In 2017, SCNs adopted a goal to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions[i] to zero by 2037 in the Western Province and by 2047 in Patna and Bangalore Provinces and in the Africa Mission. Our goal was consistent with recommendations from the Paris Agreement of 2015 as to what we need to do to limit the worst effects of climate change. Our greenhouse emissions goal:
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- reflects the SCNs’ mission to care for all creation;
- supports our commitment to work for peace and ecological justice;
- carries out our pledge to scrutinize our own lifestyles and environmental practices (2000 Earth Statement);
- honors our principle that decisions regarding land and buildings will include an eco-friendly consciousness and futuristic vision (2014 Land and Buildings Guiding Values and Principles);
- lives into our Laudato Si’ Action Platform intention to “continue our efforts to transition into integral ecology”;
- and supports the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
Since 2017, SCNs have taken numerous and definitive steps towards this goal by improving energy efficiency and investing in solar panels. However, the only sure way to know if we are making progress towards our goal is to track our emissions. In 2020, the Executive Committee (EC) asked the Office of Ecological Sustainability (OES) to keep track of the greenhouse gas emissions from the congregation’s thirteen largest houses. This summer, the OES presented a report to the EC summarizing the congregation’s emissions as reflected in those largest houses. Here are the results:
From 2021 January[ii] to the end of 2024, emissions from the tracked houses decreased by 32%, from 271 to 184 tons of CO₂e[iii]. About half of the savings are from changes to the Pittsburgh campus, namely the deconstruction of Vincentian Academy and the move out of St. Louise. However, the other half of the savings are from an increase in renewable energy and energy efficiency throughout the congregation.
A reduction of 32% in four years is a tremendous accomplishment! It represents a real commitment by the congregation and a significant effort. With continued investment in renewable energy and the elimination of all fossil fuels, we have a chance of reaching our 2037/2047 goal. With every reduction in emissions that we achieve, we are furthering our care for creation and our commitment to ecological justice.
Thanks to everyone for your ongoing efforts!
[i] Carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, fluorinated gases
[ii] The request from the E.C. came in September 2020. It was too onerous to capture data from earlier in 2020, so we formally began data tracking in 2021 January.
[iii] CO₂e, or “CO₂ equivalents”, are a measure of the effect of different greenhouse gases on the climate. By converting different emissions to the equivalent amount of carbon dioxide (CO2), their impacts can be compared.