While on retreat at St. Mary's by the Sea in Cape May Point, New Jersey, I love to visit the nature center near the lighthouse and to engage in one of my favorite forms of prayer — bird watching.

GSR Today - Inspiration, signs of "evolutionary changes," and ideas for living out mercy were found April 18-20 at the National Catholic Educational Association meeting of more than 8,000 teachers, administrators, superintendents, librarians and archivists.

When you think about women religious, the word "science" may not be the first to spring to mind, but for many if not most Catholic sisters, what has shaped climate study and other scientific disciplines also bolsters their conviction that all life on Earth is interdependent, and that the time to intervene on behalf of a struggling planet is now. Sisters, volunteers and other community associates are traveling to Washington, D.C., for the People's Climate March on April 29 to make that point.

The work of Religious of Jesus and Mary Sr. Yudith Pereira has taken her from her native Madrid to an office in Rome and villages throughout South Sudan. As project manager of the initiative Solidarity with South Sudan, Pereira helps run the program that includes projects in education, health training and pastoral initiatives.

"How wonderful would it be, while we discover faraway planets, to rediscover the needs of the brothers and sisters orbiting around us."

Notes from the Field: I've served in Nong Khai for eight months already, so many aspects of Thai culture have become my new normal. But the Thai New Year reminded me how restrictive my comfort zone still is.

"Our role in life is to bring the light of our own souls to the dim places around us."

Recently I had the opportunity to travel to Kenya and Tanzania as part of a team from Microfinancing Partners in Africa (MPA) because I serve on its advisory board. Microfinancing Partners in Africa was started by Sr. Toni Temporiti, a Sister of the Most Precious Blood, to provide some funding for microfinancing programs in several African countries. Now the non-profit organization is working with African sisters to start new projects.

Sr. Colette Hamza, a Sister of St. Francis Xavier, lives close to Marseille, France, where a quarter of the population is Muslim. Sister Colette teaches religion to children at a school where the majority of students are Muslim. "Slowly, step by step, we contribute to a better understanding between Muslims and Christians."

The land surrounding the Dominican Sisters of Peace motherhouse has been farmed since 1822.

In the beginning, the sisters farmed the verdant hills to feed the community and the students they taught.

Today, the farm is tended by a farm manager and a part-time farmhand who primarily raise beef cattle.

The heart of the farm's mission is to promote sustainable farming practices and provide quality beef for the sisters and consumers alike, said Danny Spalding, farm manager.