Friends Environmental Working Group 

1999 Annual Report 

Mission statement 

With awareness of the spiritual roots of our ecological concerns, and 

believing that a healthy earth is basic to all Friends' Testimonies, we 

work with monthly meetings, with other Friends organizations, and other 

faith communities, to witness to the ecological and spiritual imperative 

that our society transform its relationship with the earth. 



Accomplishments related to mission include: 



* Approval of an "Affirmation of Commitment" by nineteen more monthly 

meetings (total of forty-two) and by the Pendle Hill community; and use by 

a number of meetings of EWG's "Queries and Advices." 



* Two "open meetings" - in October on "The Politics of Climate Change" 

with Alden Meyer and in April on "Electric Restructuring" with Liz 

Robinson (both programs excellent, attendance about 40 at each). The 

second was held on a Sunday afternoon to enable participation by members of 

the Jewish community. 



* Visits for presentations and/or discussions by EWG members to 7 

monthly meetings, 5 quarterly meetings or other Friends' gatherings, and 5 

churches and interfaith gatherings. 



* Creation of a display map of PYM monthly meetings to visualize and help 

promote EWG's in-reach activities with monthly meetings. 



* Publication of a monthly Quaker Eco-Bulletin on national policy issues 

from a faith-based perspective - six issues to date - distributed by 

e-mail to almost 300 Friends and others. 



* Publication of a faith-based leaflet on "Electric Restructuring in 

Pennsylvania and Global Warming, " sent to all PA monthly meetings with an 

NCC Energy Star Congregation flier, and to be used in the PA Council of 

Churches interfaith global warming campaign in the fall of 1999. A similar 

mailing will be sent to all NJ monthly meetings. 



* Participation in NCC Eco-Justice Working Group, its public policy and 

climate change projects; 2 EWG members participation in its Ohio global 

warming conference. and three EWG members participation in its Chicago 

eco-justice conference; help with writing, editing and distributing 

materials for its global warming campaigns. 



* Sponsorship of a "gathering of Friends" in Chicago, held in conjunction 

with the NCC eco-justice conference and attended by 23 Friends from 15 

yearly meetings, to explore ways of developing a Friends ecological witness 

on national policy. 



Membership: One new member has joined EWG this year as a regular member, 

and two others as adjunct members. 



We would have liked: a) more progress in developing inter-faith 

contacts, b) more clarity and focus in our in-reach activities with 

monthly meetings. 



Major strengths and weaknesses: Our strengths lie in a small core of 

Friends who are committed to our mission, and widespread support for our 

work within the Yearly Meeting. We have succeeded in sharing 

responsibilities for our primary work more widely within the group. We 

remain challenged by the complexities that arise from the varying amounts 

of time members are able to contribute to the work of the group, and the 

difficulties of planning and budgeting two years' in advance. It isn't 

clear whether these are problems peculiar to our group. 



Plans for the coming year: 

* Developing a focus on simplicity and lifestyle for our in-reach 

activities with monthly meetings. 

* Continuing our work with FCUN and FCNL to establish a Friends 

eco-witness on national policy, and continuing to publish the Quaker 

Eco-Bulletin. 

* Participating actively with the PA Council of Churches and (NJ) 

Partners for Environmental Quality inter-faith campaigns on global warming 

and energy. 

* Continuing our work with and through the NCC Eco-Justice Working Group. 



In faith, 

Ed Dreby, project leader, Environmental Working Group