Social Action Committee
Putting Our Principles into Practice

We strive to put our UU principles into action through service, education, and advocacy. We promote and support activities which empower us to shape safe, sustainable communities within our Fellowship, our cities, our country and worldwide. We meet in the lounge on the second Sunday of each month from 12:15 to 1:30 to plan, prioritize, and organize. Everyone interested in social action work is welcome and encouraged to attend.

For the 2007/2008 church year:
Focus is on Global Warming
Co-chairs are Sue Fera and Connie Springer
Trustee is Jim Beebe
Meetings on 2nd Sunday of each month, 12:15 – 1:30

To stay informed join the Social Action email list

Current programs

Green Practices
We envision our Fellowship as a model of environmental responsibility and sustainability. To move us closer to that vision we are developing a set of policies and guidelines that the Fellowship can use to ensure that we factor concern for the environment into all our congregational activities and decisions. Our first step was gathering your input. The results of the Green Practices Survey are now available here..
West Valley Green Leaf Committee
West Valley Green Leaf is a group of community members from Los Gatos, Monte Sereno and Saratoga who are working for a brighter and more sustainable future. The group's main focus is addressing Climate Change at the local level. Connie Springer is representing the UUFLG Social Action Team on the committee and all are welcome to participate. You can learn more about activities of the Green Leaf committee at www.westvalleygreenleaf.com or contact Connie .
 
Global Warming Challenges
Each month we publicize an action that you can take to reduce your energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions. There is an overview of each new challenge in the newsletter. Details will be available in handouts on the deck as well as here. There is a new challenge each month, but you can complete any ‘old’ challenge at any time. Our goal is to have the majority of UUFLG members and friends complete most of the 10 to 12 challenges!

Following is the list of challenges so far. It's not too late to work on any of them:

The goal of the UUFLG Global Warming Challenge is to feature actions that you can take to reduce your greenhouse gas emissions by about .5%. That may not sound like much but when you multiply by 12 months, reduction might be 5% ... which is a good start.

Actions like buying a hybrid car or replacing your appliances or windows make the MOST difference. But we don't feature them in our monthly challenges since we want to select things that most people can do NOW.

We also hope to get you in the habit of thinking of the global warming impact of everything you do.

Hopefully MANY of you meet the challenges and pass the ideas to your friends!
And feel free to make suggestions for future challenges. Ask Sue for challenge guidelines.

Share-the-Plate
On the third Sunday of each month we share the Sunday offering with a local non-profit organization that provides service, advocacy or direct action that reflect our principles and values. Recent Share-the-Plate recipients include Youth Science Institute, San José Peace Center, Save the Bay, Low-Income Self-Help Center, and Friends Outside. If you would like to suggest an organization contact Connie or Sue.
Ink and Toner Recycling
Recycle Logo The project to recycle inkjet and laser cartridges as well as cell phones has been taken up by the Tuesday morning Chalice Circle. Used cartridges bring up to $4.50 each. Help the Chalice Circle raise funds for the Fellowship and help the environment at the same time by collecting cartridges and cell phones and dropping them off in the container in the lounge, to the right of the door.
You personally may not use many cartridges but you can still be a big contributor. Ask your friends and family to save them for you, post a notice in your condo or apartment complex, let members of your clubs and organizations know that you are collecting them, post a notice where you work. Have other ideas about how to collect cartridges? Let us know so we can share them with everybody.
Please bring only cartridges and phones that we can recycle. They must have a label with the brand and number. Remanufactured cartridges are not recyclable, and Epson cartridges are no longer eligible.
To see if yours can be recycled, go to www.fundingfactory.com and click on the red "Qualifying Lists" at the upper right, or www.ecyclegroup.com and click on "Pricelist." (Not all cartridges are taken by both companies.) If you don’t have internet, or have other questions, contact Anne Winter.

In the wider community

While keeping our focus on local action we also work on issues in the wider community through the Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry of California and the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee.

UULM-CA Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry of California is a statewide justice ministry that serves to empower the moral voice of Unitarian Universalist values in the public arena. to stay informed about California legislative actions visit http://www.uulmca.org and sign up for the e-newsletter.

UUSC the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee is a nonsectarian organization that advances human rights and social action in the United States and around the world through a combination of advocacy, education, and partnerships with grassroots organizations. UUSC supports programs and policies that promote workers' rights, advance the human right to water, defend civil liberties, and preserve the rights of those affected by humanitarian crises. To learn more visit http://www.uusc.org.

UUFLG Logo

Address: 15980 Blossom Hill Road, Los Gatos, CA 95032
Phone: (408) 358-1212
Email: admin@uuflg.org