Resources

Many of these resources have been assembled by Earth Charter International and other organizations that have embraced the Earth Charter to guide their work. You can find more great resources in the ECI Virtual Library

The Earth Charter Text

Download the text of the Earth Charter in English. The Earth Charter is also available here in more than 35 languages.

Earth Charter Brochure

Download a full color brochure with background on the Earth Charter, the Earth Charter Initiative, and the text of the Earth Charter. The brochure is also available in Spanish. You can also download short fliers about the Earth Charter in English and Spanish.

Earth Charter Initiative Handbook - 2008

Download the Earth Charter Initiative Handbook. The Handbook provides basic information on the origin, nature and purpose of the Earth Charter, the structure and mission of the Earth Charter Initiative, and the organization, goals and policies of ECI. The Handbook is also available here in French, Spanish, and Russian.

Earth Charter Initiative Action Guidelines

The Action Guidelines are a resource designed to help people conduct Earth Charter related activities in ways that are in harmony with the values and principles of the Earth Charter. You can download the guidelines in English and Spanish.

The Earth Charter in Action: Toward a Sustainable Development(English)

A large-format, beautifully published book of essays on the Earth Charter, featuring many prominent authors and leaders in the Earth Charter Initiative worldwide, as well as many Earth Charter activists putting the vision to work in the world. The Earth Charter in Action is also available for download in Spanish.

The Earth Charter Guidebook for Teachers

This guidebook is written for teachers interested in bringing into the classroom their concerns for building a just and peaceful world. It attempts to respond to the needs of educators who feel that fundamental changes are needed in our teaching and learning processes. The Earth Charter Guidebook for Teachers is available for download in English, Arabic, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.

Good Practices using the Earth Charter

This publication offers 27 stories (examples) of how the Earth Charter has been used in educational settings. This publication has been envisioned to offer stories – case studies from around the world – that highlight how groups and individuals are using the Earth Charter as a tool for education for sustainable development.

EC-Assess: The Earth Charter Ethics Based Assessment Toolkit

The Earth Charter Ethics-Based Assessment Toolkit provides an open-source tool for svaluating the Sustainability of organizations, projects, initiatives, and individuals. The assessment tool is also available in Spanish.

Selected Earth Charter Bibliography

This is a selected bibliography of books, pssays and papers, periodicals, unpublished dissertations, and websites related to the Earth Charter. It represents the rich diversity of literature produced on the Earth Charter. A comprehensive bibiliography is also available for download.

Earth Charter PowerPoint Presentation

This basic PowerPoint presentation, comprised of twenty-eight individual slides, can be used as a guide to educating about the Earth Charter Initiative and its various focus areas.

Faith Study Guide #1: Call to Transformation and The Earth Charter

The Call to Transformation and the Earth Charter both call us to CHANGE our way of thinking, of acting, and of being in our world. The faith study guides were created by the School Sisters of Noter Dame

Faith Study Guide #2: The Scope of the Earth Charter

The Earth Charter is comprised of a Preamble, 4 main sections which include the 16 principles, and a closing called “The Way Forward.” The Preamble, the inspirational part of the document, gives us a rationale for what we are about. In this issue of the Earth Charter study guide, we reflect on the text of the Preamble and Section I to begin to understand the scope of the Earth Charter which is about so much more than “the Earth.”

Faith Study Guide #3: Relationship and Community

Section II of the Earth Charter issues a call to the human community to come a new self-understanding and a new relationship with all of creation. Ecology is the branch of science that studies the interrelationship between organisms and their environment. Ecology is not the same as environmentalism. The word ecology comes from two Greek words, “oikos” meaning house or home, and “logos” meaning word,discourse or mystery.

Faith Study Guide #4: Making Connections and Making Choices

Section III connects environmental concerns, economic policies, and social well-being of all peoples. Its principles are central to United Nations’ charters to eradicate poverty,establish equitable, sustainable development, and provide gender equity. This section is firmly rooted in the incredibly urgent calls of Scripture, church leaders, and You Are Sent. In 1971, bishops of the world left no doubt, “Action on behalf of justice and participation in the transformation of the world fully appear to us as a constitutive dimension of the preaching of the Gospel . . . .” Justice in the World We are all novices and pioneers in making earth consciousness with full social and economic eco-justice a reality!

Faith Study Guide #5: Democracy Nonviolence and Peace

Part IV of the Earth Charter is a call to action for individuals, communities,institutions, and governments both at the local and global levels to achieve a truly democratic and nonviolent way of life. It focuses on democratic institutions, formal and life-long education, respect for all life and promotes a culture of peace.

Faith Study Guide #6: The Way Forward

As never before in history, common destiny beckons us to seek a new beginning. Such renewal is the promise of these Earth Charter principles. To fulfi ll the promise, we must commit ourselves to adopt and promote the values and objectives of the Charter. This requires a change of mind and heart. It requires a new sense of global interdependence and universal responsibility. We must imaginatively develop and apply the vision of a sustainable way of life locally, nationally, regionally, and globally. Our cultural diversity is a precious heritage and different cultures will fi nd their own distinctive ways to realize the vision. We must deepen and expand the global dialogue that generated the Earth Charter, for we have much to learn from the ongoing collaborative search for truth and wisdom.

The Art of Earth Chartering Guides

The Art of Earth Chartering is a discussion guide for use among families, friends and community members who wish to understand more fully the Earth Charter’s core value of interdependence and its principles for economic justice, universal human rights, respect for nature, and a culture of peace. It has questions and exercises to build awareness and to guide discussions as well as suggestions for actions linked to the Earth Charter’s principles. It was written by Rebecca Blanco and Jan Roberts.

Social Justice Workbook

This Workbook developed by the Centers for Social Change for Earth Charter US is a guide for teachers, youth group leaders and facilitators to help young people build a foundation of critically-needed knowledge and social action skills, so together, you may explore the broad spectrum of social justice in discussion and hands-on activities. It is our hope that both adults and students grow from this experience.

Stay Tuned: Upcoming Resources from ECUS

The ECUS “Guide to Planning and Conducting Earth Charter in Action Programs”

ECUS is developing this Guide to assist individuals and organizations that have endorsed the Earth Charter in translating its ethical vision and principles into action. It describes:

The basic steps in program development.
The best examples of how individuals, communities, policy makers, businesses, educators, religious organizations, and youth are using the Earth Charter to create a more just, sustainable and peaceful world.
Links to the wealth of Earth Charter International resources- the virtual library, task force initiatives, etc. -which you can use in developing your own Earth Charter in Action program.

The ECUS “Earth Charter Handprint Calculator”

Calculating your ecological or carbon footprint enables you to see how many resources you are consuming or how much CO2 you are emitting. Calculating your Earth Charter Handprint enables you to assess your positive contributions to sustainable living by answering 12 questions corresponding to the main principles of the Earth Charter. The respondent will estimate the extent to which he or she realizes these principles. This simple calculator page will invite the visitor to conduct a more comprehensive Earth Charter Assessment by utilizing the ECAssess framework available on the ECUS Resource Page.

The ECUS Networking Tools

ECUS will provide opportunities for individuals working to bring the EC vision and values to similar audiences to connect with each other to develop effective programs (through Wiki and other social networking tools) ECUS will also provide a “Help Line” via This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to link individuals find resources and connect to kindred souls working on the effective implementation of the EC.

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