| Restoring Eden is an
ecumenical Christian environmental organization.
Built upon a biblical
conception of nature appreciation and environmental
stewardship, Restoring Eden advocates the protection
of endangered ecosystems, species, and subsistence
cultures. Understanding its work in the light of
Christ’s mission to care for “the least
of these,” Restoring Eden encourages Christians
to join in the work of caring for creation through
outreach and education, hands-on service projects,
and political advocacy. With the goal of restoring
harmonious relations between humanity, nature,
and God, the organization works to connect with
younger
Christians in a variety of ways, including publications,
outreach programs, tabling at Christian rock concerts,
college campus chapters, and political activism
trainings. Seeking to foster grassroots environmental
stewardship within Christian communities, Restoring
Eden distributes newsletters, Bible studies, sermon
materials, news alerts, and other information and
runs outreach initiatives at public events, in
congregations, and on college campuses. The organization
is currently forming an activist network to address
public policy issues related to the environment
and is developing an Online Community for fostering
dialogue and sharing resources, ideas, and announcements
over the internet. Its Creation Care Study Program
(CCSP) is an accredited semester-abroad college
program that has facilities in New Zealand and
Belize, where students spend four months taking
courses such as: "God and Nature," "Grassroots
Activism," "Ecosystem Biology," and "Sustainable
Development." After completing the semester,
many of the students return to their campuses to
become
leaders in their
campus environmental stewardship efforts. Restoring
Eden also advocates for the rights of indigenous
cultures through The Indigenous Christian Environmental
Network (ICEN), an informal coalition working to
help organize tribal Christians of various denominations
against policies that threaten their cultures,
resource bases, and lands. At present, ICEN is
working in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest, as
well as Kenya, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands,
and Fiji, to foster dialogue and activism among
Christian tribal leaders. |
| Christianity |
| International |
| 2001–Present |
Restoring Eden grew
out of another Christian environmental organization
called Christians
for Environmental Stewardship, which was founded
by
Peter Illyn, Executive Director of Restoring
Eden, in 1996 to support the Endangered Species
Act.
After a brief spell as a subsidiary of Target
Earth International between 1998–2001,
Christians for
Environmental Stewardship became an independent,
non-profit organization and was renamed Restoring
Eden to reflect its mission to protect endangered
lands, species, and cultures of God’s creation.
In 1999, a group of indigenous Christians invited
Illyn to Papua New Guinea to help them incorporate
environmental stewardship into their Christian
and tribal views and practices. This initiated
a partnership between Restoring Eden and Christians
for Environmental Stewardship of Papua New Guinea,
which led to the development of workshop tours
over the past several years, in which Restoring
Eden visits seminaries and Bible colleges to
talk about environmental stewardship. A new group,
Christians
Advocating for the Stewardship of the Environment
(CASE), has recently formed to encourage partnerships
between tribal churches and environmental NGOs.
|
| “Restoring Eden
makes hearts bigger, hands dirtier and voices stronger
by learning to love,
serve, and protect God’s creation. Restoring
Eden lives out of the biblical mandate to, ‘speak
out for those who cannot speak for themselves’ (Proverbs
31:8) as advocates for natural habitats, wild species,
and indigenous cultures.” |
Christians for Environmental
Stewardship of Papua New Guinea
Indigenous Christian
Environmental
Network (ICEN) |
| None Listed |
| None Listed |
| None Listed |
Restoring Eden
Peter Illyn, Executive Director
PO Box 877
La Center, WA 98629
Ph: 360.574.8230
Fax: 360.571.8920
Email: info@restoringeden.org |
