Pope Francis, who took his name from Francis of Assisi, the 13th century saint known as the patron for the protection of the animals and our environment, speaks out to humanity to take responsibility for the future sustainability of our Earth at a joint workshop of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences and the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences on sustainability that was convened in May 2014.
Although the joint workshop was convened by the Catholic Church, people from various religions including, Hindus, Muslims, Protestants, Jews, atheists, and agnostics participated, all with the common desire to follow a leader because of his moral and ethical grounds for protecting our environment.
In the SCIENCE editorial “The Pope tackles sustainability,” authored by Marcia McNutt shared by Gloria White, Director of Sponsored Programs at St. Edward’s with our Office of Sustainability, we can see the well-defined link between Pope Francis’s call to action and our mission here at St. Edward’s University. Students from every program are expected to graduate with the preparation to analyze problems, offer viable solutions, and ultimately make responsible decisions. St. Edward’s University also values global experiences as a crucial component to education. The environment and sustainable development are indeed two important issues of our current world that offer students great opportunities to apply the education they receive in the classroom. As some of us have seen or even witnessed, many of the environmental disasters have a far reach that goes beyond countries boundaries.
To view the latest reports on Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptations, and Vulnerability visit the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Blog authored by Christine Lacayo
Sustainability Graduate Assistant