Uncategorized – The Green Tau

Counting on 2026 …. Day 69

30th June

Allwood proposes as a starting point we find a way of measuring our progress – otherwise how ill we know if we are reducing our consumption by 25% or 50% or 75%? – and suggests keeping a record of, say, how many litres of petrol, kg of beef, or cubic meters of gas, we consume. Then the task of restraint. “Perhaps we can take a train to avoid buying a tank of petrol, upgrade our windows or turn the thermostat down … take local [European] holidays to reduce our use of aeroplanes.”

Allwood also reminds us to look out for unconscious habits. “If the works canteen [local cafe/ pub] always has a red-meat dish, we might eat it without noticing. But if it is on offer only once a week, we would learn to value it differently and perhaps we would eat red meat only if we have looked forward to it ….” (Both page 131)

Such restraint should be seen from the perspective that they are actions that show care for our planet and for our neighbours.

Counting on 2026 …. Day 68

29th June

The key message of Allwood and Davison’s book (1) is the need for us all as consumers to show restraint. If we are to live in a world where temperatures increases stay below 2C we absolutely have to cut greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. To do this we have to consume less of everything that produces these emissions and less of most things that use electricity as we will not be able to install sufficient capacity in electrical generation and distribution if we are to power everything currently powered by fossil fuels.

Allwood presents us with a timeframe of action. We need to reduce our emissions by a quarter by 2028, by a half by 2035, by three quarters by 2042, and by 2050 there will need to be in place legislation that prohibits creating greenhouse gas emissions. (P129). To achieve those targets, we (ie as individuals, households and as nations) will need to begin planning now.

It is a challenging message that needs us to radically alter our daily lifestyles. However Allwood is as clear that consuming less doesn’t mean being unhappy or having to live substandard lives.

Over the next few days I will consider 5 key areas of change highlighted in the book.

https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/promise-the-earth/31E27442471A864A6582BA751ECD239F

Proper 8, 4th Sunday after Trinity

28th June 2026

Reflection with readings below

Today’s reading comes towards the end of the Book of Jeremiah. At the time that Jeremiah lived, there were two competing world powers – Babylon to the east and Egypt to the southwest with Judah in between. For small nations like Judah, but also such as Edom and Moab, the easiest option was to become a vassal state, paying tribute, to which ever world power they felt was strongest. Nowadays we might see this with small nations establishing trade agreements with one or other of the powerful nations of the world. Judah was -maybe temporarily and subject to review – paying tribute to Babylon.

Jeremiah was of the opinion that Judah should knuckle down under the power of Babylon – in fact he symbolically fastens a yoke of straps and bars around his neck – as he senses that this is God’s will, and that by submitting to God’s will they will ultimately be restored to full nationhood by God. Jeremiah sees Judah’s subjugation by Babylon as the deserved consequences for failing to adhere to God’s laws.

Judah has already suffered one defeat at the hands of the Babylonians which had led to both vessel from the Temple and senior figures being taken away to Babylon. Now an uneasy settlement existed between Judah and Babylon in which some favoured the status quo whilst others favoured rebellion and the option of siding in favour with Egypt. This latter was a popular view in the Judean ruling circles, with many prophesying that anytime soon the tables would be turned on Babylon and all Judah’s wealth including the Temple vessels would be restored to Jerusalem.

One of these prophets was Hananiah, who in the verses preceding today’s readings says “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. Within two years I will bring back to this place all the vessels of the Lord’s house, which King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took away from this place and carried to Babylon. I will also bring back to this place King Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim of Judah, and all the exiles from Judah who went to Babylon, says the Lord, for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon”. To make his point, Hananiah breaks the wooden yoke from around Jeremiah’s neck.

Jeremiah’s response to Hananiah as we heard in today’s reading, is somewhat in the vein of ‘the proof of the pudding will be in the eating!’ Jeremiah persists with his less favourable viewpoint and later, in verse 13, we hear the Lord tell Jeremiah to replace the wooden yoke with one of iron bars, for such it will be to serve the king of Babylon. Being a truthful prophet can be very uncomfortable.

Today the greatest crisis the world faces is that of unrestrained climate change – the discomforts of which we have been feeling this last week. I do not for a moment think that God has created climate change to punish us. But I do think climate change is a natural consequence of human action in burning excessive amounts of carbon fuels. As in the days of Jeremiah there are strong voices on either side of the divide between those who say climate change is not caused by human activities (only this week the so-called Alliance of Responsible Citizens held their annual meeting in London with speakers expounding this view) and those who say the reverse; and between those who say we should address the issue by urgently and at scale cutting emissions to zero, and those who contend that we should worry more about ensuring the economic growth that fossil fuels have so far generated.

Today’s psalm – in line with the message of the entire Bible – reminds us that we only thrive and flourish as God intends when we adhere to God’s wisdom. To ignore or obstruct the ways of God’s wisdom is to sin. And as Paul reminds us, to sin is to be as one who is dead. To seek forgiveness is to be raised to new life and to be bound – enslaved – to the ways of righteousness.

Our gospel reading brings us back to the role of the prophet in speaking of God’s truth. It is a worthy calling. As disciples of Christ we are called to speak the truth, to advocate for God’s wisdom and to embrace fully the ways of righteousness.

For our current generation I believe that our prophetic role is to call for the rapid curb in the production and use of fossil fuels, as well as a call for a just and fair sharing of the Earth’s resources that reflects the needs of everyone – humans and creaturely beings alike.

Jeremiah 28:5-9

The prophet Jeremiah spoke to the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests and all the people who were standing in the house of the Lord; and the prophet Jeremiah said, “Amen! May the Lord do so; may the Lord fulfil the words that you have prophesied, and bring back to this place from Babylon the vessels of the house of the Lord, and all the exiles. But listen now to this word that I speak in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people. The prophets who preceded you and me from ancient times prophesied war, famine, and pestilence against many countries and great kingdoms. As for the prophet who prophesies peace, when the word of that prophet comes true, then it will be known that the Lord has truly sent the prophet.”

Psalm 89:1-4,15-18

1 Your love, O Lord, for ever will I sing; *
from age to age my mouth will proclaim your faithfulness.

2 For I am persuaded that your love is established for ever; *
you have set your faithfulness firmly in the heavens.

3 “I have made a covenant with my chosen one; *
I have sworn an oath to David my servant:

4 ‘I will establish your line for ever, *
and preserve your throne for all generations.'”

15 Happy are the people who know the festal shout! *
they walk, O Lord, in the light of your presence.

16 They rejoice daily in your Name; *
they are jubilant in your righteousness.

17 For you are the glory of their strength, *
and by your favour our might is exalted.

18 Truly, the Lord is our ruler; *
the Holy One of Israel is our King.

Romans 6:12-23

Do not let sin exercise dominion in your mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions. No longer present your members to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments of righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that you, having once been slaves of sin, have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted, and that you, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. I am speaking in human terms because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to greater and greater iniquity, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness for sanctification.

When you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. So what advantage did you then get from the things of which you now are ashamed? The end of those things is death. But now that you have been freed from sin and enslaved to God, the advantage you get is sanctification. The end is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Matthew 10:40-42

Jesus said, “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple– truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.”

Waves – Prayers for Creation

27th June 2026

See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation!
2 Corinthians 6:2b

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading from Luke 10:1, 8-11 ‘After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’

Response:

Now is the time to act.

Now is the time to build a new world.

The gentle to and fro of the wave,

back and forth,

soothing,

gently rocking,

Loving God, calm us, and

move us as peace-makers.

The persistence of the wave,

never stopping,

never quitting,

gradually wearing down all resistance

Loving God, sustain us, and

make us a force for good.

The power of the wave,

building up,

growing in size,

acquiring energy as it moves

Loving God, strengthen us, and

harness our energy to do what is right.

The breaker, poised but still moving,

ready to break –

to break out, to break up,

to break forth

Loving God, contain us, and

prepare us to spill out into the world.

The crest of the wave, exploding,

releasing energy

that breaks down barriers

and undermines obstructions

Loving God, free us, and

use us to reform the structures of the world.

Storm wave, tidal wave,

tsunami,

that brokers no discussion,

that overwhelms all

Loving God, override us,

and free the world from its own vices.

Amen.

Green Tau issue 126

26th June 2926

How can we better adapt to heat waves?

These are some initial thoughts on things that we could do as individuals, as communities and as a society.

Insulate all buildings – insulation helps maintain a comfortable internal temperature, warm enough in winter and cooler enough in summer. Think how a cool bag or thermos flask can be used both to keep cold things cool and hot things warm.
Government and local authorities can ensure that this happens through mandates, loans and grants.
‘Enough’ is a key word – warm enough in winter maybe 16-18C whilst cool enough in summer may be 24-26C.
As well as insulation, adaptation to buildings – domestic and otherwise – should include shading of walls and windows exposed to the sun. This could be in the form verandas, awnings, blinds, shutters and planting of climbing or other shade-giving plants. These ideally would provide shade from the summer sun but allow winter warming when the sun’s rays fall at a lower angle.
Other natural cooling could include vents at high-level that draw out hot air without allowing hot air back in and which can create a cooling air flow.
In some situations – such as hospitals and care homes – air conditioning may well be essential. Who will foot the bill? The taxpayer?
Prisons too should be be considered for air conditioning as people confined to a small space with limited options for cooling are vulnerable.
For some vulnerable groups – the old and very young, people with particular disabilities or ailments – additional provision of air conditioning at home may be necessary. Who will foot the bill? The tax payer who might then avoid the higher cost of medical care? Should grants/ loans be means-tested?
Consider providing schools and libraries with air conditioning if these can then also be used as cool hubs for other users. Encourage community networks that can check up on vulnerable people.
Expand number of cool hubs – encourage pubs, churches, community halls and libraries to participate – provide grants to encourage this. This map shows what is currently publicly available in London – https://apps.london.gov.uk/cool-spaces/
Ensure everyone is well informed about how to cope with heat waves – public health campaign etc. The Red Cross has food advice – could this be made available as a booklet? https://www.redcross.org.uk/get-help/prepare-for-emergencies/heatwaves-uk
Install more drinking water points and encourage people to carry refillable drinking bottles.
Public health campaigns to encourage everyone to use a sunhat and/or parasol.
Switch to double summer time so that in the summer we are getting up two hours earlier when the day is much cooler. (The clock change could take place at the May bank holiday).
Set the school day to start an hour earlier to maximise use of cooler air. This would also encourage businesses and shops to adopt earlier opening hours.
Switch the school year to start in January so that exams can be held when the weather is cooler. Consider dividing the academic year into four terms.
Encourage adoption of an afternoon siesta to include shops and businesses – but also consider could/ would this time be of benefit to staff.
Legislate for maximum working temperatures. Legislate for regular – paid for – rest periods during hot weather.
Mandate welfare provision such as access to toilets, drinking water, cool spaces etc for all work environments including bus, lorry and delivery drivers.
Expand planting of trees in streets and parks to create more cool places.
Expand the creation of parklets to provide cool resting places.
Encourage where practical replacement of hard surfaces and drive ways with grass or other suitable planting. Encourage generally more planting to create localised cooler microclimates – as well as supporting biodiversity.
Public health campaign to encourage active travel so as to reduce the number of cars driving or parked on the streets where they absorb and radiate heat.
Encourage shops and businesses to install awnings to provide protection from the sun in summer and rain in winter.
Mandate that premises using air conditioning keep doors closed to conserve energy. Such premises should not be attempting to cool the whole street! A public health campaign could encourage closing doors and windows to keep the heat out.

Any other suggestions?

EcoTips

How to keep cool in hot weather

26th June 2026

Drink lots of fluids.
Dress in loose light coloured and light weight clothes. Go bare foot (unless the ground surface is too hot). Wear a sun hat. Use a Japanese style paper fan. (Hand held battery fans will ultimately just add to landfill problems).
When temperatures outside are cooler than inside then during the day close curtains to keep the sun out whilst, if cool enough outside (ie of it is cooler out than in), keep windows open to allow air moving through the room. You might also a bowl of water on the window sill or hang up wet towels to benefit from the cooling effect of evaporating water. When the sun sets or moves round, open the curtains to allow maximum airflow of cooler air. Open windows on different sides of the house and different floors to encourage air to move through the house.
If the outside temperature is warmer than inside, it will be better to keep bight windows and curtains closed to keep that hot air out – consider how keeping the windows closed in winter keeps the cold out. If you have a loft or roof space you might open a window here to draw out heat that is building up in the house. Only open the windows when the temperatures drop and then open as many as possible to pull in the cooler air.
Turn off unused electrical appliances, even those on sleep may be emitting extra heat into the room.
Shade the outside of the window to prevent the glass from heating up and radiating heat into the room. You could use a sheet or towel as an ad hoc shade. Or place a gazebo or sun parasol to shade the window. Longer term consider fixing an awning to shade south facing windows and/or install external shutters – these will also work to keep warm air in in the winter. Erect a pergola outside and allow climbing plants to shade the window.
Sit with your feet in a bowl of cold water. Keep damp flannels in the fridge for a cool wipe.
Freeze a plastic bottle of water (don’t completely fill the bottle as frozen water expands) and use it as a cold ‘hot’ water bottle. To avoid ice burns wrap in a towel before placing it on your skin. Alternatively place in your bed at night.
Fill a sock with rice, secure the end and place in the freezer. Use as a cold pad or as cold ‘hot’ water bottle in your bed.
Get up early and start your day while it is still cool. Catch up on sleep later with an siesta when its hot.
Consider using planting to cool your home – climbers, large shrubs and trees can provide useful shade, herbaceous borders can create cooler local microclimates, grass and planting – unlike paved areas – will absorb rather than radiate heat.
Have you a tip to share?

Further information

Click to access Overheating%20Adaptation%20Guide%20For%20Homes%20BRC.pdf

https://www.idealhome.co.uk/house-manual/home-energy/blinds-keep-home-warm-and-save-energy

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jun/23/how-to-shade-your-home-supercharged-heatwaves-uk?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

https://www.veluxblindsdirect.co.uk/external-heat-protection

https://www.solar-shield.co.uk/exterior-window-shades

https://www.knall.uk/c134,roller-shutters

Drop Arm Awnings

https://www.solinear.co.uk/the-ultimate-guide-to-external-solar-shading-solutions-in-the-uk/ for a really detailed understanding

https://wildrevivalgardening.substack.com/p/our-diy-shade-house

https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/landscaping-shade

NB these are not recommendations of particular suppliers but signposts for what is available.

https://www.maxpixel.net/Window-Village-Building-Awning-Facade-Sweden-4369205

Counting on 2026 …. Day 67

26th June

Love

“Ultimately, love is the reason we do one thing and not another. What we love determines how we act.” (P139) Those this does beg the question, what do we love? The answer might be money, power or self.

As an alternative, Davison suggest we might “see love as the criterion by which are actions are judged.” (P140) Do our actions express a God-like love?

Davison then explores an often overlooked issue – “What difference does my contribution make?”

One answer is that even that small difference is worth doing if it is the right or just thing – think of the parable of the widow’s mite. (P141)

Another is that we are in this together. (P142) My small contribution is part of our communal action and therefore part of a bigger whole. It is as communities that we best give and receive love, and as communities that we will best make the changes we need to make to safeguard our common future.

And again Davison reminds us of the core focus of the book (1), restraint. Love will always help us exercise restraint, and as regards our future, love will help us exercise restraint in the net zero lifestyles that we must embrace.

Promise the Earth: a safe climate in good faith by Julian Allwood and Andrew Davison. https://www.cambridge.org/gb/universitypress/subjects/religion/religious-ethics/promise-earth-safe-climate-good-faith

Counting on 2026 …. Day 66

25th June

Hope

‘Among the virtues, the one that looks the most to the future is hope. Just as importantly, hope also looks to God. Indeed, Christians will say that they can venture great things because their confidence rests in God, not themselves.’ (P121)

Davison then considers that human endeavours are most effective where they are human in scale, reflecting the fact that humans are communal creatures, and that this is where hope best thrives. ‘St Thomas of Aquinas’, writes Davison, ‘describes hope as the entirely necessary human capacity to strive for difficult but not impossible future goods.’ (P124). This hope, says Davison connects our actions and aspirations to God and the overarching story of redemption.

As we tackle the difficult but not impossible challenge of the climate crisis, we know that we are not doing this on our own, but with God, for creating a better future in this world is God’s desire too.

Counting on 2026 …. Day 65

24th June

Faith

Davison introduces us to some of the theology of St Bonaventure, vis that ‘the characteristic effect of faith is to transform the intellect, of hope to transform memory, and of love to transform the will’ and that these are the three main ways in which we bear the image of God. (P108)

Faith, then, shapes how we see the world, how we act within it, and how we understand the relationship between ourselves, the world and God. Faith them motives and shapes our desire that we live so as to ensure a sustainable and equitable future for all life on earth. Davison gives us a further insight from the teaching of St Augustine of Hippo. ‘[T]he Christian should value the world, with its good things, like a bride (or, we would add, bridegroom) values a wedding ring. Loving the ring more than the person would be weird and insulting, but so would despising the ring. The world is not God, and to value it over God would be a travesty, but it is also God’s gift, and treating it badly is it’s own kind of insult to the one who gave it.’ (p112)

I think one might add to that, the idea that a wedding ring is a sign of a covenant between the two parties.

Faith in God is inseparable from faith in God’s desire for a good Earth. Faith therefore compels us to care.

Counting on 2026 …. Day 64

23rd June

Justice

“‘What will it cost to make the climate safe?’ That is a question for mangers, engineers, economists and politicians, but [t]he ultimate question is ….’how much will it cost not to make the climate safe?’” (P83) This is where justice is the prevailing virtue, for rather than what will it cost me to act, it is what will it cost my neighbour/ my children/ future generations if I don’t act?

So in pursuing a liveable future, Davison writes: “Prudence looks ahead … and navigates the path. Courage spurs us on to overcome obstacles. Temperance checks us from being lured off course … [And] justice is our goal”. (P83)

What then is justice? As a base, Davison suggests it is giving a person what they are due or conversely that they should not suffer harm or wrong doing without recompense. (P85). This can apply as much to a community as to an individual. Virtues are meant to make us better people so justice is also about us: justice should make is people who seek fairness for others. And that is what God made us for: “act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8

There is no escaping the fact that as Christians we are compelled to act on climate change so that if nothing else, we can ensure justice for all our neighbours.