“Urgent needs call us, Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and Associates, Consociates, `Ohana and Familia de San José, to bold conversation and prophetic action. Striving to be beacons of hope, we commit to respond to the crisis of Earth and global warming.”
Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, 2019 Acts of Chapter
We commit to implementing Laudato Si’
We commit, as individuals, as a community and as an organization, to recognize how our decisions impact the Earth community; to raise our awareness and change behaviors; to act with urgency to protect Earth’s stability and integrity and to celebrate her beauty wherever we are.
Our congregation publicly commits to join with Pope Francis and the universal Catholic Church on a seven-year journey to ecological conversion through the Laudato Si’ Action Platform.
Climate change is different from any other issue
Climate change is different than any other issue that might demand our commitment because it is a moral imperative for every person on the planet. Pope Francis calls us to respond to this “emergency,” which is the greatest existential threat to civilization and to our planet today. We know that every living being depends on the health of Earth’s atmosphere for their health. We also know that our choices and actions contribute to the climate imbalance. For the sake of our dear neighbors and the Earth, which is a sacred gift, we must clean up after ourselves and “respond boldly” to this emergency.
Right now, we are being given the grace to help return Earth’s atmospheric system to a healthier state and to support each other in taking action. Therefore, we believe that each of us can dare to make significant and bold changes to our lifestyle by reducing our use of fossil fuels and offsetting the carbon footprint of our daily lives, either by planting trees to absorb the pollution caused by our choices or by paying tree-planting organizations to do this for us.
Climate justice involves social and racial justice because “the impacts of climate change are likely to be felt disproportionately by those who face socioeconomic inequalities” (Leiserowitz, A. & Akerlof, K.). Unifying love calls us to make difficult lifestyle choices and commitments so that we may contribute to restoring the health of the whole Earth Community.
Recommended sustainable products
As part of our commitment to Earth, we aim to reduce our consumption of plastic products, especially single-use plastics. To help support sustainability and FairTrade efforts at home and around the world, we have compiled a list of product recommendations and reviews from some of our sisters and partners.
Annual campaigns
We celebrate three annual seasons to call attention to Earth justice:
- Earth Day: Each April leading up to Earth Day on April 22, people around the globe demonstrate support for environmental protection. Learn about our 2023 Earth Day actions
- Plastic-Free July: A month of education, engagement, action and prayer as organizations worldwide examine the crisis that plastics are creating for our environment.
- Season of Creation: Catholics around the world recognize the Season of Creation from September 1, the World Day of Prayer for Creation, through October 4, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi.
