join them.

• Take the children, or grandchildren, for a walk to the woods, make it a treasure hunt or nature trail to add purpose; in Grenoside woods there’s a Toddler Trail, over the road from the car park and up the path, then look to your left. Helping children to talk about and identify birds, trees and flowers will begin to address the “nature deficit” in so much of our vocabulary and thinking.

• Organise a clothes swap with friends, neighbours and family, to overcome all those temptations to “fast fashion”.  

June also sees the highlight of Grenoside’s summer, the Gala, on Saturday 20th, when everyone can enjoy a day of celebration and fun. There will be all kinds of stalls, singing, dancing, gymnastic, and wrestling displays, funfair rides, and lots of options for food and drink. The fire engine will visit, and there’ll be music from Oughtibridge Brass Band. We’ll have the Fair Trade stall (also on Sunday 21st at St Mark’s, after the morning service), thanks to our friends at the Good Taste shop in Broomhill, so please do drop by and see what’s on offer. There’ll be a wider range of Fair Trade goods than you can usually find at the supermarket: cards, gifts, household items and a range of chocolate and other foods. Fair Trade really does make a difference to the lives of farmers and producers both here and abroad, because the Fair Trade Premium gives communities extra income to spend as they most need to, whether that’s on health care, school provision, or something as basic as a tap and a toilet block for their village. 

The Gala committee puts in a lot of work to create this event, so we hope the sun will shine and everyone will have a happy time, see you there!

May 2026

The Spring edition of the A ROCHA newsletter is here

And the shocking results of the Big Plastic Count are also available here

April 2026

Carbon Fast for Lent – some thoughts about social media

I don’t know how many of us are social media users, I confess it’s a closed book to me, but globally there are 5.6 billion people who are, that’s almost 70% of the world’s population, so I know I’m in a minority. The average time spent on social media by people in the UK, outside of work, is 1 hour and 48 minutes daily. Video and image-heavy platforms such as TikTok have a carbon footprint of 2.63grams per minute, while text messages such as WhatsApp have a much smaller carbon footprint.   

I’ve been reading about the data centres which power the internet; they are enormous buildings, and many more will be needed. But it seems they often have planning and finance or investment problems – the site in Essex which the government has said would host the largest UK AI datacentre seems unlikely to open on schedule, as planning permission is still awaited despite the building being due to become active in mid-2027. One of the issues with these data centres, from an environmental point of view, is that they use massive amounts of power, most of which is generated from fossil fuels; there’s an acute shortage of renewably-generated power. Ofgem expects that data centres could double UK electricity use before long, as AI and other high-tech applications multiply. Another issue which has been highlighted in the press is water use: in the US in 2020 data centres used a massive 174 billion gallons of water - we can only imagine how that must have increased in the last five years. But thankfully the picture is rather different in the UK and Europe, since data centres here mostly use closed-loop systems, or refrigerant-based cooling. (If you resort to AI, your data will probably come from the US with a much greater carbon footprint). In a survey of 73 facilities in England in August 2025, most were using less than 10,000 cubic metres of water per year. Of course that is still an enormous amount, but it may be essential given how dependent on digital technology our society now is.  

Following the agenda for the Lent carbon fast from Climate Stewards, the final week’s topic is about focussing our attention on God, and specifically on the Easter story, to draw closer to Jesus. There are various suggestions about trying to limit the time we might be giving to social media, such as deliberately taking a break from social media for a day – or if we’re feeling more ambitious, for all of Holy Week (or any other week). Or we could take a prayer walk around our local area – or even do that daily for a week; and of course, being outside in nature and doing what we can to care for it. It’s suggested that reducing our social media use might help us to be more fully present with others, whether friends, family or in chance meetings with strangers; and it might enable us to be more aware of our hunger for God, and to find ways of satisfying that, maybe through prayer, Bible study or meditation, alone or with others. The internet is a wonderful resource which has transformed life in countless ways but hopefully doesn’t own us, so let’s do our best to use it wisely.

March 2026

Lent is here – what will you do?

Lent this year runs from 18th February till 2nd April; those six weeks before Easter have traditionally been a period of abstinence or fasting, especially in pre-Reformation times, to help Christians focus on the sadness of Jesus’ betrayal, trial and crucifixion, and then on the joy of his resurrection. Many churches run study groups to support reflection and faith during Lent, and at St Mark’s we can share in the series of studies entitled “Exploring the Bible through Icons”, which will run both at St Mark’s and St Mary’s Ecclesfield; full details are elsewhere on the website, and in church.

We can also follow initiatives which chime with our own priorities and concerns, either giving up something unhelpful, or perhaps starting to do something new. I’ve signed up for the “Carbon Fast” run by Climate Stewards, after reading about it on the A Rocha website. As the name suggests, it’s focussed on helping us to eliminate any excess or unnecessary carbon use. It covers a whole range of areas: Nature, Shopping, Money, Food, Transport, Energy, and Social Media, and aims to help us see whether any of these aspects is distracting us from walking closely with God. You can find all the details, and sign up to join it, on their website: www.climatestewards,org. 

Another initiative happening this month is the annual Big Plastic Count, 9th to 15th March. Some of us have taken part in this before, it involves sorting and counting all the plastic that comes into your household over the course of the week, with the help of a handy tally sheet. The focus this year is on fairness both at home and globally. The fact is that only a small proportion of the plastic that we send for recycling actually is recycled. A lot goes for incineration, and the incinerators, which emit smells and fumes, are usually sited in deprived and needy communities because better-off areas will usually resist such developments. Much plastic waste still gets exported to impoverished countries which have even less facilities to deal with it than we do, creating hazardous, germ-ridden mountains of waste. To find out much more, and to sign up to contribute to the analysis of exactly how much plastic waste we produce in the UK, go to www.thebigplasticcount.com.  The organisers hope that the statistics generated will contribute to better understanding and management of plastic waste. 

There are of course many other Lent courses, activities and studies, and you will know which is most attuned to your needs, but whatever you do, may it draw you to a deeper understanding and awareness of our faith in Jesus at this special time.

February 2026

Too much “Stuff”? Pass it on!

A friend asked me recently about where she could pass on baby equipment that is no longer needed. That got me thinking about how many surplus bits and pieces we can so easily accumulate – things that could still be useful to others, that we don’t want to give to the charity shops and are too good to go to landfill. So here are a few ideas, though of course you will have your own priorities and charity preferences. But I hope you might find inspiration here for an early Spring-cleaning!

Baby equipment Clean, as-new items can be given to the charity Baby Basics, which operates nationwide and in Sheffield to support families with children under 5. (Our own Rev Kate Bottley, well known for radio and TV appearances, is their patron). They take referrals from trusted health and social care professionals for families in need; this may be due to domestic abuse, homelessness or being in temporary accommodation, refugees or asylum seekers, or any other crisis. They supply Moses basket starter packs for new babies, plus everything else a family could need for health and hygiene, such as clothes, toys, books, prams/buggies, cots/beds, nappies, toiletries, feeding equipment and baby formula. 90% of gifts are high-quality used items donated from the local community. They are at 1 Savile Street, S4 7UD, their contact number is 0114 278 7262, and they are open Monday to Thursday 10-2.30 for donations. On their website (www.sheffield@baby-basics.org.uk) you can find details of items that are needed, plus things they are unable to accept. Do speak to them first by phone to ensure that what you’re offering is suitable for current needs.

The Sheffield homeless charity The Archer Project which is based at Sheffield Cathedral, can use clean men’s and women’s clothes, items such as sleeping bags, rucksacks, blankets and books, plus toiletries, laundry powder, and towels. They also need instant and snack foods, including ring-pull tins of meat, fish and dog food. Their website is at www.archerproject.org.uk , they are based at 1 Campo Lane, beside the Cathedral, and are open 8.30-1 Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, tel 0114 263 6970.

If you are replacing electronic items such as laptops, mobile phones, or any kitchen appliances, Aspire at the SOAR works safely and professionally to clear data. They refurbish domestic appliances, computers and phones to sell on at modest cost to families, schools, charities and individuals, a great way to reduce the carbon costs associated with the manufacture and transport of new equipment. If appliances cannot be refurbished they are professionally disassembled and the components safely recycled. Aspire is at SOAR Works, Knutton Rd, Parson Cross, tel 0114 285 3788, open for donations Thursday and Friday 9-12 and 1-4, and for community sales Mon-Fri 9-5. There is lots more information about how they work on their website www.aspire-sheffield.co.uk. 

Looking into this has certainly made me stop and think about things I’m holding on to “in case we need it” which could be of real help to someone. I hope it’s given you some ideas too, if only to be glad that work like this is going on in our city.

January 2026

Holiday planning: some thoughts

Happy New Year, everyone, and every good wish for a healthy and prosperous 2026. January is the time when many of us start thinking of holidays, perhaps as some relief from the short dark winter days, so let’s consider how we could make our trips, whether long or short, here or abroad, more eco-friendly.

Leisure travel accounts for about 8% of overall carbon emissions globally, and petrol or diesel car travel is the most “carbon-heavy” form of regular transport, at a carbon cost of about 170grams per person per kilometer. Flying accounts for slightly less, at around 150g, but easily the best options for holiday travel are rail, at 35g, or coach, at 27g. Eurostar to Paris at a tiny 4g outperforms all other trains, as it’s a high-speed electric train which carries a large number of passengers, and actively uses energy-saving driving and other techniques. In contrast, ocean cruises typically have a massive carbon cost of about 421kg per passenger per day, and river cruises around 176-338kg. “Which” reports that one ocean cruise liner was responsible for 95,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions in 2023 – equivalent to a small town of 20,000 residents! To meet the 2015 Paris agreement targets, our personal carbon footprint would need to be reduced to 2 tonnes per year by 2050, which makes any kind of cruise problematic.

So how can we best plan for our holidays, for sunshine and the refreshing change of scenery which we all need to look forward to? I am no saint in this respect, I confess, since we fly to New Zealand to visit our daughter and her family there. Apart from that we do avoid flying; last year we used Global Interrail Passes to make a tour around Germany, and found them remarkably flexible and useful; details can be found on the website www.seat61.com or Interrail’s own website www.interrail.eu. There are different pass prices depending on how many days’ travel you want to do over how long, and different prices for adults, youth (under 28), and seniors; children under 12 get a free pass. The great benefit of the pass is that in the event of train cancellations, it’s easy to use an alternative train or route for no extra cost, which you couldn’t do if you’d booked a ticket in the normal way. And to my amazement, as someone who normally prints everything out, it was straightforward to have all the details and tickets on the smartphone. It’s not limited to the EU, and different countries have different reservation and pricing rules, so you do need to check out all the details. The big plus of rail travel is that unlike flying the train takes you right to the heart of your destination, so it’s ideal for city breaks; and you get to look at the scenery on the way. There are new long-distance sleeper train routes across Europe, and recent news of a new cross-channel train to compete with Eurostar, which may bring prices down in due course. If train is not for you, coach and ferry might be an alternative for getting to the continent, we use National Express regularly and find them very reliable, plus it’s easy to get to their stop at Meadowhall from here. 

If you feel the need for more support when planning a trip, Byway Travel specialises in non-flying holidays both here and abroad; they have a wide range of package trips on offer, or they can arrange a custom itinerary for you. They have a reputation for being very helpful, see www.byway.travel for all their information.

Despite all this, we mustn’t get too anxious about our personal carbon footprint, since so much of what we buy or use contains carbon costs we can’t do anything about – for example, the fertiliser that goes on the farmers’ fields and the carbon used in manufacturing and transporting goods to the shops. These emissions are beyond our individual control, so government and business must play their part in reducing reliance on fossil fuels and supporting renewable energy in industry and transport. Let’s do all we can ourselves, and keep pushing for wider political action too. Enjoy your holiday planning, whatever your choices! 

November 2025

“Glance at the sun. See the moon and the stars. Gaze at the beauty of the Earth’s greenings. Now think.”  (Hildegard von Bingen)

Here’s a link to the prayer resources of the organisation “Green Christian”. There’s information for each day about an issue, and a short prayer for each Sunday. I hope you’ll find it interesting and helpful!

www.greenchristian.org.uk/introduction/resources/prayer-guide  

October 2025

Towards nature-friendly home cleaning

 I recently read how someone has altered her home cleaning regime and now makes all her own cleaning materials, for the sake of the planet and her grandchildren. So many of the cleaning products we rely on have labels on the reverse warning of risks to aquatic life from the chemicals they contain. A quick trawl of the internet told me about particular nasties to avoid: Phosphates, which cause excessive algal growth; Chlorine, which reacts with organic matter to form harmful by-products; Ammonia, which is toxic to aquatic life and contributes to air pollution; and synthetic fragrances, which release volatile organic compounds which make for poor indoor air quality. The disposable plastic packaging that so many products come in has its own issues, of course; and the gases in aerosol spray cans can also release those harmful volatile organic compounds. 

So here are some ideas for cleaning products that won’t harm nature; you can find more at www.friendsoftheearth.uk/about/homemade-cleaning-products-5-fantastic-recipes, and elsewhere online. 

• Dishwasher liquid 

Half a cup of liquid castile soap*

Half a cup of water

1 tsp lemon juice

3 drops tea tree extract*

Quarter cup of white vinegar* 

Stir together the castile soap and water, then add the rest of the ingredients and stir till blended. Store in a bottle, and use 2 tbsp per load.

• Glass cleaner

Quarter cup of white vinegar*

4 cups warm water

Combine the two ingredients and store in a spray bottle. Use with a dry cloth or a piece of newspaper

• General purpose cleaner for tiles and hard surfaces

Half cup of white vinegar*

Quarter cup of bicarbonate of soda*

2 litres of water

Mix in a bucket, then decant into spray bottles

• Bathroom spray

500ml boiled water, cooled for 10 minutes

2 tbsp citric acid* 

20 drops of essential oil* (optional), eg lavender, tea tree, lemon, rosemary

Stir citric acid into hot water, stir well to dissolve. Then add your chosen essential oil, and pour the mixture into a spray bottle. Shake well before use. NB citric acid can irritate skin and eyes, so take care when mixing and keep it away from children and pets.

All these home-made cleaners should last around 8 weeks, but do discard and make a new batch if they no longer smell fresh. 

Ingredients marked with an asterisk * are stocked at Unwrapped, the zero waste shop on Crookes, and you can also find them online. If you don’t feel like making your own from scratch, Unwrapped has a wide range of eco-friendly home cleaning and personal care items, including SESI and Miniml products such as laundry detergent, floor cleaner, natural oxygen bleach powder, and dishwasher detergent powder. Take your own containers with you, and give yourself time to have a good look around while you’re there. Dunelm also stocks some Miniml products.  Happy cleaning, everyone! 

September 2025

Fair Trade Fortnight, 22nd September to 5th October 2025

Our next Fair Trade stall at St Mark’s will be on Sunday 14th September after the morning service. It’s partly linked to the Harvest season, but also links with the annual Fair Trade Fortnight, which this year is focussing on the tea industry. The Fair Trade Foundation is urging the UK government to help make trade fairer by bringing in a law on human rights and due diligence centred on the needs of overseas farmers and workers, as well as honouring its international climate finance obligations and restoring the UK aid budget to previous levels. Lots more detail, and a petition to sign, are on their website, www.fairtrade.og.uk.

Every day 100 million cups of tea are drunk in the UK alone – I should know, I contribute substantially to that total! The tea industry employs 13 million workers worldwide, overwhelmingly women. Outside of the Fair Trade system, they are often low-paid and have poor living conditions, may be vulnerable to gender-based violence, and they face the challenges of poor yields due to climate change, which can further reduce their wages. 

The Fair Trade Foundation developed in 1992 from an organisation first founded in 1964 by Oxfam. It exists to enable profits to be fairly shared with farmers and workers, and to ensure safety and good treatment for workers. Churches have always been at the forefront of its development, so we are continuing a sound tradition. Many product labels contain the words “Ethical” or “Sustainable”, but these have no definition in law. The Fair Trade Mark (and the Rainforest Alliance seal) are well-recognised and accountable; so if you want to be sure that you’re not complicit in worker exploitation, look out for these symbols.

The Fair Trade Foundation sets standards, certifying products and ingredients via an independent organisation. It partners with companies’ own schemes of worker support, provided these are aligned with its core principles. It lobbies governments for improved conditions, and works directly with farmers and workers, as well as driving public awareness of the issues. Farmers form local cooperatives which then qualify for the Fairtrade Minimum Price guarantee. They also receive the Fairtrade Premium, which varies according to the crop they are producing. This is a sum which can be spent as the cooperative decides, on projects which will be of benefit to the workers and the wider community. Training and support help improve productivity and farming practices, especially in relation to the challenges of climate change, and enable investment in basic community services.

The Fair Trade Premium in one Indian tea plantation has funded school transport, school fees, the construction of a dispensary, and village water taps, which mean people can grow more produce in their home vegetable plots. All this has a huge human impact for individuals and the community, as well as all the benefits of health and education for the coming generations. 

So let’s look out for the Fair Trade mark in our supermarket shopping, and any special offers linked to Fair Trade Fortnight; and be sure to choose a Fair Trade tea, wherever you shop! And please do check out our Fair Trade stall at St Mark’s on 14th September – Thank you!

July 2025

This month’s tips for helping the environment

Like many of you, I’ve been concerned about plans for housing and other developments in and around Grenoside. It’s been good to see the level of community interest in safeguarding our local environment, wildlife and natural resources, since we are in a global climate emergency, as ITV News  coverage of dramatic changes in Antarctica showed in June. There have been well-attended meetings, with lots of information, maps and officials to explain and discuss the plans; the consultation period ends on 11th July so hopefully you have communicated your thoughts to the planning authority.

As a non-native of Grenoside (8 years here) I feel we are fortunate to live in a beautiful part of Sheffield, with plenty of access to parks, woodland and open countryside. The city plan looks to future needs for jobs and homes, and the reason for looking at these green belt sites is that after including all suitable brownfield sites, there is still a need for more land for homes and businesses. Speaking to one of the city council officers, I was glad to learn that whatever is built will be fit for a fossil-fuel-free future, setting new standards of carbon reduction. On larger sites approximately 30% of the area will be designated as public open space. The two schools will have their own surrounding fields, and a burial ground will form another more open space. As the sites were designated green belt, the “Golden Rules” apply, meaning amongst other things  that 30% of homes must be much-needed affordable housing, of which 75% would be affordable for rent, and the remainder social housing.

 In terms of reducing carbon, I was told that following a recent government announcement, solar panels will be incorporated into nearly all of the buildings, and heating systems will be mainly air-source heat pumps rather than gas boilers. It will be so much cheaper and easier to install these carbon-saving measures at the building stage, and will mean significant savings on electricity bills for the residents. At home we looked in to changing our gas system to a heat pump, but the costs and the work required to change our microbore piping to be compatible with a heat pump system made it impractical. On the other hand our solar panels, despite the installation costs, have been very successful and do make a significant reduction to our electricity bills.

Change is never easy, and of course there will be losses of familiar views, favourite strolls and perhaps much-loved trees. But we know how badly new  homes are needed, and if done properly this plan gives hope for a secure future for everyone. Looking at the proposals, existing footpaths must be retained, and substantial wildlife corridors provided, as well as flood risks addressed before planning applications are made. Account must also be taken of historic landscape and archaeology features, via a Heritage Impact Assessment. And a historic landfill site has been noted, for which the necessary mitigation or remediation measures must be taken before final planning application. 

There are still many stages of planning ahead, and we trust that there will be full information about progress and eventually about the definitive plans. Meanwhile let’s all do our best to cherish the natural world, whether that’s using the car less, turning off unneeded lights, or feeding the birds! KK 

June 2025

Fair Trade - Tea and so much more!

St Mark’s is glad to be a Fair Trade Church, and thanks to a member’s generosity all our biscuits, as well as our sugar, tea and coffee, are now Fair Trade. The Fair Trade premium makes a huge difference to the lives and prosperity of farmers and producers around the world, so with that in mind here’s an update on the latest developments.

The Fair Trade Foundation recently announced that its partnership with Sainsbury’s now means that all of Sainsbury’s own brand black tea will be Fair Trade. And they are pressing for a new UK law to ensure support for tea producers to adapt and build resilience to climate change, securing their future prosperity, as well as restoring the 0.5% overseas aid budget, and honouring the UK’s International Climate Finance commitment. There’s a petition you can sign and more information via this link: Sign | Fairtrade Foundation           

A recent Yorkshire Post article drew attention to one aspect of Fair Trade’s work, aiming to end child labour on cocoa farms. If children have to work to enable their family to survive, they can’t benefit from education. In Ivory Coast and elsewhere, historic unfair trade practices and depressed prices mean farmers are trapped in poverty. But one farming cooperative, Yeyasso, has used the Fair Trade premium earned from selling its produce to build school facilities and a canteen that feeds 400 people a week. They are working with the Fair Trade Foundation through a project called Shared Impact, with approval from the UK government, to get supermarkets to jointly agree to longer-term contracts for commodities, which will boost impact for producers and offset increased risks. Cocoa farming is very vulnerable to the effects of climate change and farmers need to make significant adaptations if they are to survive and produce the chocolate we love; deforestation needs to be halted, diseases combated, and biodiversity supported by planting fruit and shade trees on farms. Yeyasso hopes to double their sales of Fair Trade cocoa from 20% to 40%, boosting the premium payments which it can then use for social and environmental initiatives. 

Closer to home, coming up soon is the annual “Great Big Green Week”, June 7th to 15th, when we’re all encouraged to make swaps in our shopping or lifestyle to help combat climate change and support nature. Buying Fair Trade tea, or chocolate, would be a good swap to make if you don’t already do that. Or get together with neighbours to do a spot of guerrilla gardening, bringing nature back to a neglected spot. More ideas at Great Big Green Week online!

Finally, don’t forget the Fair Trade stall at Grenoside Gala on Saturday 21st June. We will have a selection of foods, treats, household items and small gifts from our friends at Good Taste, the Sheffield Fair Trade shop – cash only, thank you. And do look out for the Fair Trade logo in your regular supermarket shopping, the range is getting ever wider, so there may be permanent swaps you can do to help the planet and our global neighbours.  

May 2025

What are we eating?

In a recent report by the World Wildlife Fund, it was revealed that globally 75% of our food comes from just 12 plant and 5 animal species. Given the amazing variety of animal and plant life in our world, that seems a very improbable statistic! But it reflects the highly centralised food systems of industrialised countries like Britain; and it suggests that we need to broaden the range of foods that we eat. Clearly it will take more than individual action to achieve this, but the food industry is highly attuned to consumer demand and preferences, so it seems likely that our changing habits would eventually translate into a wider range of food provision. There are good reasons for increasing the range of our food systems – other plant and animal species may be more adaptive to the changing climate, and may provide higher yields for the world’s growing population. And any problems due to disease or climate change with one or more of those key food species we so much depend on could have catastrophic results for global health and wellbeing. 

The WWF report sparked off research into possible alternative sources of nutrition which are currently under-used, and resulted in a list of the “Future 50 Foods”, in eleven overall categories, developed by researchers at Knorr Foods. Here’s the category list, so you can see if any of them are things you’d like to experiment with or eat more of. We do know that we should try to eat less meat and dairy produce, for our own health as well as that of the planet, so perhaps these ideas will help with that too. I’ve put in links to a few BBC Good Food recipes I thought might be well worth trying, but you’ll have your own preferences. You can see the detailed report at
www.wwf.org.uk/sites/default/files/2019-02/Knorr_Future_50_Report_FINAL_Online.pdf  

• Algae, ie edible seaweed 

• Beans and pulses, eg   www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/lentil-sweet-potato-curry¸ this also contains tomatoes, onion and spices

• Cacti eg prickly pear – this might be a long shot, though apparently it is very popular in Mexico and elsewhere, and highly nutritious.

• Cereals and grains,  eg www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/feel-good-pasta-soup  - a hearty soup with small pasta, tinned tomatoes, chickpeas and leafy greens 

• Fruit and vegetables – of course!

• Leafy greens - ditto

• Mushrooms, eg www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/mushroom-brunch¸ a quick and easy combination of mushrooms, eggs and kale

• Nuts and seeds – these are packed with micronutrients, and good to add to snacks. Holland and Barrett, Beanies cooperative, Unwrapped at Crookes, and many more places sell tasty seed mixes

• Root vegetables, eg www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/spicy-root-lentil-casserole, with potatoes, carrots, parsnips, lentils and herbs

• Sprouted seeds – baby plants sprouted from seeds have double the nutritional value of the mature plant, though care is needed to ensure the sprouts are hygienically produced

• Tubers, eg yams, sweet potatoes

I hope all this gives you some food for thought....and that you might enjoy experimenting with some less mainstream foods. I think I’ll be passing on the seaweed, but you might be more adventurous!

April 2025

St Mark’s achieves Eco Church Silver award!

We are delighted that we have recently been awarded Silver status, thanks to everyone’s interest and support in so many ways. I thought it might be helpful to give a bit of an outline of how we reached this, and how it encompasses all parts of our church life. The format is basically a survey with a range of possible answers, arranged in five sections: Worship and Teaching; Buildings and Energy; Land and Nature; Community and Global Engagement; and Lifestyle. As you read on, remember it’s “Earth Day” on 22nd April, so see if you can spend the day doing something to celebrate God’s creation, whether that’s planting some seeds, signing a petition to help the natural world, or simply getting out into the garden or the woods for a walk with a friend.

Worship and teaching questions focus on asking whether creation care is an integral part of our worship, recognising and celebrating God’s love for the world He has made, and doing all we can to follow His example. Do we pray for global, national and local environmental issues, both on a Sunday and in our small groups and private prayer? Do we include teaching about creation care in our childrens’ groups? Are we using sustainable resources in our Sunday worship and other activities? Do we include creation care in, for example, preparation for baptism, as an integral part of our faith?

Buildings and energy questions are very practical. We had to measure the carbon footprint of the building (this is part of the Anglican church’s requirements too) and of the various activities and groups which meet here, as well as considering how our staff, members and visitors get to church. A regular maintenance programme for the building is important, with all possible insulation and draught-proofing in place. We are on a renewable energy tariff, some of the lighting is LED; and the water supply is metered. Of course our traditional Victorian building poses problems in terms of energy-efficiency and insulation, but after a very helpful meeting with Josh Hunter of the Diocesan Church Buildings Team we felt that we were doing as well as could realistically be hoped, thanks to the hard work put in regularly by committed individuals. We also had to work out how much recycling and rubbish is created across all the various activities, as well as by those groups which use the church hall; again, thanks are due to those who put regular effort into managing this. Eventually our ageing gas boiler will need replacing, but we will cross that bridge when we come to it, in the hope that by then an economical and eco-friendly option will be obvious. 

Land and nature We are blessed to have a beautiful outdoor space, and a dedicated team of gardeners who care for it. In line with the target for 30% of land to be protected for nature by 2030, they make sure they don’t use peat-based compost or synthetic pesticides and other chemicals. While they keep the front areas neatly mown and planted, there is a “Wild” area further back in the garden where the grass is left unmown, for insects to thrive and wild flowers to grow, as well as a substantial bug hotel created by the Toddler groups. Our garden gives the opportunity for watching and recording wildlife, such as this year’s RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch.

Community and global engagement This is where our involvement in the Fair Trade movement is relevant; we became a Fair Trade church last year and run fair trade stalls four times a year, in partnership with the Good Taste shop at Broomhill. Fair trade can make a huge difference to the lives and prosperity of farmers and workers both here in the UK and across the world, and St Mark’s congregation has responded very generously to presentations about this. We use Fair Trade tea, coffee and sugar, and one church member has very kindly volunteered to supply Fair Trade biscuits on a regular basis for Sunday mornings. We engage with national and local issues, such as improving public transport, and have invited elected representatives to speak at appropriate community events. Our two twinned toilets are also part of caring for our global neighbours.  Of course we try to minimise our waste by reusing, recycling and repairing whenever possible, and we avoid using disposable items, especially plastic, where we can. Vegan, gluten-free and vegetarian options are always available at refreshment times.

Lifestyle This is to do with encouraging us all as individuals to live in as environmentally-friendly a way as possible. We can work out our own carbon footprint using the WWF Carbon Footprint calculator on our website, and we try to keep informed through regular updates on topical matters both here and in the village news magazine. It might be about reducing our meat and dairy consumption, or using public transport instead of our cars where possible, and also thinking about where we invest our money and what kind of holidays we take. Many charities are involved in campaigning for the natural world, and we can encourage participation in special events, marches or petitions to support them.

All of these aspects come together to inform and enrich our worship of God the Creator and Sustainer of our world, and we are glad to celebrate everything we have achieved so far by working together – thank you to everyone! 

March 2025

A Rocha newsletter

A Rocha, the organisation which - among other things - accredits eco churches, sends out newsletters - this month's can be seen at this address. You can read all about connecting with nature in a new way and being a Wild Christian. 

February 2025

Seeds2Trees

Seeds2Trees is an exciting project which all the groups at St Mark’s will be able to share in, through the guidance of our member Richard Dawson. The project’s aim is to enhance the UK’s tree cover, with all the benefits this will bring for wildlife, as well as potentially for carbon storage as the trees mature. It is run by the charity Living Woods, see www.living-woods.org.uk for much more information.

Through Richard, we have received a supply of four different native tree seeds – oak, hazel, alder and birch – plus the special trays and compost in which to plant them, as well as step-by-step instructions. It’s hoped that everyone who comes to any of our groups, as well as the Sunday congregation, will get a chance to choose and plant a tree seed. The trays will then be covered with net, to protect them from squirrels and birds, and kept outside in our garden for two years, so we can keep an eye on how they progress. Hopefully they will grow into strong young saplings, and then they will be returned to the charity and planted out somewhere in the UK, to form part of a new or extended woodland area. 

At January’s Messy Church we had the first chance to take part in planting, and children and adults were all keen to choose their seed – acorns and hazelnuts were offered this time, as the birch and alder seeds were resting in the fridge. Apparently it is vital that they get a full winter chill before they are viable for planting – you learn something new every day! 

It was reported recently that the target for increased tree cover for England is an extra 34,000 hectares (121 square miles) by 2028, and our saplings will be part of this. Trees, bushes and other plants can help the UK reach its Net Zero target because they absorb carbon dioxide, and they also help protect against flooding and provide a valuable wildlife habitat. And of course they offer beauty and peace and a very special place for walks, games and relaxation for those of us lucky enough to visit them – we are very fortunate to have Grenoside woods right here on our doorstep!

So if you are part of any of our groups, whether it’s Toddler Group, Mother’s Union, or the Monday activity group – or if you come to worship on a Sunday, do look out for information about this very special initiative, and be prepared to push a seed into a seed tray. We’ll be helping the environment, in obedience to God who cares for the whole of creation and calls us to act as His stewards on the earth.

January 2025

Stand together to help nature

Happy New Year everyone, and every good wish for a healthy and peaceful 2025, both here and around the world. Let’s continue to pray and work for peace and justice, and to look for the signs of hope which are often hard to see amidst the news of strife and suffering. 

One sign of hope on the horizon for climate and nature is the second reading of the Climate and Nature bill in Parliament, which is coming up on 24th January. There is wide support for this bill but it’s vital that it passes this second stage, so if you can, please do contact your MP and encourage him or her to make sure they are there to vote in support of it.  Briefly, the bill will ensure that the UK meets the international commitments our government has made on climate and nature, by 2030. These are:

• Cutting carbon emissions fairly and fully, to stay within our share of the 1.5 degrees C carbon budget

• Making sure the UK halts the destruction of native plant and animal species, and begins to reverse it, by 2030

• Involving UK citizens in deciding the fairest way forward to achieve these goals

Here is a link to A Rocha’s website where there is more information, and a helpful way of contacting your MP: 

https://arocha.org.uk/support-the-climate-and-nature-bill/ 

And there’s similar information on the Tear Fund website; as you can see, many different organisations are supporting this bill:

https://www.tearfund.org/campaigns/climate-and-nature-bill

At St Mark’s we are now well on our way to achieving the eco-church Silver award, with many members involved in all kinds of action to help our environment. As the days begin to get longer, there are various ways we can support nature locally; here are a few ideas:

• The RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch is taking place over the weekend of 24th-26th January. We hope to meet in the church garden to count how many different species of birds visit, do let Kathy know if you can join us, or if not, do it in your own garden at home or wherever you are. All the information and sign-up details are on the RSPB’s website.

• Great Big Green Week, organised by The Climate Coalition, will have many opportunities for shared action in the summer. It will be on 8th to 16th June this year, you can sign up on their website to get information about local events as it becomes available, see www.greatbiggreenweek.com. 

• Target 25, an A Rocha initiative to support and protect 25 of the most at-risk habitats and species in the UK. All the details are on the website at https://arocha.org.uk/what-we-do/target-25, but here’s an example:
  Ways we can help protect hedgehogs. (Nicky, our Children and Families Minister, has a special love for these little creatures, so I’m sure she will have  more suggestions).

  • Leave a pile of straw or leaves under a hedge or log pile, for hibernation

  • Leave wild areas in your garden

  • Avoid using slug pellets and pesticides

  • Don’t disturb nests, and take care when gardening or strimming

  • Make small holes in fences, to allow free movement between gardens ( you might need to check with your neighbours about this)

  • If you have a pond, put a ramp wrapped in chicken wire to allow easy access. Hedgehogs can swim but struggle to climb out of steep-sided ponds

  • Don’t leave milk out for them as lactose upsets their digestion. They like meaty pet food, but this may encourage rats, so use your judgement.

  • Interesting facts: in one night a hedgehog can eat up to 200g of insects, and wander up to 2 miles!