Faith in Place was founded in 1999 to give religious people the tools to become good stewards of the earth. The group partners with over 200 religious congregations in Illinois --  Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Zoroastrian, Baha’i and Unitarian --- to promote clean energy and sustainable farming.

Affiliated with the national Interfaith Power & Light campaign,  Faith in place helps Illinois congregations conserve energy, purchase clean energy and advocate for wise energy policy. They accomplish this through grassroots organizing and education; church energy audits, purchasing and grant programs; and advocating at the state level for cleaner coal plants, renewable energy and energy conservation in Illinois.

To date, Faith in Place has helped thirteen Illinois congregations purchase energy from a wind farm in Mendota Hills, Illinois, eliminating over 4,000 tons of CO2 emissions (the equivalent of planting 12,000 trees). They are helping another congregation install solar panels on its roof and others explore geothermal heating.

Faith in Place also supports sustainable farming, encourages congregations to serve fair trade coffee and is a partner in Chicago’s first organic bread bakery, selling organic challah and communion bread (plus whole wheat, sour dough, multigrain and more). The organization offers after-school programming and summer activities for young people from around the city that includes urban gardening, worm composting, and honeybee-keeping to help young people understand the ecosystem and their ability to make the world a better place.

Members of the Faith in Place staff were recently recognized as one of eight winners of the first annual Chicago Magazine Green Awards. For more information about this innovative program, visit http://www.faithinplace.org.