Across September and October, Alexandra Corps joined churches across Aotearoa in celebrating the Season of Creation, reflecting on the theme Peace with Creation. The Corps community embraced practical care for the environment — from a Kids Church worm farm project to a community planting day at Eden Gardens — and joined fellow Eco Church, Alexandra, Clyde and Lauder Union Parish for outdoor worship in the gardens. Together, they expressed their ongoing commitment to caring for God’s creation.

During the Season of Creation, Taranaki Cathedral embraced the call to care for creation in creative and meaningful ways. From lamenting ecological loss to sharing a spring feast around a flower-lined table, the community discovered new expressions of hope, connection, and renewal.

During this year’s Season of Creation, All Saints’ Anglican Church in Dunedin demonstrated its ongoing commitment to caring for God’s earth through hands-on community action. Parish members joined with the Student Christian Movement to plant 145 native trees on a South Otago farm, helping regenerate native forest and restore riparian habitats. Later in the month, a smaller group took to Te Awa o Ōwheo (the Leith) for a local river clean-up, reflecting the parish’s deep connection to this waterway and its place in the church’s story. Together, these actions embodied All Saints’ vision of faith expressed through stewardship, community, and hope for creation’s renewal.

Lower Hutt Anglicans marked this year’s Season of Creation with a sustainable twist – replacing balloons and single-use decorations with community-made bunting crafted from repurposed fabric. Parishioners of all ages decorated pieces with images of faith, nature, and care for creation. The finished bunting now hangs in the church, a colourful symbol of creativity, sustainability, and shared responsibility for our common home.

At the Napier Repair Café, there’s a wonderful buzz as volunteers and visitors gather each month to bring broken items back to life – from bikes and jewellery to well-loved household treasures. For Maree Diamond, from the Catholic Parish of Napier’s Care of Creation group, being part of the team is a joyful way to care for creation and connect with her community. Now in its third year, the Café continues to grow as a place of sharing, learning, and restoration – a reminder that small acts of repair can make a big difference.

All Saints Anglican Church in Taradale, Napier has made space for a community recycling centre in their building. Taking advantage of being in a central and accessible place in their suburb, All Saints has partnered with Sustainable HB (Hawkes Bay) to create a recycling centre that is well organised, with well-labelled shelves and crates and even explanations of what happens to the materials that are collected!

As an expression of their commitment to care for the environment, the St Columba Havelock North Eco Group (SCHNEG) have launched an awareness and advocacy campaign focused on reducing the use of single-use plastics. The campaign invites eco churches to work together to promote awareness regarding soft plastics and responsible practices in recycling. This initiative not only helps protect the planet but also fosters a spirit of unity and responsibility — reminding everyone that caring for creation is a shared mission. Read on as the SCHNEG team outlines the issue and invites churches to join with them to take action.

St Paul's Symonds Street is on a journey to reduce the number of disposable cups they use on Sundays. One Sunday parishioners were presented with a string of disposable cups that stretched about 30 meters in length to help create awareness about the amount of waste that was being generated by using disposable cups.

Onewa Christian Community in Birkenhead hosts Repair Cafés 3-4 times a year, in conjunction with Highbury House, the Birkenhead Community Centre.  They enjoy the camaraderie and great atmosphere when mixing with the public. Most of the volunteers come back time and time again. Repairs are free but a koha is accepted for the morning tea, the proceeds of which are given to De Paul House in Northcote.

Floral arrangements have long been an important expression in many churches, but in recent years, there has been an increase in using materials and techniques that contribute to waste, such as floral foam, plastic packaging, and chemically treated plants. Knowing that floral foam bricks take time to decompose, the florists from St Paul’s Presbyterian in Napier were keen to look at alternatives.

Waitakere Salvation Army shares with us what took place during their Eco Church launch service in September during Season of Creation and how the church is tackling the issue of food waste as their first Eco Church initiative.

Since April this year, every Tuesday parishioners from St Andrew’s on The Terrace join representatives from other religious groups for a peaceful lunchtime protest on Parliament grounds. Holding placards that draw attention to the damning impact of fossil fuels, the weekly vigil is just one of several sustainable and environmentally sensitive  initiatives being undertaken by the parish.