The Catholic Coalition on Climate Change has published a much-anticipated toolkit for catholic universities and colleges that are pursuing sustainability initiatives. The toolkit Sustainability and Catholic Higher Education: A Toolkit for Mission Integration is organized around the five main principles of the Catholic Climate Covenant: pray, learn, assess, act, and advocate. AASHE contributed to this publication, alongside several other organizations and individuals. To delve deeper into the ideas and goals behind this project, we interviewed Dan DiLeo, Project Manager at the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change as well as Lindsey Cromwell Kalkbrenner, Director of Santa Clara University’s Office of Sustainability, and Rachel Novick, Education and Outreach Program Manager at the University of Notre Dame’s Office of Sustainability, who were integral to the tookit's development.

How did you get involved with the Toolkit project? Why did you see a need to create this Toolkit?

DiLeo: While many Catholic colleges and universities are making tremendous efforts in the area of sustainability, fewer schools are explicitly grounding this work in Catholic mission. The Catholic Church, and indeed all faith traditions, has unique contributions to make to the conversation about sustainability (e.g. linking it to the commitments of Catholic social teaching such as respect for human life and dignity). However, if sustainability work is not animated and inspired by Catholic mission–and clearly communicated as such–then these unique contributions can be lost. So, we saw the Toolkit as a way to advance what we are calling “mission-based sustainability.”

What makes "mission-based" sustainability different from the sustainability work at secular schools?

Cromwell Kalkbrenner: One of the biggest challenges for sustainability officers at any institution is helping the campus community fully understand the meaning of sustainability—taking the campus beyond “going green” by exploring the social and economic implications of everything we do. I believe “mission-based” sustainability offers an opportunity to do this, because the campus community inherently grasps and values the social elements of sustainability.

DiLeo: Additionally, mission-based sustainability and care for creation has the potential to link to other ethical concerns. For example, because we see how environmental degradation threatens human life and compromises human dignity, especially for the impoverished, at home and abroad, mission-based sustainability takes us beyond saving polar bears, and puts a primary focus on human beings. We care about all of creation, but too few organizations focus on climate impacts on human beings and even less so on the most vulnerable.

What is the relevance of faith-based mission integration for the future of sustainability?

Novick: Religion takes a long-term view of human history, a welcome contrast to short-term thinking driven by quarterly returns and election cycles. From a very practical perspective, we need communities to work together in order to achieve meaningful change, and the communities with which Americans are typically most affiliated are religious ones.

DiLeo: I have my doubts that the environmental movement alone can alter the course of climate change without the imagination and dedication of people of faith. For many in the faith community, caring for the gifts of creation is an ancient teaching and practice. We hope this toolkit will demonstrate that Catholic colleges can become green not just for the sake of it but because being green is part of who we are at our core.

How is the Toolkit organized?

DiLeo: This Toolkit is organized around the five components of the St. Francis Pledge to Care for Creation and the Poor (the central project of the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change:

• PRAY and reflect on the duty to care for God’s Creation and protect the poor and vulnerable.
• LEARN about and educate others on the causes and moral dimensions of environmental degradation and climate change.
• ASSESS how we — as individuals and in our families, parishes and other affiliations —contribute to environmental degradation and climate change by our own energy use,consumption, waste, etc.
• ACT to change our choices and behaviors to reduce the ways we contribute to environmental degradation and climate change.
• ADVOCATE for Catholic principles and priorities in environmental and climate change discussions and decisions, especially as they impact those who are poor and vulnerable.

What are the metrics being used to determine the reach and effectiveness of the Toolkit?

DiLeo: The most effective metric will be how many school representatives contact the Coalition about becoming a Catholic Climate Covenant Partnership.

What does it entail to become a Catholic Climate Covenant Partner?

DiLeo: Becoming a Catholic Climate Covenant Partner is a way to publicly affirm an institution’s commitment to mission-based sustainability. Covenant Partners, they can join the growing list of Catholic organizations that are supporting sustainability and the Catholic approach to climate change, while raising awareness around activities of the Catholic community in this area. Each partner commits itself to incorporating the [as an integrated part of the organization’s ongoing work. Since the Pledge is designed for individuals, families, and institutions, the Partnership provides a framework that can be applied to their personal lives as well.

How do you envision the Toolkit being adopted and adapted by other universities and colleges? Is the Toolkit applicable outside of Catholic colleges and universities?

Novick: This Toolkit is about embodying the environmental values implicit in the Catholic faith. Because all faith traditions have something important to contribute to the sustainability movement, the concept of the Toolkit can be adapted for any faith-based institution. However, I don’t think it should just be used as a template. In order to be maximally meaningful and effective, the development of something like the Toolkit needs to be an authentic process that draws on people’s deeply-held beliefs. I do hope that other faith-based institutions, in higher education and beyond, will find inspiration in what we are doing and follow their own path toward sustainability.

What aspects of the Toolkit are you most excited about?

Novick: I am most excited about the section titled “Beyond the Campus” at the end of each component of the St. Francis Pledge. The purpose of this section is to offer concrete examples of how to channel the enthusiasm around sustainability on our campuses into the surrounding communities. The best thing about taking on a community leadership role is that it will encourage universities to strive for greater sustainability goals themselves because they are conscious of their positions as role models.

DiLeo: I am especially excited about the section titled “Defining Sustainability for a Catholic Audience.” In this section, we point out that while the traditional three pillars of sustainability (economy, society and environment) are a helpful way to understand sustainability, this model may be of limited use to Catholic individuals and institutions. This is because, for them, the three pillars of sustainability exist within the Catholic identity which ultimately guides and shapes their mission, practices and policies. We therefore offer a revised model in which Catholic identity imbues every aspect of sustainability and, conversely, the principles of sustainability are embedded within Catholic tradition.

What are some of the other sustainability projects and partnerships that have emerged or been strengthened since the launch of the Toolkit?

DiLeo: Based on the model of the Toolkit, the Coalition recently published the St. Francis Pledge Planning Guide for Parishes and Schools. As the name suggests, this resource is designed to help parishes, grade schools and high schools to effectively implement mission-based sustainability through the St. Francis Pledge to Care for Creation and the Poor. We have also worked with the Center for Ministry Development to create six lesson plans for high school-aged students and youth titled “Friending Planet Earth: Helping Youth Understand Solidarity & Sustainability in Light of Climate Change.” These programs are being launched simultaneously this fall as schools and parishes begin programs for the year.