By Susan Tobia • Posted April 16, 2025

EcoPhilly’s fourth annual Summit was held Saturday, March 29 at St. Thomas of Villanova Parish in Rosemont. About 120 participants represented 18 parishes, 11 educational institutions (including seven Catholic schools), 10 environmental groups, and 13 other organizations.

After a talk by EcoPhilly cofounder Nicholas Collura, the day’s first panel discussed issues  in light of Pope Francis’ encyclical letter  “Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home,” which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year.

Sister Philo Morris of the Medical Mission Sisters described how “Laudato Si’” has impacted her work globally in response to the cry of the poor, integrating care for the earth with healing in India, Uganda, and the Philippines.

“Laudato Si’” was unknown to 26-year-old Aldo Pierini when he began studying engineering. Through his studies and work in Villanova University’s Office for Sustainability, he realized that not every problem has an engineering solution but that living a simpler life is a path to a healthier environment.

Through Villanova’s Free Store, Pierini now helps others to see the connection between their faith and social and environmental justice.

Lou Becht, manager of the Strategy Office for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, explained Archbishop Nelson Pérez’s recent pastoral letter and the initiative to establish Missionary Hubs across the archdiocese.

They will focus on renewal, rebuilding trust, and inviting lapsed Catholics and non-Catholics to a relationship with Jesus, Becht explained.

The missionary hubs  will begin by “planting seeds and tending the garden as the fruits of our efforts begin to grow,” Becht said.

He invited participants to sign up for discussion groups and submit feedback on TrustAndHope.org. EcoPhilly, with its focus on care for creation, hopes to be an effective on ramp for some of the 83% of Catholics who no longer come to church. The second panel of the day  explored legislative advocacy  and current legislative avenues for action on environmental policies.

State Rep. Greg Vitali, who chairs the Environmental Resources Committee in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, noted the challenges facing the state that produces fossil fuels.

HB 109, a bill that would require cumulative impacts to be considered when issuing certain environmental permits in environmental justice areas, has faced challenges toward passage even though it promises to protect public health.

Vitali urged everyone to contact their legislators through meetings, letters, and emails, especially those who do not believe in climate change.

Also on the panel was Maurice Sampson II, the Eastern Pennsylvania director of the Clean Water Action Fund and a pioneer in environmental justice work since 1969. He echoed Vitali’s  urgency for passing HB 109.

“Historically, low-income and communities of color in Pennsylvania have been forced to bear a disproportionate share of adverse environmental impacts that result in poor health, including cancer and asthma,” Sampson said.

He noted that affected areas are not only populated with Black and Brown people,  but most affected are White. He shared a map indicating that most environmental justice areas are also predominantly Republican.

Sampson urged people to join him on Lobby Day of Action at the state Capitol on June 3.

The third panel included three teachers and six students from Norwood Fontbonne Academy, Pope John Paul II High School, St. Joseph’s Preparatory School, and St. Matthew School in Philadelphia.

Students talked about the connection between their faith life and stewardship of God’s creation.

At Pope John Paul II, teacher Erin Gauntner described the school’s projects, including recycling 3-D printing waste, building a green house, partnering with  Martha’s Choice Marketplace, and adding more filling stations for water bottles.

The school has  reached 90% of its goal to recycle 1,000 pounds of waste, she said.

Eileen Rocks, a teacher at St. Matthew School, said student-led actions concerned nature and animals, and explored the students’ carbon footprints.

At Norwood Fontbonne, students are advocates of social justice. Teacher Megan Stotz explained that students first identify a problem, determine who is affected, offer a solution, and then build their projects.

Students from all four schools described how they reduce their carbon footprint, eat less meat, recycle, use both sides of the paper for assignments, and present what they’ve learned to younger students. One student remarked that “we are about eco-hope, not eco-despair.”

All the students were committed to caring for the earth and seemed undaunted by the challenges. They were confident, articulate, and hopeful in their responses.

Some shared their aspirations for careers including environmental engineering and journalism. One student remarked that any profession can involve environmental care in some way.

A participant in his 70s told the students, “Listening to you today makes me wish I was beginning my life over again.”

The Summit ended as participants departed with enthusiasm for action in their individual lives, parishes, and organizations to a wider world for the restoration of God’s creation.

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As part of the Laudato Si’ Movement, the mission of EcoPhilly is to establish a network of creation care teams throughout the Archdiocese of Philadelphia that achieve measurable improvements in their local environment. Contact info@ecophilly.org to learn more.

Susan Tobia is a member of EcoPhilly’s Leadership Team and a parishioner at Holy Cross Parish in the Mt. Airy section of Philadelphia.