Faith and Nature and the Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship

2016 Totem Pole Journey Commencement Event

Join the Totem Pole Journey crew as they begin the 2016 Totem Pole Journey. Master Carver Jewell James and Dr. Kurt Russo will be talking about this year's Journey with a Totem Pole to be installed at Where the Two Rivers Meet, in Winnipeg, Manitoba Province, Canada.

Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship, 7:00 pm
1207 Ellsworth St., Bellingham

Guest presenters will include:

BUF Welcome by Rev. Paul Beckel
Traditional Welcome by Richard Solomon and the Solomon Family
Dr. Kurt Russo, Lummi Sovereignty and Treaty Protection Office
Master Carver Jewell James, House of Tears Carvers
Fred Lane, Lummi Nation and Totem Pole Journey Crew member
Matt Petryni of RE Sources for Sustainable Communities
Roxanne Murphy, Bellingham City Council

Other guest speakers to be announced.

Oil and the Salish Sea: Fantasy to Fiction

Represent UUs as an Observer to the United Nations COP22!

Would you Like to Represent Unitarian Universalism as an Observer to the United Nations COP22? APPLICATION DEADLINE: MONDAY, AUGUST 1st When: November 7-18, 2016 Where: Marrakech, Morocco Apply: HERE The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) is an official “Observer” interest group to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change --- the body of 197 Nation States that created the Paris Agreement on Climate Change last winter. There were six UU official Observers to the COP21 (Conference of the Parties) in Paris. We do not know yet how many Observer seats we will be granted for the COP22 in Marrakech, Morocco, but anyone who is seriously interested in attending as a representative of Unitarian Universalism is invited to apply -- which requires submitting THIS FORM by Monday, August 1st, so that the UU-United Nations Office (UU-UNO) can begin your application process. Applying does not guarantee that you will be an Observer. The application and selection process is expected to take approximately two months.  Do not apply unless you can commit to being there for at least 7 days. US citizens do not need a visa to visit Morocco for a period of less than 90 days. There is no existing scholarship fund to assist in travel expenses, & selected Observers will manage their own travel arrangements. If you are a part of a UU congregation, consider getting in touch with your minister and congregation Board president to see if there is a way that the congregation can financially support the journey. Commit2Respond campaign organizations (particularly UU Ministry for Earth, UU-UNO, UU Young Adults for Climate Justice) will assist by sharing online fundraiser links of Observers who seek to crowd-fund for the journey to Unitarian Universalists across the country. We will also connect selected Observers with one another as soon as possible, to assist in making acquaintances and travel arrangements. The COP22 will likely be live-streamed, for those interested in United Nations climate policy who cannot or do not want to travel to Morocco.  -=-=- Commit2Respond Keep up with Commit2Respond on Facebook and Twitter.

2016 Totem Pole Journey on Faithify!

2016 Totem Pole Journey on Faithify!

BUF and Lummi at the Canadian Unitarian Council General Conference in May 2016

Bolder Ways of Being

May 20-22, Vancouver, British Columbia will be hosting the Canadian Unitarian Council General Conference and registration is now open.  Early bird registration fees are available for those who register by March 31st.

Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship, Lummi and Tsleil-Waututh will be putting on a workshop entitled "No Borders:  Climate Justice and First Nations."  We're trying to encourage as many UUs from the U.S. to attend so we can start collaborating on erasing the border when it comes to justice issues.  The presence of U.S. UUs would greatly be appreciated.  This will be a great opportunity to meet up with UUs across the border to get to know each other and work together on projects like the upcoming Totem Pole Journey.

There are also workshops on the Truth and Reconciliation movement in Canada (First Nations issue and one that we will want to be exploring here in the U.S.), climate justice and action organization, criminal justice reform and restorative justice, Israel-Palestine situation, music and storytelling, and much more.

If we could get a few of our members to attend the "Building Bridges Through Understanding the Village: Truth, Healing and Reconciliation" workshop that would be really great.  It's one of those ideas that we've been discussing and talking about creating a similar movement here on the U.S. side.  It would be great to have someone take notes.  Two UU ministers are on the CUC task force and at some point I'd like to get them down here to make a presentation on the work they're doing up there.  The description is as follows:

During this experiential workshop Kathi Camilleri will take participants through an exploration of our personal role in supporting the revival of the values that worked so beautifully in Indigenous villages for thousands of years. We will also explore in‐depth the effects of Residential Schools and Canada’s Policy of Assimilation. This workshop is geared to solutions and is done from a non‐blame and non‐shame perspective, inviting all participants to become a part of the healing that IS already happening. Please be aware that Residential School effects and other issues may trigger unresolved grief and loss issues for some. Hosted by the CUC’s Truth, Healing and Reconciliation Task Force co‐chairs, Revs. Samaya Oakley and Meg Roberts.

For general information:  http://cuc.ca/conference-2016/
Saturday and Sunday Workshops:  http://cuc.ca/conference-2016/workshops/
Registration:  http://cuc.ca/conference-2016/adult-registration/adult-registration-form/

Tom Goldtooth at Lummi!

4:44 pm: 'THE EARTH IS ALIVE' SCREENING 29min. Documentary Video that was presented in Paris

5:13 pm: DINNER Welcoming • Table Song Blessing • Dinner

6:24 pm: WITNESSES & WORK Calling of Witnesses • Explaination of evening events/schedule

6:36 pm: YOUTH AMBASSADORS PARIS REPORT

Lummi Youth Ambassadors Presentations of their visit to COP21 • Paris, France • UN World Conference on Climate Change • Slideshow • Video • Lummi Youth Ambassadors • Matthew Jefferson • Teralynn Gaona • Nickolasa Revey • Richard Jefferson • Ashlee Lucero • Alexa Jefferson • Alex Phair • Miko Hillaire • Salena Phair Wilson • Kia George • Freddie Lane • Deborah Parker • Becky Kinley • Derek Kawakone • Angela Gaona-Turner • Darrell Hillaire (Producer: The Earth is Alive) 

7:22 pm: INDIGENOUS ENVIRONMENTAL NETWORK, Key Note Address: Tom Goldtooth, IEN Executive Director

8:02 pm: Welcoming attendees to share Testimony, Love & Questions to Tom Goldtooth

8:31 pm: WITNESSES share their words of what they witnessed tonight

9:01 pm: BLESSING SONG & CLOSING PRAYER

FYI: Tom Goldtooth keynote address at the Indigenous Climate Justice Symposium, November 5, 2015, “The Paris Climate Accord: Will it be a Crime Against Humanity and Mother Earth?” Speaks about the upcoming COP21 talks in Paris in December. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nux4xpVDDlQ  This is a long, almost 2 hours, but the most powerful presentation about instructions given to Native Peoples and how they are connected to the earth as related to Climate and Global Warming and how they want to FLIP the discussion about it. MOVEMENT OF INDIGENOUS RESISTANCE

Tom was co-awarded the Gandhi Peace Award in 2015.  Award recipients in other years have been: Bill McKibben, Amy Goodman, Dennis Kucinich, Ramsey Clark, George McGovern, Marian Wright Edelman, Cesar Chavez, etc..  The first award in 1960 was awarded to Eleanor Roosevelt.

Post-2014 Totem Pole Journey Event, January 21, 2016

Our Voices from Paris event at BUF!

Speak out on the Whatcom Comprehensive Plan and the Cherry Point UGA

These are important dates for those of you who want to have a say about the many aspects of the Comprehensive Plan that will heavily impact our lands, air and water. 

More importantly, this is the opportunity to tell the Whatcom County Council to address the Cherry Point UGA in terms of the survival of the Cherry Point Aquatic Marine Reserve and to support Lummi Nation's request to preserve Sacred Lands and Waters.

On January 25th, RE Sources will be holding a Whatcom Comprehensive Plan Commenting Workshop 

 in the Social Hall at BUF starting at 6:30 pm.  The hearing itself will be in the Whatcom County Council Chambers on January 26th at 6:30 pm.

From RE Sources:  

The Whatcom County Comprehensive Plan will determine the future of our community -- everything from whether your drinking water is protected by critical habitats along shorelines to whether struggling aquatic reserves are sited a massive fossil fuel export hub at Cherry Point.

We need your voice to be heard. Now is the time to speak out. There will only be two public hearings before the Whatcom County Council, your elected government, and they need to hear from you that protecting our community is critically important. 

Your voice can help defend the land, the air and the water for future generations -- but only if you speak out now.

The Comprehensive Plan is required by state law and determines how our community is to address future proposed development in our community. It is a critical opportunity where the County Council will define whether we continue to leave our doors open to dirty and dangerous fossil fuel megaprojects or if commit to a clean energy future that preserves our waters, air, and climate for future generations instead.

Your voice is essential at this public hearing. The County Council needs to know that our community is ready to move forward -- not just to close the door on coal and oil export projects for good, but also to bring about a sustainable, equitable, and healthy future for our local economy.

Please join us in asking the County Council to end the non-stop assault of fossil fuel exports!

Climate Events at other UUs in the region

Tue. Jan. 5 (Seattle) – Speaker Series/Climate Change – David Battisti, professor of atmospheric sciences at the University of Washington, speaks on "Climate Change and Global Food Security" at 7 p.m. at University Unitarian Church (6556 35th Ave. N.E.) Battisti has advised the governments of Indonesia and Mexico on food and climate change. 

Fri. Jan. 8 (Woodinville, Wash.) – Film/Environmental Activism – Woodinville Meaningful Movies presents “A Fierce Green Fire: The Battle for A Living Planet” at 7:30 p.m. at Northshore United Church of Christ (18900 168th Ave. N.E.) This film offers a history of the environmental movement, featuring major battles and accomplishments such as Love Canal, whaling and rain forest actions, with narrators including Robert Redford and Meryl Streep. A facilitated discussion follows the free (donations welcome) 7:30 p.m. film. 

Sat. Jan 9 (Edmonds) – Film/Climate Change – Sno-King Meaningful Movies presents “This Changes Everything” at 7 p.m. at Edmonds UU Church (8109 224th St. S.W.) This film was shot in nine countries and five continents over four years to re-imagine the vast challenge of climate change. Refreshments and a discussion follow the free (donations welcome) 7 p.m. film. 

Wed. Jan. 13 (Seattle) – Eyewitness Reports/Climate Summit – Two climate activists who were in Paris for the Climate Summit – one an observer inside the conference hall, the other an activist on the streets outside – speak from 7-9 p.m. at University Unitarian Church (6556 35th Ave. N.E.) Learn what it was like to be near the epicenter as the landmark climate agreement was being reached. 

Fri. Jan 15 (Seattle) – Film/Climate Change – Beacon Hill Meaningful Movies presents “This Changes Everything” at 7 p.m. at the Garden House (2336 15th Ave. S.) This free film (donations welcome) was shot in nine countries and five continents over four years to re-imagine the vast challenge of climate change. 

Sat. Jan. 16 (Seattle) – Speaker/Civil Disobedience – The University Unitarian Church Climate Action Team presents Tim DeChristopher speaking on “The Power of Civil Disobedience:  Awakening Our Spirits to the Challenge of the Climate Crisis” at 7 p.m. at their church (6556 35th Ave. N.E.) DeChristopher, as Bidder 70, disrupted an illegitimate Bureau of Land Management oil and gas auction in December 2008 by outbidding oil companies for parcels around Arches and Canyonlands National Parks in Utah. His actions and 21-month imprisonment earned him a national and international media presence. 

Wed. Jan. 27 (Issaquah, Wash.) – Film/Climate Change – Meaningful Movies of Issaquah presents a free (donations welcome) film on the fourth Wednesday of each month at 7 p.m. at Issaquah Highlands’ Blakely Hall (2550 NE Park Dr.) This month’s film, “This Changes Everything,” was shot in nine countries and five continents over four years to re-imagine the vast challenge of climate change 

Tue. Feb. 2 (Seattle) – Speaker Series/Climate Change – Steven Gardiner, professor of philosophy and the Ben Rabinowitz Endowed Professor of Human Dimensions of the Environment at the University of Washington, speaks on “The Ethics of Geoengineering" at 7 p.m. at University Unitarian Church (6556 35th Ave. N.E.) He has written extensively on ethics and climate, including the acclaimed “A Perfect Moral Storm: The Ethical Tragedy of Climate Change.”