UPCOMING EVENTS:

The next volunteer opportunity with our Hands in the Soil program is on Sat. March 15  9:00 – 11:00 AM when you are invited to lend a hand at FARM LAB, a 10-acre non-profit organic garden that grows produce supplied to local school districts. Farm Lab promotes sustainability awareness and provides climate change education to students locally while inspiring other like-minded school districts nationwide. Farm Lab, at 441 Quail Gardens Dr., Encinitas, CA 92024, is a nationally recognized Farm to School program!

Saturday volunteering typically includes bed prep, weeding, and hedgerow maintenance. Sometimes, there are harvesting or transplant needs. 

Volunteers 14 or older are welcome. All instructions and tools are provided. Many hands make light work!

For more information or to RSVP please contact Susan Cass / Email: susanpanniercass@gmail.com

( Whenever we can we like to spotlight other organizations working in the same vineyard as ourselves. The North County Climate Change Alliance (NCCCA) is one of those and our own Co-Chair Yusef Miller will be representing ICEJ at this event.)

On Sat. March 29 from 1-3 PM, you are invited to join the North County Climate Change Alliance for an educational and enjoyable afternoon, during which local environmental organizations will have the opportunity to promote Earth Month events, share community engagement opportunities, distribute promotional materials: flyers, QR codes, etc., speak about organizational goals and current initiatives, learn about the priorities of other environmental organizations, collaborate on meaningful climate change action, and network with like-minded individuals.

Light vegan refreshments will be provided. Iced tea and lemonade will be available. Please bring your own beverage container. This event will be plastic free.  This FREE event will be held at Magee Park Heritage Hall at 258 Beech Avenue in Carlsbad.  

To RSVP or if you have any questions, please email elizabeth.nccca@gmail.com.

PAST EVENTS:

We cannot stand by while the Trump administration:

• denies climate change in the face of the heartbreaking fires in LA
• expands fossil fuel drilling
• illegally cuts funds for renewable energy and environmental justice
• places fossil fuel executives in charge of our environment and paints a target on the backs of the EPA workers who are working for our health and our environment every day.

On Monday, March 10 at 11:00 AM, we’ll rally at the Federal Courthouse, 333 West Broadway in downtown San Diego and then march to the Federal Building to support San Diego’s EPA workers who are under attack, call out Trump’s devastating actions for our climate, and demand that San Diego and California step up climate action. This event will also feature actions to take and great speakers including Scripps climate scientists Dr. Jeffrey Severinghaus and Dr. Lynne Talley, Yusef Miller, Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice, Ali Mariko Dressel, Climate Action Campaign, former La Mesa Councilmember Jack Shu, SD350 members Adeline Deig, Shayne Petkiewicz and Phil Petrie.

The Power to Act: Earth Justice in San Diego

Part of ICEJ’s mission is to mobilize people and faith communities to take action on the environmental crisis. To that end, our co-chairs Yusef Miller and Phil Petrie will be part of a panel discussion on Saturday Feb. 1st at 9:30 – 12:00 , The Power to Act: Earth Justice in San Diego with members of SanDiego350 and CleanEarth4Kids.

The event is sponsored by the San Diego School of Christian Studies, a ministry of First United Methodist Church and will be held at First United Methodist Church San Diego in Linder Hall, 2111 Camino Del Rio S, San Diego, CA 92108 and livestreamed – to receive the link please register below. More info follows.

How can you get involved in earth justice issues right here in San Diego? Why should persons of faith care? And how are youth stepping up to create a better future for all of us?

This panel presentation will explore four key issues:

• Fossil fuel divestment
• Toxic pesticides
• Transportation justice
• Banning oil extraction in California

We’ll hear personal stories, what inspires these eco-activists to keep going, and concrete steps each of us can take to make a difference.

Hands in the Soil w/ Surfrider

Last fall ICEJ started an initiative we’re calling Hands in the Soil that pairs volunteers with monthly opportunities at various local not-for-profits providing an opportunity to get a little dirty to make our community cleaner (and more earth friendly).

For February – Saturday, February 15 from 9-11 AM to be exact – we join Surfrider for a beach clean up at two locations: Moonlight Beach, Encinitas and Imperial Beach – so take your pick. Someone from Surfrider will talk briefly about what to pick up, supply you with gloves, bags, and pickers, and set you free to clean the beach. Just look for the table with the big Surfrider sign on the beach and someone from ICEJ (we’ll have signs) will be there to meet you also. If you can’t stay for the whole time, that’s never a problem either.

For more information from Surfrider go here.

To contact a representative from ICEJ, reach out to Susan Cass at Susanpanniercass@gmail.com

In solidarity with GreenFaith communities throughout the country, the Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice will hold a pre-Inaugural candlelight vigil, “Bringing Light into the Darkness,” on Wednesday, January 15 from 5:30 – 6:30 pm in Balboa Park (El Prado and Balboa Drive) near the Kate Sessions’ statue. Faith community activists and lovers of Earth will gather to shine a light of hope in the darkness of the harmful rhetoric and anticipated actions that threaten climate and social justice progress.

The vigil will feature faith reflections and songs on the theme of light. GreenFaith is a worldwide multi-faith climate and environmental movement.  We also encourage you to sign this GreenFaith pledge – Call to Courage.

On-street parking is nearby.  For more information, contact Phil Petrie at phil@icejsd.org

Thanksgiving for the Earth: An Interfaith Prayer, Song and Kite Day

Everything that we give thanks for in this season of Thanksgiving flows directly from our earth and the ecosystems that sustain us.  We of the Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice wish to show our gratitude for our beloved planet with an outdoor interfaith service on Sun. Nov. 24 from 2-4 PM at Ski Beach Park in Mission Bay (on the east side of Vacation Island). 

We will offer prayers from several faith traditions, listen to the music of Kol Tefillah, and fly kites after decorating them with earth friendly words and images.  Bring your own kite or fly one of the FREE kites we will provide. 

Some light refreshments will also be provided.  Please join us and bring the whole family!!

Rain date–Sun. Dec. 8 from 2-4 PM.  Please register in advance HERE.

For more information email phil@icejsd.org. 

---

“¡Justicia para el Pueblo! ¡Justicia para la Tierra! | Justice for the People! Justice for the Earth!”

A unique FREE community event focused on environmental justice.

Join your neighbors for “¡Justicia para el Pueblo! ¡Justicia para la Tierra! | Justice for the People! Justice for the Earth!”

On Sat., Oct. 5 from 11 AM – 3 PM at the SE Live Well Center, 5101 Market St., San Diego, CA  (Tubman Chavez Conference Center), faith leaders, congregations, and all concerned citizens will come together to address the most pressing environmental issues in southeastern San Diego. The day will feature:

Eco Fair (11 AM – 12 PM & 2 PM – 3 PM): Connect with faith-based and secular organizations working towards environmental justice and learn about the resources that they offer.

Town Hall (12 PM – 2 PM): Share your environmental concerns and collaborate with community members to identify one specific issue and develop an action plan to address it. A free lunch will be provided.

Together, let’s work towards justice for our people and our Earth!  For more information, please contact Phil Petrie at phil@icejsd.org.  Please register here or with the QR code. 

This event is organized by the Environmental Health Coalition, GRID Alternatives, Groundwork San Diego–Chollas Creek, the Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice, the San Diego Urban Sustainability Coalition, SanDiego350, and the Urban Collaborative Project.

Note: SD County Health and Human Services Agency does not advocate or endorse the views or positions expressed by the users of its facilities.

---

Ashes to Action: Honoring Our Climate Dead, Protesting Fossil Fuel Banks

Climate change is making extreme weather events like this winter’s floods and rainstorms in SoCal the new normal and there are often fatalities.  In the past fifty years approximately two million people have died from such events.  Climate change is primarily driven by the fossil fuel industry which in turn is funded by our financial sector.  From 2016-2022 four big US banks–Bank of America, Chase, Citibank, and Wells Fargo–have poured over one trillion dollars into the fossil fuel industry.  THIS MUST STOP!!

To protest this blood money and honor those who have died (most of whom are from developing nations), a coalition of environmental groups is holding a series of memorial services/protests in different locations around San Diego.  On Friday, April 5  1:00-2:30 PM the event will be in Solana Beach starting at Citibank, 740 Lomas Santa Fe Dr and processing to Bank of America, 943 Lomas Santa Fe Dr..  We will finish up at a nearby Mission Federal Credit Union to commend them for refusing to invest in fossil fuels.  Please register here for this crucial witness and if you can, wear black on the day-of. This event is sponsored by the Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice and partners including Third Act So Cal, GreenFaith, SanDiego350, CleanEarth4Kids, and the North County Equity and Justice Coalition.  Our action is part of this Spring’s Faiths for Climate Justice, GreenFaith’s global call to people of faith to take action on fossil fuel divestment and investment in a sustainable future. For more information, contact Phil Petrie at phil@icejsd.org.

---

---

From Ashes to Action: Honoring Our Climate Dead, Protesting Fossil Fuel Banks

In the past fifty years two million people have died from extreme weather events most of which were exacerbated by climate change.  Many more will die if we do not transition speedily to renewable energy.  From 2016-2022 four big US banks–Bank of America, Chase, Citibank, and Wells Fargo–have poured over one trillion dollars into the fossil fuel industry enabling its extraction and burning of the dirty energy that drives climate change.  THIS MUST STOP!!  

To protest this blood money and honor those who have died (most of whom are from developing nations), a memorial service and protest will be held before each of these four banks while processing with a (mock) coffin to symbolize the mounting casualties and the banks’ culpability.  On Monday, November 13 at 11 AM, we will meet before Bank of America at 655 W. Broadway in downtown San Diego and march to the other three.  Please register here for this crucial witness and if you can, wear black on the day-of.  In the event of a rain storm, we will meet on Monday, November 20 at the same time and place.

This event is sponsored by the Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice and partners including GreenFaith, SanDiego350, Third Act So Cal, and CleanEarth4Kids. 

For more information, contact Phil Petrie at phil@icejsd.org.

Additional info:

Please wear black if you can.

**In the event of a rain storm we will meet on Monday, November 20 at the same time and place

Slogans for signage:

• Bank Profits=Climate Deaths
• End Dirty Investments, Not Human Lives!
• Honor Our Dead–End Fossil Fuel Investing NOW!
• Life is Sacred.  Bank Profits are Not!

---

On Sunday, May 21 from 2:00 to 3:30 PM, the Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice (ICEJ) is proud to present this workshop with Michael Richardson, co-founder of Rivers & Mountains GreenFaith and lifelong activist.  Michael will address how we can move finances from funding fossil fuel extraction, production and distribution… and instead direct bank deposits, insurance premiums, and investment portfolios to fund local businesses and farms, affordable housing, and development of renewable clean energy.  His activism is driven by the moral imperative to stop funding climate chaos–the same moral imperative that led ICEJ to pressure Chase, Citibank and Wells Fargo to cease loans to the fossil fuel industry.  We must keep the pressure on–join us for this workshop to see how to do so most effectively!

For more information, contact: info@icejsd.org

This FREE event is presented by the Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice

What: Investing in Our Values: An Advancing Earth Justice Series Virtual Event

When: Sunday, May 21,  2 – 3:30 PM

Where: Zoom – Register Online for the Link

---

Earth, Water, Air, Fire: An Interfaith Service on the Climate Crisis

 As the environmental crisis deepens, we must take action to heal the planet where we have wounded it.  For persons of faith that action is rooted in our faith traditions and practices.  So we will gather on Saturday, April 29 at 5-6 PM at the Moreton Fig Tree arbor in Balboa Park for an interfaith, interactive and intergenerational service to connect with the Divine presence and build toward a thriving and diverse future. There will be music, hands-on activities and prayers from diverse faiths. This is a family-friendly event and youth are encouraged to participate. Following the service, we host a bring-your-own picnic for community and fellowship.  All are invited to attend!!

EVENT DETAILS

What: Earth, Water, Air, Fire: An Interfaith Service on the Climate Crisis

When: Saturday, April 29 @ 5 PM Service | 6 PM Picnic *

 * Rain Date: TBD

Where: Balboa Park – Arbor by Moreton Bay Fig Tree, just west of Village Place & Park Blvd

Note: Please bring your own lawn chair and a meal if you are staying for the picnic after.

For Questions and more info, email admin@icejsd.org

This event is sponsored by the Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice and Faith Partners

REGISTER HERE  

---

Rally at Chase Bank Tues. March 21st

Last year the International Energy Agency said if we wanted to meet the Paris climate targets “there can be no new investments in oil, gas and coal, from now… from this year.”

Be part of Third Act’s National Day of Action in San Diego, organized by a coalition of local climate groups. Tell the four major funders of new oil and gas projects—Wells Fargo, Citibank, Chase, and Bank of America—to STOP funding new oil and gas projects or we will move our business elsewhere.

Register Here and show up at 11:30 AM at Chase Bank, 101 West Broadway in downtown San Diego. Bring a sign if you have one.

Here Are Some Other Things You Can Also Do

• Sign the Third Act’s Banking on our Future Pledge

• Communicate with the local bank manager at one of these banks. Let them know what we are asking and what we will do on 3/21 if their bank doesn’t cooperate.

• If you have a checking, saving or credit card account with one of the four banks, move your business elsewhere just before or after the rally. Here are some resources to help you

---

Join two of Thich Nhat Hanh’s senior dharma teachers, Dr. Larry Ward and Dr. Peggy Rowe Ward of the Lotus Institute for their talk entitled, Be Not Afraid on Tues. Oct. 11 at 5 – 6 pm PST via Zoom for our 3rd Advancing Earth Justice Speaker Series. Larry is an ordained Christian minister and his doctorate studies were in Buddhism and neuroscience.  Peggy focuses on spiritual direction and trauma resiliency.  Be Not Afraid  is the title of the book that Larry is writing as a follow up to America’s Racial Karma.  Peggy and Larry also co-authored Love’s Garden.  

The talk will begin with some somatic movement and include a short meditation, short talk and Q & A session.

This is a FREE event as part of the Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice’s Advancing Earth Justice series. 

For more information contact phil@icejsd.org

Listening to Creation–Interfaith Service at La Jolla Shores

This summer we have witnessed stifling heat in Europe, flooding in South Korea and India, and massive wildfires and drought in California.  Climate change is here and now–and getting worse.  As persons of faith we are called to own the problem and move to act. 

On Wednesday, September 21 we will hold Listening to Creation: The Earth Speaks–The Time is Now, an interfaith service moving from Lamentation to Stewardship to Joy.  All are welcome when we gather at 5:00 pm at La Jolla Shores Park, 8300 Camino del Oro for a BYO meal (please BYO beach chairs too).  The service will begin at 6:00 pm and conclude by 6:45.  All of our faith traditions call us to attentiveness and deep listening. Out of this attention, we act!!  

For more information contact the Rev. Brian Petersen at pastor@holycrosscarlsbad.org.
This event is sponsored by a group of local faith communities and the Interfaith Coalition for Earth Justice.