How to Green the Church

This summer the Vatican will release an Encyclical on the environment. This document will influence 1.2 billion Catholics on the ethical implications of temporal inaction regarding climate change. It will certainly have an influence on other Christians and religions as well.

While Pope Francis prepares to lead the moral argument for us to take responsibility for our contribution to climate change, we can lay out a framework of how the Church itself can take measurable action for its own carbon footprint.

The Church is a community of people who congregate in physical buildings. These are typically large open indoor spaces such as chapels, schools and hospitals, which require a significant amount of energy to heat and cool.

This built environment has a sizeable carbon footprint, and the Church faces the same dilemma as many of us. What can it do to reduce its own carbon pollution, and how can it do so in a logical way that still makes financial sense?

It can start by taking the following actions:

* The Church could begin by measuring and reporting the carbon footprint of its parishes and dioceses. What gets measured gets managed.

* Create a plan to reduce the carbon pollution of the building stock. o Tools such as Passive House’s EnerPhit Overall Retrofit Plan allow energy efficiency to be achieved over a period of time because it is impractical and financially draining to convert the entire building stock to a carbon net zero status overnight.

o At the parish level, a carbon reduction EnerPhit type plan is created. As building systems or infrastructure such as heating plants, lighting, roofs, and windows are repaired or replaced, these retrofits adhere to the energy efficiency standards and goals outlined in the plan.

• Document and incorporate renewable energy resources in the Overall Retrofit Plan.
• Choose a building energy efficiency standard for ALL new construction.
• Use the markets to annul the residue of its carbon influence. o Options such as Carbon Xprint provide an opportunity for the church to offset its carbon pollution in a measurable and profitable way. Many Catholic and other Christian entities have financial or endowment funds that invest in fixed income securities. A portion of these monies could be placed in Carbon Xprint Certified Investments that would negate the remaining carbon footprint.

The Pope is assuming the role of leader in the climate change fight. I hope that he and the Church use this splendid opportunity to show us all how to actually do something positive about it.

Pope Francis can lead by bringing his own Papal house to order first. He can win by doing.

Gary Keir and Robert Keir