For Such A Time As This

We live in a broken and unequal world. We are here for such a time as this. Called to respond with words and actions. USPG partners with churches across the world in their mission of transforming lives through education, health care and justice for all.

#forsuchatime

21 I

ISSUE 4 1/2021

I will surely teach the next generation to keep our environment clean and green

People are living in this world as though they have another planet to go to.

Hermani

The Green Schools Programme is empowering the next generation with the skills and knowledge they need to protect the environment now for the future. You are standing in solidarity with young people like Hermani from St Hilda’s School Ooty who is seeing the impact that the Green Schools Programme is having in her school.

They harvest rainwater in large tanks and use the water for their toilets, gardening, washing and cooking using steam. Children in schools across south India are putting their faith into action in caring for God’s Creation.

£30 Provides one school with a Green School Award to champion their progress and inspire others to follow in their footsteps £60 Provides educational materials on the Green School Programme to students in six schools to empower their students to start their environmental journey £100 Means that 270 children can learn how to change their environment by training nine teachers on the Green Schools Initiative.

CASE STUDIES & STORIES:

Diyaa - I think this will help me as an adult because in the future we will start doing many new things, like rainwater harvesting. We will find more ways to help our environment so we can use the basic knowledge we learnt now and make better changes for the environment Hermani - the pupil in charge of the green project at her school said “This school has taught me to how to save electricity, how to save water, how to plant trees and how to develop the ecology. I will surely teach the next generation to keep our environment clean and green. I have studied at this school from first grade and I have been in this school for 9 years and it has been a perfect blessing for me. When I leave I will miss the school very much as it is very eco-friendly.” Dr Jegy Grace Thomas - (Principal of Baker Memorial Secondary School in Kottayam) has embraced the challenge to make it a ‘Green School’ after receiving training on the environment from the Church of South India. The school campus is now a plastic-free zone, with children bringing in their food in tiffin boxes and cloth bags. Each student has a grow-bag with their name on it, and they learn how to grow vegetables such as cauliflower, peas, beans, and spinach using organic fertilizer such as cow dung. Turmeric is also cultivated on campus, and the students are responsible for cleaning, drying, powdering and packing it. The students then sell their turmeric, and the profit is used to help support underprivileged students at the school. ■

A boy in Green School

You can support our lent appeal for such a time as this by:

• Giving a donation

(uspg.org.uk/forsuchatime)

• Following along with our weekly environmental challenges on social media or in the Lent Course which is freely available from our website at

www.uspg.org.uk Thank you for supporting our Lent Appeal, FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS. Your gift will really help the Green Schools programme.