Why We Advocate for Mother Earth
By Bert Pearce
In March 2017, the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta formed a Green Team, known as the congregation’s Climate Action Team. In 2020, we officially became a GIPL Green Team after going through Green Team Coaching. Through GIPL’s Green Team Coaching program, GIPL staff members meet regularly with individual Green Teams to provide customized support and structure.
We worked closely with our coach, Codi Norred, to identify goals and objectives for greening our congregation and engaging in advocacy. Our passion to advocate for policies that protect and support Mother Earth stems from the UU faith’s 7th principle which is “Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.” The Climate Action Team is motivated by the belief that the Earth is a treasure which must be protected and revered. With respect to climate change specifically, we believe that we, and all other members of the interdependent web, are facing an existential challenge. In the words of the well-known climate march poster, “there is no plan(et) B.”
We are convinced that climate change is real and is being accelerated by human actions. We developed a Green Team mission statement that has helped inform our response to the climate crisis. The mission statement contains several pillars, including the following: “To contact State and Federal Legislators on a regular basis, using letters, phone calls or personal appearance to share our support for the Paris Agreement on Climate Change signed in 2016 and against any EPA or State rule changes that are detrimental to earth’s health.” This pillar of the mission statement reflects our passion for advocacy and our belief that we must address the systemic injustices impacting our communities.
Over the years, we have engaged in advocacy in a number of ways. In 2017, we joined in the March for Science to rally against President Trump’s announcement of his intent to withdraw the U. S. from the Paris Climate Agreement. In 2018, we sent emails to several Georgia congressmen to encourage them to join the U.S. House’s Climate Solutions Caucus, which is a bipartisan group of representatives focused on climate. In 2019, we joined with Sierra Club’s “Beyond Coal” campaign to advocate for Georgia Power to adopt more large-scale solar power into its Integrated Resource Plan and several of our members rallied with Interfaith Power and Light’s Reverend Dr. Gerald Durley across the street from the offices of the Georgia Public Service Commission. In 2021, several members of our Green Team met with Hannah Shultz, Joanna Kobylivker, and other GIPL Green Teams at the offices of Senators Warnock and Ossoff in support of Biden’s Build Back Better Act and the environment.
We plan to continue advocating in 2022 by submitting comments to Georgia EPD on the proposed permit to mine titanium on the east side of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, which we believe will irreparably harm the Okefenokee’s unique ecosystem. We also plan to get involved again with the Public Service Commission and will advocate for the addition of more solar and wind power into Georgia Power’s 2022 Integrated Resource Plan. Our Green Team is a relatively small group. However, we feel that we can make a difference by making our voices heard and by working together with other like-minded groups. Our association with GIPL and the Green Teams from numerous Georgia congregations gives us strength. We believe that our precious Earth must be treasured and protected for future generations of humans and our fellow members of the interdependent web.
About the Author:
Bert Pearce is a native of the South Carolina Lowcountry and has been a member of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta for 23 years. He has degrees in electrical and environmental engineering and worked for 24 years in environmental consulting and compliance. He is married and has four children.