In 1992, the Church of South India (CSI) was the first church in India to establish a committee for ecological concerns, and is also the only church in India to incorporate ecology in its constitution and mission statement. In fact, its Eco-Ministry was among nominees for the 2019 UNESCO-Japan Prize on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), which is as part of UNESCO’s broader work to reward excellent ESD projects.
CSI runs an extensive “Green Campaign” to reach and educate teachers, clergy and students about topics such as sustainable agriculture, climate change mitigation and energy saving. This translates to activities such as organic farming, planting and nurturing saplings, harvesting rainwater and using solar power panels for electricity in churches, and environmental rallies to educate the general public. They also hold environmental rallies to educate the general public, and have organised conferences at the national and international level for networking and sharing of concerns across geographical boundaries.