Anglican Creation Care

The Anglican Diocesan of Natal – Creation Care Network pioneered a parish based project to coincide with the International Coastal Clean Up on the 18th of September 2021. This initiative is part of the Season of Creation focus for September each year.

The philosophy behind the project was to get parishes to see that every Parish impacts on the Ocean via the local river that flows through the parish. Parishes were asked to identify the rivers within the Catchment (the drainage area) that the Parish is based and identify the other organisations who are involved with care of creation within the parish boundaries. Scouting South Africa was identified as a youth program that engages with environmental issues and three Scout troops were involved this year.

Parishes organised their own clean-ups, or joined other organisations and participated there. The following Parishes were involved:

• The Youth of the Durban North Archdeaconry
• The Youth of the Durban Central Archdeaconry
• All Saints Bellair with St Mark's Hillary - with 1st Malvern Scouts.
• St Paul's Durban
• St Gabriel's Wentworth
• Good Shepherd Amanzimtoti - With 1st Umbogintwini Scouts
• St Mary's Kingsburgh - with 1st Amanzimtoti Scouts
• St Luke's Karkloof with - African Cooperative Action Trust.
• The following sites were participated in:
• Blue Lagoon;
• Cuttings Beach
• Amanzimtoti Lagoon
• Lidgetton
• Addington Beach

Durban North Organised a tree planting event which is also an important aspect of Creation Care.

People were enlightened about the magnitude of the problem of plastic pollution and the need for ongoing intervention.

The #MyRiversMysea project will make the efforts of the church to engage with environmental issues both practical, visible and build relationships in the community.

This initiative is a multi-stakeholder event with numerous organisations doing great work to address the leakage of Plastic into the environment. The Creation Care Network of the Diocese of Natal is engaged with a major project (INKWAZI ISU) to address this issue. Multiple partners including the church groups can engage in these clean-ups and Parishes and Archdeaconries can get directly involved and at the same time collaborate with other organisations. Through this initiative a youth group or guild can collaborate and build interventions which make up part of the bigger initiative to address plastic waste.

It is our hope that each parish will make ongoing efforts to address environmental issues and impacts and develop policies and procedure and projects at parish level to care for the earth. through clean-ups, recycling and raising awareness. The option to engage with recycling projects as upliftment projects has potential and efforts are being made to create these opportunities to overcome the economic challenges to recycling.

The Creation Care Network is engaging in a Major intervention for KZN (Inkwaz Isu) to address Plastic waste and recycling through a major project aimed at valorising waste and building a circular economy. This will also provide the infrastructure and means to develop meaningful interventions at Parish level.

We thank every individual who participated and worked so hard to raise awareness and make a difference in our #MyRiverMysea2021 event. Our prayer is that we will take this forward and continue to find ways to make a positive impact in the earth.

The Creation Care Facebook Page can be used to post events, ask questions, initiate dialogue and share ideas.

The Lord is Sovereign over all the earth and we his people are created to take responsibility to care for that which God has created.

To the Glory of God. Amen

Revd Andrew Manning