Our Planet Earth

Our journey to care for our planet earth!

Featured Articles

Caring for Our Mother Earth

Published September 23, 2024
Ecological Education
Caring for Our Mother Earth

Did you know celebrating September 1 as a Day of Prayer for Creation begins the Season of Creation? The season goes through October 4, the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi. It is an annual celebration uniting everyone in prayer and action for the protection of our common home.

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Climate Action Plans

Published August 26, 2024
Simple Lifestyles
Climate Action Plans

Do you know if your country/state/city has a Climate Action Plan (CAP)? A CAP is a detailed document for measuring, planning, and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in an effort to solve climatic impacts . In June 2024, more than 20 federal agencies released updated CAP s, while Tracy Wholf reported since March 2024 in the United States, 45 states had CAP s. ClimateCheck said, “ Hundreds of cities across the United States are using CAPs to guide their climate change response by guiding government and community actions ”.

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Will We Prevent the Sixth Mass Extinction on Earth?

Published July 22, 2024
Ecological Education
Will We Prevent the Sixth Mass Extinction on Earth?

Do you know what former Vice President Al Gore said about how we can stop climate change? “We can do this,” he said, “if we just overcome the greed and political power of the big fossil fuel polluters who have been trying to control this process. It’s time for people at the grassroots level in every country to speak up, and the good news is, that’s happening too.” To hear him, please visit the YouTube video, a link provided near the end of this article.

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Recent Articles

Climate Migrants

Published July 27, 2023
Cry of the Poor
Climate Migrants

The International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) said, “Climate refugees also referred to as climate change refugees and climate migrants are individuals who have been displaced from their homes due to natural disasters and climate change. This includes floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, desertification, droughts, rising sea levels, and more. These events not only affect the safety of individuals, but can also cause food, water, and other long-term resource shortages that push people from their homes”. They also said, the term “climate migrant” is more accurate than climate change refugee because, much like internally displaced persons, climate migrants are not recognized as refugees under international refugee law. This means they do not have the same protections and rights when seeking asylum as people who have fled their home country to escape persecution based on religion, race, nationality, or political opinion.

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Ten Eco-Commandments for Earth Citizens

Published June 30, 2023
Simple Lifestyles
Ten Eco-Commandments for Earth Citizens

For nearly three years, this column in The Message has consistently given good reasons to be less consumer- driven and more eco-friendly. It has promoted “Laudato Si’” to all people and to all religions in the world, as requested by Pope Francis - including through his “Ten Commandments for Climate Change” (See What can we do section).

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The Sun

Published May 19, 2023
Ecological Education
The Sun

Rhett Herman, Ph.D., physics professor at Radford University in Virginia (Scientific American, 10/26/1998, How fast is the Earth moving) says, the Earth revolves around the sun in 365 days at a speed of nearly 67,000 mph, and rotates on its axis, at the equator at 1,000 mph. In addition, the sun is a yellow star made of hydrogen and helium, 93 million miles from earth, and its volume would need 1.3 million earths to fill it (National Aeronautics and Space Administration).

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Earth Day and the Catholic Church

Published April 22, 2023
Ecological Education
Earth Day and the Catholic Church

Gaylord Nelson, who founded Earth Day, saw, in the 1960’s, a deteriorating environment and Anti-Vietnam War protests. Both gave him the idea for a “teach-in” about environmental issues on April 22, 1970, the first Earth Day. It’s estimated that 20 million people participated in this event, according to “The History of Earth Day, Adirondack Council.” The first two websites under “What can we do!” give ideas for Earth Day on April 22, 2023.

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Righting Wrongs Through Legislation

Published March 16, 2023
Ecological Education
Righting Wrongs Through Legislation

Historically, we’ve learned much about righting wrongs to promote environmental protection. Two notable authors are Aldo Leopold (“A Sand County Almanac”) and Rachel Carson (“Silent Spring”). Both were helpful in passing legislation like:

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Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Restore

Published February 17, 2023
Simple Lifestyles
Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Restore

There are simple and economic ways to live an environmentally sensitive and thoughtful lifestyle. For instance, we could rethink, reduce, reuse, recycle and restore. Applying these five R’s will reduce our carbon footprint, promote healthy environments, increase soil fertility, and improve Earth’s air, water, and land.

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