Tag Archives: Care of the Earth

Many, among the poorest on almost every continent, feel the impact of climate change profoundly and are struggling to survive.  Economic, social and political turmoil wrecks havoc on people’s capacity to support themselves and their families.  Rising temperatures are damaging ecosystems, pushing sea levels higher, and reducing people’s ability to support themselves. We already know that millions of people are forced ...

In these days when we seem to be hearing more and more about the role our species is playing in the destruction of the planet and its creatures (and indeed ourselves) I came across this wonderful article published at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies in April 2018, written by Jim Robbins.  There are some great links to other ...

We know the world is full of plastic.  Indeed, there has been so much awareness raising and discussion that we stand in danger of information fatigue, potentially switching off  as we normalise the statistics and the shocking visuals of the plastic-swamped  ocean beds.  Potentially background news in a plastic world. It is true that at a local level, we can ...

At beginning of this New Year,  Mary Robinson as the new Chair of the Elders, reflected on the loss of Kofi Annan and on the events and issues of the past year.  But she also focused on action.  Faced with such an array of complex challenges she said, we must not succumb to fatalism or despair. “As Elders, we know that ...

I was listening last evening  to the presentation given by Sir David  Attenborough at the UN Climate Change Summit which is now happening in Poland (3-14 Dec 2018).  He was chosen to represent the world’s people in addressing delegates of almost 200 nations who are in Katowice to negotiate how to turn pledges made in the 2015 Paris climate deal into reality. Earlier ...

The COP24 (Convention on Climate Change) will be held in Katowice, Poland from 2-14 December.  The hope is that it will unleash the full potential of the Paris Agreement by finalising the Paris Agreement Work Programme. This will put into place the practical implementation guidelines needed to make real this historic agreement that aims to limit global warming to well ...

Justice  for All: People and Planet ‘Love  one another & spend yourselves for the poor’. The provincial Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) Commission will hold a Day for Justice on November 24th, 2018 at Mount St Anne’s, Retreat and Conference Centre, Killenard, Portarlington, Co. Laois, exploring the theme: ‘Justice For All: People and Planet’. The keynote speaker is ...

Today October 4th, is the feast day of St Francis of Assisi, founder of the Franciscan Order, patron of animals, birds, conservationists and naturalists.  He was born in 1281, the son of a wealthy cloth merchant.  As a young man he fought in the war between Perugia and Assisi. He was taken prisoner and became very ill. He returned home ...

The beautiful icon of Nano Nagle created by the artist Desmond Kyne is alive with colour and symbolism that enables us to get to know ‘…who Nano was and who she is today’.  It depicts a young and vibrant ‘Nano’ which seems to be so apt, especially in this tercentenary year of her birth (1718) when her living legacy continues ...

A recent article prompted me to think outside the usual way of seeing things in relation to lifestyle choices and care of our common home.  Among many valuable thought provoking points made in the piece, I have chosen to mention those which struck a particular chord in relation to continuing to walk lightly on the Earth. There is a  need to ...