Welcome to the Green Initiative for eVironmental Evangelical Renewal (GIVER) PILOT PROGRAM!

We want to thank all churches that applied to participate in the program. We will be in touch with you shortly. For further inquiries please contact us at support@creationcare.org. Over the next two weeks we will be developing resources for churches looking to implement the program apart from the on going pilot program. Stay tuned for details.

GIVER is being launched as a partnership between the Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN), The National Association of Evangelicals, and the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference with assistance from the Department of Energy, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Capital E, and the Energy Star Congregations program.

GIVER is a national program intended to help make our churches and their facilities greener, more efficient, and healthier. By joining together to "green" existing congregational buildings we can achieve: Energy Efficiency, Reduce Dependence on foreign energy, Reduction of Major Pollutants (I.e. Mercury and others), Water Usage Reduction, Increased Recycling & Waste Reduction, Increased Congregational Health, Cost Savings, Renewal of Congregation Mission, and Job Creation.

Energy efficiency from houses of worship offers a large and unmet potential for saving congregational financial resources, protecting God's creation, reducing energy dependence, limiting pollution, and creating meaningful employment. We believe an average 30% to 35% reduction in energy and water use in religious buildings is achievable and cost effective and represents a morally and financially compelling opportunity for churches to improve their facilities while reaffirming their mission and social commitments.

In addition to educating houses of worship, GIVER will act as a conduit for individual homes becoming energy efficient by:

• Becoming a training point within the local community;
• Demonstrating/Proving the energy reduction and cost savings reality

Principles behind the Program

FORMING A CREATION CARE TEAM

Click here for ideas on how to get started. E-mail us at support@creationcare.org and we will send you our Creation Care Team principles guide.

THE AUDIT PROCESS

The first step towards improving your church is having a professional energy audit. Having a successful audit will help ensure correct energy projections and savings. Once the audit is complete, the auditor should provide you with a set of energy recommendations. Those recommendations are what you will use to determine your strategy to energy efficiency. Some of the recommendations will be low cost, others will be a financial commitment from your church.

ENERGY STAR MANUAL USE

The Energy Star for Congregations and the Department of Energy have put together an Action Workbook for Worship Facilities, which provides a clear, step-by-step process for building owners to follow. This manual contains savings calculations and implementation instructions for projects that owners can perform themselves.

Although the manual is for general use, it has also been created to help with the pilot program. Certain sections highlighted throughout this handbook and below can greatly assist you with this program. We encourage you to read the entire manual so you are comfortable with the various sections although some may not pertain to you.

CHOOSING WHAT IS BEST FOR YOUR CHURCH

Once you have completed your audit and you have talked to your governing board about your church budget, it is time to select which audit recommendations are right for you.
Deciding which recommendations make the most sense for your church requires a consideration of your financial position, financial horizons, operating limitations, etc. In general, you may want to consider a combination of short and long-term payback items, such that they balance one another out to create a medium-term payback. If you only go after the items with the most rapid payback, you may hamper the chances of being able to do the longer-payback items in the future.

If this interests you be sure to get started today. For more information please e-mail us at support@creationcare.org. Stay tuned for updates and details on how your congregation can be involved.