| Located on 130 acres
of farmland near the Cuyahoga Valley National Park
in Northeastern
Ohio, Crown Point Ecology Center is a ministry
of the Dominican Sisters of Akron. The Ecology
Center offers a variety of adult programs that
teach organic gardening, wetland enhancement, earth
literacy, eco-spirituality, and voluntary simplicity.
Four kinds of children’s programs are also
offered: Farm Based Environmental Education,
Youth Service, summer Earth Camps, and Home School
programs. The Center’s library houses an
array of ecologically-oriented resources on
topics such as spirituality, natural history,
and organic gardening. In addition to environmental
education, Crown Point Ecology Center is committed
to sustainable agriculture and has a ten-acre certified
organic farm. Half of the harvest is donated to
the Akron/Canton Regional Foodbank. The Center
also sponsors a Community Supported Agriculture
(CSA) program in which approximately sixty individuals
or families purchase “shares” in the
winter and receive fresh, organic produce on a
regular basis throughout the harvest season in
return. |
Christianity
(Roman Catholic) |
United States of America
(Bath, Ohio) |
| 1989–Present |
Reflecting the Congregation’s
growing concerns about the environment, Crown
Point Ecology Center
was founded in 1989 as the Dominican Sisters
of Akron came to see Earth literacy and sustainable
agriculture as a new form of ministry. The decision
to establish an ecology center arose as the Sisters
contemplated how best to use the Crown Point
property
after the closure of a preschool that had occupied
the site between 1968 and 1977. Determined to
find an ecologically responsible use for the
land, the
Sisters resisted pressure to sell or develop
the property and opted to use their 130 acres
to raise
awareness about the connections between spirituality
and ecology. They discontinued all synthetic
chemical use on their fields in 1989 and had
a resource
audit performed the following year. After the
resource audit, the congregation initiated various
revitalization
and restoration projects, including tree plantings
and wetland construction. In 1990, the Sisters
began to offer workshops and study groups around
topics such as bioregionalism, cosmology, eco-spirituality,
and organic growing. From the beginning, organic
gardening has been one of the main ways that
the Sisters at Crown Point model sustainability.
In
1997, they began to produce food for the Akron/Canton
Regional Foodbank and started the Community Supported
Agriculture (CSA) program the following year.
A new environmental site plan for the Center
was
completed
in March
of 2002. The Sisters, staff, and Advisory Board
at Crown Point are researching green energy and
green building techniques for a proposed construction
project that would increase the space currently
available for indoor programs. They have also
planned
for a small eco-village on their land. 2003 brings
expanded options for CSA members, several hands-on
workshops about land use for religious congregations,
a storage barn project, and continued outreach
to the public that highlights the principles
of community,
justice, spirituality, and sustainability.
|
| “The mission of
Crown Point is to demonstrate practical applications
of ecology. The Center connects
environmental preservation, social responsibility,
and spirituality, and seeks to model ways of living
simply and sustainability. Grounded in the Catholic
Dominican tradition, Crown Point’s interfaith
emphasis makes it open to all who share the commitment
to protecting and restoring the Earth.” |
In addition to
numerous religious congregations, the Crown Point
Ecology Center works with other organizations
such as:
Akron/Canton Regional
Foodbank
The Dominican Alliance
Cuyahoga Valley National Park
University of Akron
Sisters of Earth
The
Akron City Schools
Cleveland and Akron Parochial School Systems
Summit Education Initiative
CYO and Community Services
Scouts
Garden Clubs
Various Congregations of Women
|
| In addition to being
a visible and respected model and resource for
organic and ecological ministry, Crown Point will
provide energy efficient and environmentally sensitive
facilities in order to support its mission and
guiding principles of community, sustainability,
justice, and spirituality. |
| None Listed |
| None Listed |
Crown Point Ecology Center
P.O. Box 484
3220 Ira Road
Bath, OH 44210
Ph: 330.668.8992
Fax: 330.668.9176
Email: crownpt@crownpt.org |
