In 1995 the Ethics Centre developed The Salvation Army's Positional Statement on our 'Responsibility for the Environment' which is now in the process of being up-dated.  In 2007 the Territory commissioned the Ethics Centre to study our environmental policies and practices.  The Environmental Policies and Practice Committee has now been formed to address the five recomendations that came out of the Ethics Centre report and to further study the development of policy. Briefly they are as follows:

• Ensure stewardship at all levels of SA operations
• Provide education at all levels of the organization
• Commit on-going theological reflection on the Christian’s responsibility for creation care
• Appoint a committee to move the organization toward sustainable practice
• Articulate organizational commitment for environmental stewardship and practice

Go forward, the Property Department has been given the responsibility of being the conduit for process and action coming out of the committee.
The second recommendation stated above is to "commit to education in regard to environmental stewardship." You will recall last year the territory embraced and participated in the global Earth Hour initiative.  This was but a first step in an attempt to bring environmental issue awareness and education to our organization across the territory and beginning with THQ, again this year, it is our hope to model for the territory simple ways to be environmentally responsible.

Earth Hour is the lights out campaign  launched last year in Australia, the results being that for 60 minutes much of the world went dark and the demand for electricity dropped significantly.  This year Earth Hour will take place on Saturday, March 28, 8:30 p.m. and again, it will be an international demonstration of organizations, businesses and populations around the world of the power of individuals to create change, not about solving climate change but about people expressing concern and doing something about it.

It is timely that the intentions of our positional statement be put into practice as we become involved in 'earth-keeping' which for us, is a moral and theological imperative.  In supporting Earth Hour, officers and employees create an awareness on environmental issues and as Territorial Headquarters again turns their lights off,  we model for the territory a simple way in which we can make a difference.  

Our promotion of Earth Hour will be emphasized each week in March by an Environmental Challenge posted on LN Notice Board encouraging employee and officer staff to be a part of the 'creation care' solution.

Please share the information in this email with staff in your respective departments/ sections and for more information, tools and resources, go to www.EarthHourCanada.org.

We look forward to sharing future process and action as together, we move forward.

With thanks

Lynda A. Watt
Lt. Colonel