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Suggested environmental priorities for the WBO/FWBO
12 July, 2001

These have been drawn up by the undersigned, an informal network of concerned individuals, following on from Subhuti's 2001 FWBO Day talk, "Awake to the Cries of the World". They are still evolving, but are intended to serve as the basis for discussion and consensus-building within the FWBO and, when an appropriate degree of consensus has been reached, as an agenda for a Movement-wide campaign to upgrade our environmental practice

We would like to see the Order and Movement:

1. CONSUMING LESS
2. CONSUMING MORE WISELY
   - including GOING ENERGY-EFFICIENT and GOING RENEWABLE
3. GOING 'CARBON-NEUTRAL'
4. CREATING AND SAFEGUARDING HAVENS FOR WILD-LIFE
5. USING BUDDHIST PRINCIPLES TO RAISE AWARENESS
   OF ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

A separate document outlines the Buddhist reasoning behind each of these, and why each seems necessary, achievable, and directly implied by Buddhist principles. What follows is simply our practical suggestions for implementing each.

Specifically, we suggest that these mean:

CONSUMING LESS

1. Reduce our consumption
   
   All consumption has an impact on the environment As the Movement becomes more established we seem to be spending more on things like:
   Personal possessions such as books...
   Upgrades to computers...
   Air travel and holidays...
   Private cars...
   
   
   
2. Communities, study groups, chapters, etc could try undertaking a review of spending habits.

   Centres could run "simple life" weeks, like the recent one in Manchester.
   The money saved could either fund some new development in the centre (Manchester raised £2,000) or be used by the individuals concerned to try out more environmentally-friendly products. At the end of the week people might choose to continue with the simple life!
   However we can be proud that communities are a very efficient use of resources.
   · Reuse - wherever possible
   Buying things second-hand can save lots of money which can then go into financing point (2) - consuming more wisely. Charity shops, LOOT magazines and Internet auction sites can provide us with all pretty much everything we could want, all second-hand.
   Examples:
   Furniture (getting out of the IKEA mentality!)
   Clothing (cultivating the charity shop dress sense - which can look great!),
   Building up community libraries instead of personal book collections
   Being willing to spend some extra time on pubic transport; sharing cars
   · Recycle - wherever possible
   Using centre notice-boards to organise eg: clothes swaps
   Copying the LBC's highly profitable bric-a-brac shop Sudana
   All the usual: glass, paper, etc - the Movement is pretty patchy here!

 

CONSUMING MORE WISELY

Including GOING ENERGY-EFFICIENT and GOING RENEWABLE
Switch to fair trade/organic/renewable goods wherever possible.
This can be largely be financed with savings made by consuming less in other areas

Specific suggestions:

1. Recycled paper
   Organic veggie boxes
   Rechargeable batteries
   
   
2. Invest in eco-efficiency and quality.
   Low-energy lightbulbs are the best example of this.
   Appreciate the financial wisdom of spending more on major household items such as boilers, double-glazing, loft insulation, efficient cars... These things generally pay for themselves over a few years, so can be seen as a wise investment as well as an environmental contribution
   
   
3. Move towards veganism, stepping out of the animal industry
   Perhaps coin a slogan along the lines of Bhante's "move towards complete brahmacarya"?
   
   
4. Aim to switch all FWBO households and businesses to renewable electricity generation
   by signing up with Unit-E or other similar renewable electricity provider. This would be a fairly straightforward single-issue campaign. Again it costs a bit more - about £3/month/average house - but could be set against long-term savings in (2).
   
   The FWBO might be able to use its collective bargaining power to get cheaper prices. Centres can certainly become agents for the Unit-E and collect commission on each new customer recruited. Benefits: getting out of the dirty nuclear and coal/gas electricity generating industry, giving a boost to a much more benign fledgling technology

GOING CARBON-NEUTRAL

We need to educate people into the contribution they are making to global warming and what they could/should do about it. Global warming is caused by the burning of fossil fuels such as petrol and coal or oil-fired electricity generating stations.

The first and best thing is of course "reduce" our emissions, covered above, the second is "offset" them, and the best way to do this is to plant trees.

plant the appropriate number of trees to offset carbon dioxide emitted by our:
air travel, car use, and household energy use

We suggest an FWBO-wide campaign to get individuals, businesses, and communities to calculate their CO2 emissions and sign up with an organisation such as like "futureforests.com" who plant trees based on one's calculated emissions. It is actually surprising how few trees we might each need to plant - about 15/person/year at a cost of perhaps £75.

Reduce consumption of flown-in goods, choosing local where possible

CREATING AND SAFEGUARDING HAVENS FOR WILD-LIFE

1. Improve our immediate local habitat
   nest boxes, wild flowers, compost... in all gardens or even balconies, however small, there is much we can do.
   
   
2. Join local pressure/conservation groups for safeguarding local habitats
   organised as Buddhist Centre projects wherever possible
   
   
3. Extend to supporting international projects
   
   
4. Perhaps name this section in honour of Alan Scowen, a Padmaloka mitra, member of the FWBO eco-network, and lifelong ecologist who died in May 2001 from cancer

USING BUDDHIST PRINCIPLES TO RAISE AWARENESS OF ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

A global problem requires a global solution. As well as changing our own habits, we have to do what we can to "spread the word" and encourage others to act likewise.

1. Bring in ecological implications of the Dharma to GFR groups, chapter meetings, communities, and as part of our general teaching and Kalyana Mitrata
   
   
2. Set up an "environmental group" at local centres, such as Manchester's very successful one. Try to build consensus before launching any particular campaign, so that the whole sangha moves forward together.
   
   
3. Use the "ecopractice.fwbo.org" website for getting inspiration and passing on good ideas
   
   
4. Encourage Order Members to bring ecological awareness into Dharma talks/ study/ retreats/ etc
   
   
5. Organise eco-aware events/ displays/ meetings/ outings/ retreats, encourage Order Members to take part and bring a Dharmic perspective
   
   
6. Put on an Environment Week at local centres, to include Dharma talks and Dharma study on this theme
   
   
7. Take opportunities to communicate the Buddhist perspective outside the FWBO