An Integral Ecology as the Ground for Good Business

Integral Ecology As Theosemiotic: A Case For A Pragmatist Theological Ethics

The Virtue of Sobriety:Integral Ecology in Its Full Flourishing Jennifer E. Miller Notre Dame Seminary New Orleans, Louisiana Jennifer E. Miller Introduction Pope Francis's 2015 social encyclical entitled Laudato Si' (LS) introduces a new term into Catholic social teaching, "integral ecology," and with it, gives an impetus to the further development of theologically based virtue ethics, or virtuous morality, as found in the virtue of sobriety. In order to understand the term "integral ecology" and its implications in sobriety properly, it is necessary to situate it within the context of earlier social encyclicals. Thus, I will first review the social encyclicals to show how integral human development forms the background for integral ecology. Then I will further investigate the meaning of integral ecology by following the pontiff 's Scriptural exposition of the natural moral law. Finally, I will conclude by demonstrating how the praxis of integral ecology, rooted within the natural moral law, comes to maturity in the virtue of sobriety. Although there has been a suggestion that proportionalist moral reasoning might be one way of understanding the moral implications of integral ecology,1 through [End Page 205] careful examination of the text, Pope Francis's call for integral ecology can then be understand as the summons to a full flourishing of the natural moral law in the virtue of sobriety, needed by society especially to realize this broadened idea of integral human development within the context of all of Creation. The Context of Integral Ecology "Integral human development,"2 meaning "the context within which … an adequate approach to ecology can be conceived,"3 was first introduced by Blessed Pope Paul VI in 1967, two years after the close of the Second Vatican Council.4 In contrast to earlier methodology: "[Paul VI] did not take the current conception of economic development as a starting point and then modify it. Instead, he laid down certain basic criteria by which we can measure to what extent any changes brought about in society deserve to be called authentic human development, … [thus providing] a heuristic notion of development, a framework or [End Page 206] anticipation of the 'shape' of genuine development."5 This framework of genuine development, christened by the Pontiff "integral human development," insisted upon promoting the good of every man and of the whole man6 in the "transition from less human conditions to those which are more human."7 In order to ensure the integral nature of such development, it enumerated four aspects of progress that required respect and promotion: economic, social, cultural, and spiritual.8 Paul VI saw the elaboration of these four interrelated aspects of human development as constitutive of the Church's contribution to society: "The Church, … which 'seeks but … to carry forward the work of Christ himself under the lead of the befriending Spirit,' … wishes to help [men] to obtain their full flowering and that is why she offers [them] what she possesses as her characteristic attribute: a global vision of man and of the human race."9 This global vision of the development of the human person, emphasizing the relationship of the various aspects of integral human development, as well as that between the development of each individual person and that of society as a whole, became a constant reference point elaborated in later encyclicals. St. John Paul II's 1987 social encyclical Sollicitudo Rei Socialis (SRS), written to coincide with the twentieth anniversary of Populorum Progressio (PP),10 begins by stating that "the aim of the present reflection is to emphasize, through a theological investigation of the present world, the need for a fuller [End Page 207] and more nuanced concept of development."11 The idea of integral human development here becomes more Scripturally, and thus more theologically, rooted. It emphasizes the revelation of the "specific nature of man"12 in the Creation story of Genesis and reveals and establishes the importance of the virtue of solidarity in having and being for such development.13 Caritas in Veritate, Pope Benedict XVI's 2009 social encyclical, also written to commemorate PP, continues to insist that "progress of a merely economic and technological kind is insufficient."14 He highlights the importance of civil...

This chapter stresses the need for Catholic colleges and universities to engage in the just stewardship of resources. First, the author argues that all Catholic institutions must take seriously the notion of socially responsible investment, informed by the principles of Catholic moral theology and Catholic social teaching. The chapter then considers whether divestment from fossil fuels is a moral imperative and discusses how socially responsible investment principles should also inform whether Catholic institutions can accept donations from individuals, corporations, or government agencies that may have done grave harm to either people or the planet. The author advances the argument that Catholic colleges and universities have a duty to fulfil the vision of integral ecology in Catholic social teaching by implementing “micro-level actions” and promoting systemic level changes to promote sustainability. The chapter also surveys some of the efforts of Catholic institutions to green their campuses and contends that these institutions must recognize that integral ecology relates to both environmental sustainability and human welfare, including the welfare of workers on campus and in their supply chains.

This study analyzes sustainability concepts through the lens of Roman Catholic Social Teaching (CST) with a special emphasis on Laudato Si’. CST expands the focus of sustainability to include social justice through its emphasis on human dignity, the common good, and caritas. In CST, justice is understood as structural, while environmental obligations are connected to integral human development and peace. In Laudato Si’, Pope Francis calls on us to counter prevailing unjust systems with a structural reordering of multiple ecologies: environmental, economic, social, cultural, and daily life. Based on this reordering, he developed the notion of integral ecology, and we show how it encompasses a set of existing sustainability ideas in CST and, more importantly, how it changes the focus and scope of sustainability. Unfortunately, and despite supposed good intentions, some institutions misrepresent and use the term “sustainability” to justify systems that result in “un-sustainable” consequences. We thus show how Laudato Si’ offers an antidote to such unsustainable practices by reconceptualizing the sustainability construct through the notion of integral ecology.

In response to the ecological crisis, Catholic social teaching draws upon an account of natural law that appeals to natural‐ecological order and its provision of principles for tilling and keeping creation. My main contention in this article is that social teaching has insufficiently concretized the empirical entanglements of this account, along with its ecological‐agricultural implications. One consequence, as scholars like Lisa Sideris and Celia Deane‐Drummond have shown, is that social teaching, like much theological reflection upon ecology, downplays the centrality of death.While Catholic social teaching, as Óscar Romero rightly observes, must not “invade” other fields, a refusal to invade is not a refusal to engage, nor is it a refusal to learn from, or even to incorporate, wisdom from outside of itself. To this end, I argue that agroecology, a transdisciplinary science that applies ecological principles to agriculture, can help. By focusing upon an agroecological approach to the ecological management of insect herbivores (“pests”) known as biological control, I show how agroecology can assist social teaching in discerning the kinds of ecological principles it calls for but does not specify—principles, in this case, related to predator‐prey dynamics in natural systems and the importance of agricultural diversification. I further argue that if social teaching continues to appeal to natural‐ecological order, it must more directly confront death’s place in that order, and that the thought of Thomas Aquinas can be a helpful source. While my focus in this article is upon what social teaching can learn from agroecology, I conclude by suggesting how social teaching’s account of natural law and its integral ecology can surface and develop aspects of agroecology’s own, oftentimes implicit, moral vision.

This study analyzes sustainability concepts through the lens of Roman Catholic Social Teaching (CST) with a special emphasis on Laudato Si’. CST expands the focus of sustainability to include social justice through its emphasis on human dignity, the common good, and caritas. In CST, justice is understood as structural while environmental obligations are connected to integral human development and peace. In Laudato Si’, Pope Francis calls on us to counter prevailing unjust systems with a structural reordering of multiple ecologies: environmental, economic, social, cultural, and daily life. Based on this reordering, he developed the notion of integral ecology, and we show how it encompasses a set of existing sustainability ideas in CST and, more importantly, how it changes the focus and scope of sustainability. Unfortunately, and despite supposed good intentions, some institutions misrepresent and use the term “sustainability” to justify systems that result in “un sustainable” consequences. We thus show how Laudato Si’ offers an antidote to such unsustainable practices by reconceptualizing the sustainability construct through the notion of integral ecology.

Spirituality in an ecological key raises the urgency of giving a response from the human spiritual dimension to the challenges that the environmental crisis of today's world continually throws up. To this end, it contrasts an integral ecology, of purely humanistic, spiritual and cultural roots, with an ecology of disaster, of purely technological and geoengineering roots. In contrast to an ecology of disaster focused on short-term reactions that give primacy to technical geoengineering solutions, integral ecology focuses on the current challenges of the relationship between human beings and nature by exploring its spiritual roots, questioning the consumerist lifestyle and identifying the underlying political and ideological responsibilities. To do so, it takes up the teachings of Pope Francis in his magisterium on this problem and relates it to the voices of other thinkers, theologians and humanists. Through this reflection it becomes evident that, although technical solutions are necessary in the face of certain emergencies, a spiritual change in the attitude of human beings towards nature is needed. The ecology of disaster is based on techno-optimism that seeks to reduce pollution and promote food industrialization without questioning the habits of the first world. Integral ecology, on the contrary, seeks to establish the social priorities that make it possible to live in a less polluted, less noisy and more friendly world with people, their spiritual values and their relationship with the environment. This is where the ecological spirituality of good living is inserted, which seeks to reconstruct the creatural relationship of human beings with the earth, air, water and all living beings.

This paper provides an account of the philosophical foundation of human ecology. While ecology is motivated by theoretical interest, human ecology is motivated by practical interest. The philosophical nature of human ecology is seen in its prudential and ethical concerns, which are intrinsically connected to the practical pursuit of a good life. The themes of human ecology and integral ecology are discussed using the concept ‘ecological spirituality’, mentioned by Pope Francis in his 2015 encyclical Laudato Si’. Human ecology as a way of life is understood in terms of ecological spirituality while the dimensions of integral ecology include environmental, economic and social ecology. One of the major concerns of human ecology is the question of sustainability and its relation to consumption and production. On this account, a natural focus of human ecology is in the area of economic ecology. This paper presents an ecological approach to understanding the nature of business, production, work and wealth. A case study of the movement known as the Economy of Communion is provided as an example of a new ecologic paradigm that integrates spirituality with business practices, aims at the common good and promotes social justice in the world.

Ten years after Laudato si’, people still observe climate crises and, simultaneously, widespread apathy. How can educators foster ecological conversion that motivates care for creation? Pope Francis views environmental degradation as a breakdown of relationships. Care for creation, therefore, requires major shifts in culture, spiritual practice, and cultivation of ecological virtues. Praxis pedagogy helps students embody integral ecology. Beyond the principles of Catholic social teaching, integral ecology becomes part of their habitus. This paper examines integral ecology through two case studies: Bethlehem Farm (West Virginia, US) and Mes de Misión (Tacna, Peru). Assessing these service immersion projects, the author contends that teaching integral ecology effectively involves these best practices: Foster a culture of care; create opportunities for encounter; live in community; share meals; empower hard work; gather graces. Integral ecology provides a common language useful for explicit programming, preparation, and follow-up. The conclusion offers possibilities for implementing best practices locally.

The Agenda provided by the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) represent an opportunity to eradicate poverty, preserve the planet, promote peace, and develop a more prosperous society. This global horizon is reinforced by the religious proposal of the Encyclical “Laudato si”, in which Pope Francis reflects on the anthropological, social, and spiritual repercussions of the interaction of human beings with their environmental reality. With the term integral ecology, the Catholic leader proposes processes to put an end of poverty, exclusion, and environmental degradation. This research aims to explore the cornerstones and application of the SDGs and integral ecology in the framework of the Catholic university. The study brings Agenda 2030 into dialogue with the Christian ethical perspective of human development and integral ecology by showing their complementarity. It develops the inclusion of the SDGs and integral ecology objectives in the mission and strategic plan of the Catholic university. For this reason, an action plan is projected in which the values of sustainability are transversally structured in the diverse areas of the university, such as governance, teaching, research, transfer of knowledge and social impact, extracurricular activity, green procurement, infrastructure, energy, waste, water, and mobility.

The intention of the author of this article is a presentation of the social teaching of Pope Francis on the basis of his green encyclical related primarily to human ecology and environmental ecology, forming both in every family and then at school and university by the media and culture. Education in ‘integral ecology’ is intended to be sensitive to the various aspects of ecology and consequently the protection of human and social life against environmental degradation. Education is a long term process and therefore is concerned about an intergenerational ‘Common Home’, so it cannot be ignored by macro and micro structures of economy or ecology. Pope Francis indicates the correlation between ecology and economy, between environmental ecology and the ecology of man (human ecology) and above all, his moral condition. Social and economic systems must remain on guard to ensure that the balance between the biological and the ecosystem has been properly preserved. In the social assessment and analysis, Pope Francis criticises globalisation, neo­‑liberalism as a form of a new colonialism providing false ecology in economy and in a global politics ultimately directed against developing countries and the poor and excluded. Therefore education which begins in the family has to take into account the problems of ecological crisis and the crisis of ecology of man and his moral condition. The social teaching of Pope Francis shows, as never before, the close relationship between economy, ecology and social ethics.

The Encyclical Letter Laudato si’ On Care for Our Common Home gathers to dialogue all people, organizations and institutions that share the same concern — the care for our common home. Since Pope Francis promulgated Laudato si’ in 2015, many people have become better informed about Catholic social teaching which advocates concern for God’s creation, the environment included. In Laudato si’ Pope Francis describes what is happening to our common home, then considers a theological and sociological approach to today’s crisis — the responsibility of humanity — and examines the concept of “integral ecology” as a new social sustainability values framework. In this paper integral ecology is conceptually inseparable from integral society. The great contribution by environmental sociology is emphasized since the subject of analysis thereof are the social causes and effects of environmental change. In the encyclical Laudato si’ Pope Francis promotes the principle of the “common good” on three levels — individual, social, and global — in which we find all elements of the Church’s social doctrine, such as solidarity and subsidiarity, the common good, justice, participation and “commitment” to the poor.

Pope Francis is able to communicate common values across borders of religion, regions, and sociopolitical systems. Catholic social teaching on the common good, particularly as articulated and promoted by him as part of a culture of encounter, conveys a relevant message for our times. Approaching the pope’s initiative from a South Asian context, I argue that an engagement with dharma, a religioethical vision, can be part of this culture of encounter, especially in public theological conversations about the common good. Specifically, the themes of the common good, like integral ecology and care for the vulnerable, as earnestly promoted by Pope Francis, can converse with dharma for mutual enrichment, even while the basic teachings on human dignity, freedom, and inalienable rights can usefully enrich the latter.

It is widely acknowledged that the large-scale and long-term transitions needed to mitigate climate change and to implement policies for sustainable development within planetary boundaries require significant shifts in values and behaviours. Consequently, there is increasing interest in the processes through which major societal transitions for sustainability can occur through peaceful cooperation and widespread embrace of pro-environmental values, and the values associated with the broad concept of sustainability such as care for the interests of future generations and concern for the poor. This encompasses the search for compelling narratives to frame the process and goals of change and the need for the fostering of virtues and ethical frameworks of identity and practice that can underpin advocacy and change for sustainability. This requires drawing on richer sources of values and ethics. We suggest that important resources can be found in religious, as well as secular traditions of social values and ethical analysis. While major religions have begun to reflect environmental concerns and sustainability goals in their theology and praxis, with immense potential and actual influence over value and behaviours, little research has explored the impacts and implications of this development; nor indeed, the intellectual stimulus and social capabilities they can offer to secular thinkers and practitioners in sustainable development. In particular, we argue that there is a need to consider the affinities between secular sustainability frameworks for ethics and policy and the concepts of Catholic Social Teaching (CST) on the Common Good, recently updated by Pope Francis to integrate ecological concern and a call for universal ‘ecological conversion’ and cooperation. We outline the key features of CST and the Pope’s new ‘Integral Ecology’ framework and identify affinities, in particular, with Elinor Ostrom’s system of design principles for sustainable management of commons. We conclude with suggestions for research to investigate the interrelationships of the Integral Ecology reframing of CST with initiatives for transformational change in values and practices for sustainability.

The concept of integral ecology is presented as a new paradigm proposed by Pope Francis in the encyclical Laudato si’ (2015). It offers a critical re-reading of the modern paradigm, marked by a “despotic” anthropocentrism (LS 68, 118), to promote integral ecology as a horizon of conversion. Inspired by Jacques Maritain (Humanisme intégral, 1936) and Paul VI (Populorum Progressio, 1967), this concept seeks to reconcile human and environmental ecology by integrating social justice and biodiversity preservation. Integral ecology, asserting that “everything is connected” (LS 138), is grounded in an ontological key: the interdependence of beings, reflecting the Trinity in creation (Bonaventure). It articulates four fundamental relationships (God, others, oneself, creation), symbolized by a tetrahedron, and is guided by principles such as “reality is more important than ideas” (EG 231–233) or “the whole is greater than the part” (LS 141). Pope Francis, echoing the “cry of the earth and the cry of the poor” (LS 49), links ecological crisis and poverty, criticizing the “throwaway culture” (LS 22). Integral ecology, with its universalist scope, addresses all people—believers and non-believers alike—by fostering dialogue among sciences, religions, and politics. Rooted in the Franciscan tradition (St. Francis of Assisi as a model of harmony) and the theology of the people (Scannone), it promotes “social and universal fraternity” (FT 2020). Finally, it calls for a conversion of our representations of nature, in response to Lynn White Jr.’s critique of Christian anthropocentrism, and for an ecology lived as “good news for creation.&#8221.