Education

Read more! Ask at your local public or college library. Check out the Web sites listed on this Web site. Your local library or college should offer Internet access if you don't already have it.

Build your church library to reflect environmental stewardship concerns.

Sponsor activities such as Sunday School, adult forums, community meetings, etc., featuring local environmental groups, union and industry representatives, local health and fire officials, waste management firms, etc.

Provide space for community groups to meet, or perhaps an office in your church building.

Community Assessment and Prevention

Contact state and federal environmental protection agencies (see phone numbers and Web sites under Resources on this site). Ask about current and former clean up sites in your area, as well as spills or leaks or complaints about air and water quality in the last few years.

Call your state and local health departments (their phone numbers are in your telephone book). Ask them about the same things as above, as well as any known clusters (outbreaks) of things like asthma, cancer, birth defects, mysterious undiagnosed maladies, fish or bird kills.

Contact local health care institutions and organizations such as local chapters of the Lung Association, March of Dimes, asthma and chronic illness support groups. Ask what they are working on locally and whether they believe they have identified a "hot spot" or "cluster" of illnesses that may be environmentally related.

Ask your local fire department about previous calls for emergency spills, fires or industrial accidents. Ask them about their emergency plans for evacuation and locations of special concern to them. Ask these same questions of your local government officials.

Building Alliances and Local Resources

Contact local chapters of state or national environmental groups such as Sierra Club, Clean Water Action, Natural Resources Defense Council, etc. Learn what they are tracking or concerned about and ask what your church can do to help. Invite them to talk to your church board, neighborhood community association/organization, or an adult education class.

Identify local college departments in such areas as chemistry, engineering, environmental sciences and agriculture. What languages do the students and faculty speak that might be of use in reaching area residents who do not have English as their first language?

Find local attorneys or those in nearby cities who specialize or have experience in environmental issues, corporate liability, class action suits, etc.

Make contact with local congregations and ecumenical groups such as local ministrial associations, State and local Councils of Churches, and so forth. Tell them of your interests, offer to send a speaker and find out if they are already working on environmental or health concerns.

Identify labor unions in your area, such as United Farmworkers; Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers (OCAW); United Auto Workers (UAW); United Steelworkers; Teamsters, etc. Focus on industrial, health care and agricultural unions and tell them of your interests and ask if they are working on similar issues.

Identify and contact neighborhood or community associations that reflect the diversity of your community.

Identify and contact local chapters of professional societies for waste management, chemistry, engineering, environmental sciences and agriculture.

Identify and contact local newspaper and television reporters specializing in business, religion and environmental or health concerns. Also note their producers and editors.

Coordinate closely with the American Red Cross, The Salvation Army and any other disaster service providers. They can provide faster response time than an effort starting from scratch. They can also provide material needs such as shelter and food.