Posted: March 6, 2021   •   Posted in: Environment

Sharing an online sustainability meal

At the end of January Beccles Friends sat down to a ‘sustainable’ shared meal, an initiative of our Climate Concern Group. Because of lockdown, this was held online.

During lockdown our group has met virtually. We had considered how to carry forward our concern to engage ourselves and our meeting with the pressing issues of climate change. We decided to focus on greenhouse gas emissions in relation to food and food production. The shared meal was an outcome of this discussion. We looked forward to a sociable community get-together, albeit with a serious theme. Although we have had shared meals in the past, this was the first using Zoom.

Three of us were involved in the planning of the evening. The centrepiece was the meal and we invited Friends to prepare a simple main course, which featured one or more ingredients that they had changed to reduce the carbon footprint of their meal.

As we were settling down together we offered some factual information and a brief introductory video of a ruminating and methane-producing cow.

We began eating (Zoom muted) and took it in turns to unmute and explain what we had changed in our food. These included changes to organic and local ingredients, choosing less meat or changing the type of meat used, having a vegan or vegetarian recipe, choosing food in season (or perhaps frozen from when it was), ingredients with less packaging, and so on. We shared information about local producers and had a lively conversation about the relative merits of eating game and even the possibility of roadkill (though none of us had tried this!).

Later we went into breakout rooms so that in smaller groups we could work on a quiz about food miles, food production, land use and greenhouse gas emissions. We were keen for the process to be collaborative and to give opportunities to discuss, share and ask questions. We challenged ourselves, recognising the importance of dealing with what can be difficult issues. We appreciated that even small changes are better than doing nothing, and when working together, even more might be done.

Friends came up with some mouth-watering, interesting recipes incorporating their changes. It was a successful evening and we look forward to taking our awareness and learning further. We hope that we can continue addressing sustainability issues as a whole meeting, as well as within a smaller climate concern group. It does feel hopeful when we take responsibility for our own part in the problem – we become more like crew than passengers.

The evening ended with a short worship sharing; Friends spoke as led, whilst the rest listened – a peaceful close to an enjoyable, informative and encouraging evening.