The Christians represent nearly 70% of North Sulawesi population, which inspired the creation of the Green Gospel project. Based on recommendations from the priest workshop we initiated in 2014, our education team developed the Sunday School syllabus. GMIM (Gereja Masehi Injili di Minahasa) is the Christian Evangelical Church in Minahasa regency. SY and GMIM signed an MoU for the Green Gospel implementation in 2019

GMIM, one of the largest denominations in the North Sulawesi province has shown immense support of our conservation efforts and allowed for the adaptation of their current Bina Anak book (lesson plan for Sunday school curriculum) with the conservation themed syllabus we created. Through the direct engagement with the KPA Sinode GMIM (GMIM Synod Child Service Commission), Yunita Siwi, as the SY representative, participated as one of the writers in developing the lesson for the first semester of 2023. They carried out a training together with 23 Sunday School teachers. Out of 26 lessons in the first semester, two lessons are carrying environmental messages adapted from the syllabus.

Together with the KPA, we held a conservation themed worship with the Sunday School children near Tangkoko forest. There are three churches under the GMIM organization in this village. A total of almost two hundred children attended the event. Receiving a visit by the KPA Sinode GMIM members felt very special since GMIM has almost 1000 churches spread across the North Sulawesi region.

The theme of Creation from the syllabus was presented by Michael Mait – the KPA Sinode GMIM chief. After half an hour of worship, children formed groups and worked on a colouring sheet that linked to the theme. Not only for the children, this activity was also very enriching for the Sunday School teachers, who showed their enthusiasm and positive collaboration with us.

While in the area, we took the KPA members to see the yaki in the natural habitat in the forest. Visiting the forest was a very exciting experience for them and most of them have never been to Tangkoko before. This way, we had an opportunity to talk more about the importance of the KPA’s role in conserving the yaki and their habitat. We were amused to observe their wide eyes and listen to them rushing to tell us about all the animals they have seen in the forest.

We hope these efforts to foster a sense of pride about the existence of wild animals in North Sulawesi and smooth the sharing and perception of wildlife through religious lessons.