Solar & Sustainability Resources

If we are to faithfully respond to the real and growing threats of climate crisis, we are going to need to live more sustainably. Our Episcopal churches and institutions can model the types of changes that will make a meaningful impact and demonstrate responsible love and care for Earth.

Churches in the Diocese of Los Angeles are already making strides on this front as evidenced by All Saints’ Riverside’s ambitious solar power projected celebrated in the Episcopal News: All Saints’, Riverside, negotiates path to sustainability, climate responsibility through solar power

The following are resources to guide congregations and parishioners in sustainable shifts including helpful tools for embracing alternative energy and solar technology:

Getting Started with Sustainable Initiatives

• Carbon Tracking for Congregations| Sustaining Our Island Home, The Episcopal Church
  • Quick Guide – Introducing & Engaging this Resource

• The Energy Transition | The Episcopal Church
• Energy Stewardship: Using Grids & Emerging Technologies for Protecting God’s Creation | Creation Justice Ministries
• 12 Ways to Live More Sustainably | BiologicalDiversity.org
• Green Living Tips You Can Apply at Home | Direct Energy

Electrification

• Energy Burden Calculator & Building Electrification | Sierra Club
• Electrifying Your Home | Interfaith Power and Light
• Electrify Everything in Your Home | Rewiring America
• Questions to ask when hiring a home electrification contractor | The Washington Post

Solar Power

• Solar Power Readiness Package | Funding, Building Considerations, & Getting Started
• Congregational Solar | Interfaith Power and Light

Clean Energy Vehicles & Transportation

• Clean Transportation | Sierra Club
• What Are the Most Earth-Friendly Transportation Methods? | LoveToKnow
• EV Charging for your congregation | California IPL

Local Sustainability Organizations & Initiatives 

• California Interfaith Power & Light “helps educate congregations on the theological basis for eco-stewardship and assists them in implementing programs to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and become more energy efficient – therefore helping to mitigate the harmful effects of global warming.
• Caltech’s Resnick Sustainability Institute “advances global sustainability through transformational science, engineering, and education. We prioritize research across campus that addresses challenges and opportunities associated with climate change and the stewardship of natural resources. The fundamental insights gained are directed towards implementation and scale-up for real-world impact.”
• USC Center for Sustainability Solutions “develops policy, technological, and behavioral solutions to the most pressing sustainability problems of the Southern California region and the world.  It brings together scholars and stakeholders from sustainability organizations around the world to collaborate on basic and applied research aimed at making a real-world impact.”
• UCLA Center for Healthy Climate Solutions “partners with communities to build resilience to the adverse health effects of climate change.”
• UCLA Institute of Environment and Sustainability (IoES) “moves science to action on the front lines of environmental progress. Using Los Angeles and California as a testbed, IoES promises solutions for the broader world—and our commitment to communications makes sure our ideas are heard.”