Hope in a Time of Poverty: Environmental Justice PDF

Hope in a Time of Poverty: Environmental Justice

This USCCB reflection, “Hope in a Time of Poverty: Environmental Justice,” links Catholic social teaching, care for creation, and the needs of the poor. It emphasizes stewardship, solidarity, and lifestyle changes to reduce environmental harm, highlights how poor and vulnerable communities suffer first and most from pollution and climate change, and points readers toward concrete resources and local Catholic efforts (example: Tohono O’odham Community Action).

Key points and takeaways

• Creation is a gift that calls for gratitude, stewardship, and intergenerational responsibility.
• A “culture of waste” and unrestrained consumption harm both the environment and vulnerable people.
• Poor and marginalized communities bear disproportionate burdens from climate change, pollution, resource scarcity, and related health harms.
• A change of heart—personal conversion and communal solidarity—is necessary to protect creation and defend human dignity.
• Living simply, supporting sustainable energy and “green jobs,” and aligning public policy with care for the poor are practical ways forward.
• Local examples (Tohono O’odham Farmers’ Cooperative) show culturally rooted, climate-smart responses: preserving drought-tolerant traditional crops and improving diet/health outcomes.

• Take the St. Francis Pledge to Care for Creation and the Poor.
• Promote simpler lifestyles and choices that reduce carbon footprints (transport, energy use, consumption habits).
• Support policies and community initiatives that create sustainable jobs and protect vulnerable populations.
• Partner with or fund local efforts that combine cultural knowledge and climate resilience (community gardens, traditional crops, nutrition programs).
• Use parish education and advocacy to raise awareness of environmental justice as a moral issue.

Suggested ways you could use this document

• Teach a parish study or small-group reflection on environmental justice.
• Build a short bulletin insert or homily outline linking scripture, stewardship, and local action.
• Use the Tohono O’odham example as a model for combining cultural foodways with climate resilience in community programs.
• Share the listed resources with parishioners and local advocacy groups to move from reflection to concrete commitments.

hope-in-a-time-of-poverty-environment.pdf