The seventh Greater Manchester Green Summit took place on Monday at the Lowry, Salford Quays, giving participants, including Canon Grace Thomas, the opportunity to see where the region was in terms of meeting its Net Zero 2038 target. The Dean of Manchester, Rogers Govender, took to the stage to talk about the work of Our Faith Our Planet and the important ways in which faith communities can support the wider green ambitions of the city. There were also many practical initiatives that could benefit our local churches and schools:
GM Repair Week 3rd-9th March 2025
Repair Week is designed to boost the reuse of our everyday household goods, instead of throwing them away when they break. Several churches already host a repair café – this could be the perfect time to launch one or promote yours. More details are available here.
GM Nature Recovery Strategy
Nature recovery and biodiversity promotion is vital for our city to thrive. As well as developing your own wild gardens, you can consult the GM strategy here.
Eco Grants for Schools
There was a fantastic presentation from a local Roman Catholic primary school where the children have helped to set up a ‘refill shop’. Here, parents and members of the community can refill their bottles with washing up liquid, laundry liquid etc. A great way to reduce plastic waste and boost skills in young people! If your local school has a green idea, they can apply for a grant of up to £2,000 to help get them started – this could be a great way to build partnerships between church and school. Hurry, though, the deadline is very tight for these applications! More details here.
School Streets
As well as improving the air children breathe, school streets aim to reduce traffic and parking pressures outside schools during term time, whilst encouraging more sustainable and active forms of travel to schools.
In most cases, a School Streets project consists of a traffic regulation order and related signage, making the road outside the school a pedestrian zone during drop off and pick up times. Each programme isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach though, with measures adapted to suit each area This could be a great initiative for our church schools. Schools can register their interest here.
Church Buildings
During the networking sessions, several discussions were had about innovative ways in which church building could be adapted to be greener and more resilient. While solar panels are one option, they are not always the best in terms of efficiency. There were some interesting conversations about harvesting rainwater for toilets, for example…watch this space!
If you have any questions about the Green Summit or any of the initiatives mentioned here, you are welcome to contact, the Diocesan Environment Officer, Grace Thomas at canon.missioner@manchestercathedral.org