国产传媒

Valerie Pe帽a 鈥�22 is the global justice coordinator for Campus Ministry at Mount Saint Mary鈥檚 University. For her, Earth Day is a chance to enlighten others on how environmental justice often directly connects to social justice issues.

鈥淚 work with our justice team to find ways to inspire the Mount community to learn about justice issues and to advocate for those who don鈥檛 have a voice,鈥� Pe帽a says. 鈥淲e believe the first step to becoming an advocate and making a difference is through education.鈥�

There will be plenty of educating going on this Earth Day within the Mount community. 鈥淭he Mount Cares for the Planet: Celebrating Earth Day 2021鈥� will offer students and faculty chances to learn, debate and take action on behalf of their communities. The day鈥檚 activities are sponsored by the 国产传媒 Department of Biological Sciences; Campus Ministry; the CSJ Institute; Facilities; and Sports and Wellness.

Earth Day 2021 Activities at 国产传媒 Include:

• 鈥淯nifying Love and Healing: Intersection of Racism, Migration and the Climate Crisis鈥�: In this talk by Sharon Lavigne, the founder of RISE St. James, she鈥檒l share efforts to protect the health of her parish in Louisiana and its fight against plastics pollution and environmental racism. Sponsored by the U.S. Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph.

• Laudato Si and Student Perspectives on Climate Change Across the Globe: This student-led conversation on environmental justice is grounded in Pope Francis鈥� Laudato Si call to care for the earth, our common home. Students in a related course will present their research, including reflections on the community-level impacts of climate change.

• Caring for the Earth: An Earth Day prayer service with the CSJ Institute and the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet (CSJ) focused on the importance of caring for the planet 鈥� and all of creation as the dear neighbor.

• Crafting With Campus Ministry: Origami-making and terrarium gardening with an Earth Day theme.

• 鈥淢ossville: When Great Trees Fall鈥�: Documentary and discussion about a centuries-old Black community in Louisiana that is contaminated and uprooted by petrochemical plants.

• Easter 20 on Earth Day: Prayers for New Life for the Earth: The day will conclude with music, reflections and Scripture.

鈥淎t the Mount, we鈥檙e committed to being an anti-racist institution as well as reducing our environmental footprint,鈥� says Gaile Krause, assistant director of Campus Ministry. 鈥淎nd those goals fit the vision of our CSJ founders, who always focus on meeting the needs of the times. Over the decades, the CSJs expanded their guiding principle of unifying love to include not just love of God and love of neighbor but also love of the planet and love of creation. When we love our planet, we鈥檙e taking care of creation and all of those in need who depend on it.鈥�

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Our Campuses Join in the Fight

In addition to the 3Rs of friendly environmental living 鈥� reduce, reuse, recycle 鈥� here鈥檚 a glance at some of what our campuses are doing to be thoughtful about using Mother Earth鈥檚 precious resources.

Chalon

11 EV (electric vehicle) charging stations

Solar panels: Brady Hall, Carondelet Hall, Charles Willard Coe Library, Faculty Residence and Rossiter Hall. Work in progress on the Jos猫 Drudis-Biada Art Gallery and Fine Arts Building

--John Deeb, associate director, facilities management

Doheny

48 EV charging stations

Solar panels: Buildings 4 (Ahmanson Weingart Hall), 8.5, 3, 5 (Fritz B. Burns Health Education Building),11 (Ahmanson Weingart) and 15 (McIntyre Hall)

--Carlos Garcia, facilities manager

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Earth Day, All Year Long

The Mount鈥檚 Laudato Si Earth Day event is tied to a new upper-division environmental science course. The class examines the earth as a complex system, drawing from a wide array of viewpoints 鈥攊ncluding physical science, chemistry, biology, political science, sociology, spirituality, ethics and law 鈥� to better understand the relationship between society and the environment.

Students in the course study both global and local concerns related to climate change, pollution, land use and biodiversity loss, as well as the roles that race/ethnicity, gender and class play in environmental justice.

鈥淚 enjoy teaching environmental science with embedded attention to social justice issues,鈥� says Adriane Jones, PhD, professor of biology. 鈥淭his semester, we鈥檝e centered our discussions around the 鈥榳e鈥� in climate change. The climate change we are seeing today is a direct result of anthropogenic actions; however, not all people equally contribute to the problem, and not all people are equally impacted by the consequences.鈥�

That鈥檚 something that Pe帽a, a psychology major, understands well. She also knows that many people who may want to combat climate change might not have the means or the knowledge to take action.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 why I am so passionate about the importance of education in environmental issues,鈥� Pe帽a says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not about changing your whole lifestyle to be 100% eco-friendly, it's taking small steps as a community to create a wave of difference. My hope in doing this is to slowly create a healthy environment for us to live in so future generations can see the natural beauty our planet has to offer.鈥�

To that end, Pe帽a will spend her Earth Day posting to Campus Ministry鈥檚 Instagram platform, sharing tips with followers on how they can positively impact the environment 鈥� and their own communities. She鈥檒l also be practicing what she preaches. Pe帽a plans to start a small garden in her family鈥檚 backyard on Earth Day and take new steps to make their home more environmentally friendly.