From the Director

Conflicting Science Reports Highlight Catholic Approach

This week, I’ve read reports that both confirm and challenge some of the existing scientific climate change observations.  On the one hand, the Berkeley Earth Project confirms previous findings from the United Kingdom’s Met Office and NASA.  This is significant because the project received funds from sources that back organizations lobbying against action on climate change.  University of California physics professor Richard Muller said: This confirms that these studies were done carefully and that potential biases identified by climate change skeptics did not seriously affect their conclusions. Here’s the story.

On the other hand, a report from Climate Wire (a subscription environmental news service) questions the dire predictions to drinking water and irrigation from massive glacier melting.  More study and more careful analysis must be done to verify such claims, some scientists are saying.

As the ten-year anniversary of the landmark statement on climate change by the Catholic bishops nears, such discrepancies highlight the bishops’ wise and important contribution to the climate change debate:Prudence should dictate our actions.  While scientists don’t know everything for certain in this complex area of climate, what they have already told us requires us to take precautionary measures.

From a Covenant Partner

Salve Regina University

The newest Catholic Climate Covenant Partner, Salve Regina University in Newport, RI, shares this story about how some faculty and students are working on hydroponic gardening in the basement of one of the school’s dormitories:
Hydroponic systems grow plants in water; they don’t need as much land, there aren’t any bugs, there’s no need for pesticides, and the fertilizers are going right into the water, so you’re not  spraying it on the land said Dr. Jameson Chace, assistant professor of biology and biomedical sciences.

The story continues: Students have already harvested their initial crops of arugula, collard greens, basil, parsley, spinach, Swiss chard, and three kinds of lettuce. The greens are now being eaten and given away, but once the farm is certified, the produce it grows could be offered in the University’s dining hall.
Read more about this exciting research (See story of "Urban Jungle" on page 2).

From a Coalition Partner

National Catholic Rural Life Conference

In response to growing food insecurities (globally, 1 in 7 people are food insecure) and environmental degradation, the National Catholic Rural Life Conference, a member of the Coalition, will publish six new essays on “Food Security & Economic Justice: Catholic Call for a New Food System”.  Five of these are currently available.

NCRLC calls for a new agriculture ethic that includes food sovereignty where stakeholders strive to participate in policy decisions concerning their food and how it is managed…The bottom line is sustainability - for the environment, for local farmers, for the diverse cultures of eaters.  In light of Church teachings, NCRLC advocates for sustainable and diversified agriculture that directly fits local needs. This means focused attention on small-scale farmers - both women and men - in order to achieve food security and poverty reduction in the world.
Click here to learn more about NCRLC’s new essays.

In The News

Catholic Organizations Among Largest Group Ever Calling for Climate Policy

Environment News Service (EEN) reports that Hundreds of the world's largest investors, representing more than $20 trillion in assets, today [10/19/11] encouraged governments and international policy makers to take new legally-enforceable steps to combat climate change at the upcoming UN climate summit in Durban, South Africa [November 28- December 9, 2011].

The EEN article continues: The group of 285 investors issued a joint statement emphasizing the urgent need for policy action which stimulates private sector investment in climate change solutions, creates jobs, and ensures the long-term sustainability and stability of the world economic system. The list of investors includes eighteen Catholic groups of women religious, Catholic Healthcare West (a member of the Catholic Health Association of the United States), and many others in the faith community.  EEN notes: The statement represents the largest group, by both number of signatories and assets under management, ever to call for policy action on climate change.
Read the entire story here.   

Story: an Elementary School

Catholic Students Reduce Lunch Waste

Assumption Catholic School in St. Catherines, Ontario, Canada, recently participated in the Waste Free Lunch Challenge in which students, faculty and staff made efforts to make lunches as ecologically sustainable as possible.  The local paper reports that All week, lunch eaters are encouraged to use reusables, with suggestions of cloth napkins and [bring your own] cutlery to cut down waste. Frowned on are bags, single-use containers and anything overpackaged. The effort can also encourage eating healthier, and helps reduce the expense of bags and wrap by encouraging reusable containers.

Vicky Wright, a teacher at Assumption Catholic School, says We've been getting down and dirty with our garbage.  We've been weighing it all together, separating it and weighing it.  The initiative has reduced the amount of waste generated by Assumption students and staff, and resulted in the generation of much less waste.  The Standard points out that The effort [was] spurred by statistics showing the average student's lunch generates 30 kilograms of waste every school year. That's equal to the weight of a typical Grade 2 student.
Read more here.

The Coalition offers many resources to help schools integrate mission-based sustainability here.  Urge your parish school or local high school to apply for the St. Francis Care for Creation Award