Dear Friends,
Much of what we do at MassIPL is focused on climate—so much so, in fact, that it's sometimes easy to forget that we are an interfaith organization. Earlier this month, I had the privilege to travel to Chicago, to be part of Interfaith America's 2026 Leadership Summit. Hundreds of other leaders from across the country came to talk about one thing: pluralism.
Why pluralism? As the folks at Interfaith America would explain, diversity—including religious diversity—is a simple fact. We are a religiously diverse nation. Pluralism, on the other hand, is an achievement. It's the energetic engagement with diversity towards a positive end. It's not a given. Sadly, we're witnessing that, in the rise of antisemitism, Islamophobia, Christian nationalism, and the use of religion to ordain and explain one's own sectarian political agenda.
Here at MassIPL, we are energetically engaging a diverse coalition of faith communities and spiritual expressions towards the action on climate. That's our positive end. At the conference, I was reminded of all the other good things that come with pluralism: I heard about the experience of growing up Muslim in Wisconsin; about an atheist making a documentary film about a life-changing world religions class (in a public high school!); and about people all over the country—people who do not agree on fundamental issues—working together for the common good. I came away enriched and inspired.
Which is all to say: when we engage each other on climate, we're not only working on the climate. We're building bridges of understanding. We're enriching and deepening our own experience. And we're strengthening our democracy, by modeling how it is that people who orient around religion differently can mutually benefit from a healthy and pluralistic society.
More to come on that — but for now, here's what that looks like at MassIPL. Below you'll find highlights from the past month, from youth work to geothermal.
With hope and resolve,
Michael
Rev. Michael ReedExecutive DirectorMassachusetts Interfaith Power & Light
Our Executive Director, Rev. Michael Reed, was proud to take part in the 2026 Interfaith America Leadership Summit in Chicago, joining students, educators, and leaders from across the country to explore this year's theme, A Road Forward. Michael is one of Interfaith America's recent Interfaith Innovation Fellows.
The Summit's conversations on pluralism in American democracy, higher education, and community life reflect the same spirit that guides our work: bringing people of many faiths together around our shared world.
If you want to view the discussions, recordings of both plenary sessions are now available online. Find them on Interfaith America's YouTube channel: The Role of Pluralism in the Future of Our Country and A Pluralistic Roadmap for College Campuses.
Please join us in welcoming Alan Sherman, our newest Executive Committee member! Alan is a solar advisor and clean energy marketing executive whose faith-and-climate journey began at his own congregation, where he helped bring a 336-kW solar canopy to life at Temple Emunah in Lexington. That project now produces 162% of the congregation's energy needs, with the excess going to Boston-area families at a discount.
Alan believes a small group of committed people can accomplish great things, and that's exactly the spirit he brings to our board. We're grateful to have his solar expertise and congregation's-eye view as we help houses of worship across the Commonwealth take climate action.
Read more about Alan, in his own words: Blog: Meet Alan Sherman
This summer, 17 young people from churches across Lawrence came together for the Youth Ambassador Program, a four-session journey exploring what it means to care for our shared world and serve their communities. Fourteen youth completed all four sessions, led by Susan Almono with support from Javier.
The program began in July with an orientation, followed by a day at Weir Hill Preserve in North Andover that quickly became everyone's favorite. Out in the woods, the youth found wild blueberries, marveled at the range of living things in a single small patch of land, and even paused to say a prayer over a fish they discovered along the way. Being in a park that wasn't human made gave them a chance to experience the natural world firsthand.
Over the following sessions, the youth learned how carbon dioxide emissions work and why they matter, a genuinely complex topic. By the final day, several stood up in front of the group and explained these ideas in their own words, a real milestone.
Each group then designed its own project to bring environmental stewardship home to their congregation:
One small moment captured the spirit of the whole program. After the Weir Hill hike, each youth received a pot and some tomato seeds to grow. One participant planted the entire packet in a single small pot, then realized there were far too many seedlings. With a couple of larger pots, he transplanted them, and now proudly tends ten thriving tomato plants.
All of the Youth Ambassadors will join us as volunteers at the Hope Takes Root tree planting on September 26.
This summer we had the pleasure of working with Aliza Cotton, our Clean Energy Outreach and Engagement Intern, whose internship has now come to an end. Aliza dove deep into geothermal, one of the most promising heating and cooling options for houses of worship.
They helped develop our new geothermal primer, a resource that walks congregations through what geothermal is and how to get started, and contributed to our success story on Wellesley Village Church, which recently completed a landmark project to meet 100% of its heating and cooling needs with geothermal energy.
Thank you, Aliza, for your curiosity, care, and hard work. We wish you all the best in what comes next.
We've been busy giving MassIPL a refreshed look across the board! Our all-new website at massipl.org is now live, with brighter photos, refreshed colors and fonts, an interactive history of our network, and full Spanish translation, all built around the three-part mantra at the heart of our work: Pray, Act, Mobilize.
You'll notice the refresh doesn't stop there. We've updated our branding across our social media channels and given our emails a new look too, so everything feels like one connected digital home.
Take a look around the new site, and let us know what you think. If you have a moment, share it with someone in your congregation who might benefit from our resources!
Read the Blog: MassIPL's New Website
This fall, we're launching Sustainable Faith, a series of weekly reflections we're calling an Interfaith Season of Creation. Each week, a voice located within a different religious or spiritual tradition, including Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, and Buddhist, will share a personal reflection on climate and our shared world.
Our hope is to deepen appreciation for one another's faith traditions and make the case for interfaith cooperation on climate through moral imagination and honest, personal storytelling. Each piece comes with a few reflection questions for reflection and action.
We'll publish every Sunday from August 30 through October 11, on our website, our social channels, and here in the newsletter. We'd love for you to read along and share these reflections with your own community.
Tuesday, September 22 / 7:00–8:00 PM ET / Online
Did you know your house of worship may qualify for a federal "direct pay" incentive that can cover up to 40% of the cost of a solar project? The catch is timing: this incentive is scheduled to end December 31, 2027, so now is the time to learn what's possible.
Join us on Tuesday, September 22 at 7:00 p.m. to hear how direct pay works, the key steps to developing a solar project, and how to keep it moving forward. You'll also meet our newest solar partner, New England Clean Energy.
A special benefit for everyone who registers: New England Clean Energy will provide a free, no-obligation evaluation of your building's solar potential, including ballpark costs and an estimate of how much electricity your property could generate. It's a helpful way to start the conversation with your congregation, board, or leadership team.
MassIPL has helped more than 60 houses of worship go solar. If your community has ever considered it, this is a good time to see what's possible.
Meet Alan Sherman, MassIPL's newest board member, who shares his solar journey and vision for helping congregations tackle the climate crisis.
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Season of Creation, advocacy, webinars, and more: your August 2026 faith and climate roundup.
