by Jane Pangilinan, Digital Engagement Technician
The Ottawa Faith Community Capacity Building (OFCCB) initiative is a collaboration between Greening Sacred Spaces and Watersheds Canada made to empower six faith communities with the ability to enhance their community, both in the environment and with each other. Bridging the gap between awareness and stewardship, the OFCCB will support and provide the resources needed to develop and lead a local environmental project. The OFFCB will help six faith communities to kickstart and manage a project that will improve environmental awareness and stewardship as well as foster community connection. This program is generously funded by the Ottawa Community Foundation.
One of the ways this will be possible is with the Freshwater Stewardship Engagement (FSE) toolkit. The toolkit is a guide of curated resources to help communities choose and implement projects. Categories in the toolkit include community gardens, community science, fish habitat, green audits and retrofits, Indigenous water education, invasive species management, natural shorelines, shoreline cleanups, stormwater management, and youth engagement. Using 165 existing education resources from all over Canada, the FSE toolkit combines sharing expertise and spreading awareness for existing environmental initiatives. This toolkit will be available to access for any community group and faith community in early 2023.
Follow your passion.
Faith communities are the pillars in their community. They stand for kinship, hospitality, and generosity. These values can be translated into a project benefitting the natural environment. By leading a project through the OFCCB, faith community leaders, green teams, and members have a chance to build connections throughout the community and protect the environment at the same time. If your community is passionate about youth engagement or creating fellowship through a community garden, the toolkit has resources for a project that fits your passion.
Choose your own adventure.
The best part of the OFCCB program is getting to choose which project to build and deliver! The program is flexible and is suited to fit your needs. From community science to stream clean-ups, the possibilities are endless. The project your faith community chooses is all up to you. Even the toolkit is just an example of all the projects possible. With the help and support of Watersheds Canada and Greening Sacred Spaces, think of all the amazing things you can do for your local freshwater and natural areas!
Easy Access
Not all resources are as easy to access as this one. Some resources exist behind a paywall or are difficult to find on your own. Not this one! The FSE toolkit is free, easily accessible, and can be used for more than just this project, year-after-year.
Yours to Use
The purpose of this toolkit is to have a resource for those who wish to create change for their local natural environment. Anyone and everyone is welcome to use the toolkit!
Who is Watersheds Canada?
Watersheds Canada is a nonprofit and registered charity with a mission of helping lakes, rivers, and shorelines through restoration and education. With dedication towards facilitating community involvement, Watersheds Canada hopes to provide the tools and resources needed to protect water resources all over Canada. We believe that in order to make the best impact, we must actively help others. With this in mind, Watersheds Canada provides proven and practical ways to improve water quality over the long term and trains others to do the same. Learn more: https://watersheds.ca/
Who is Greening Sacred Spaces?
A program by Faith and the Common Good, Greening Sacred Spaces helps faith communities with both the educational and spiritual dimensions of green action within the community. They provide resources about green retrofits and decreasing environmental footprints. Learn more: https://www.faithcommongood.org/greening_sacred_spaces
