Environment

The Sister Water Project is just one of dozens of sister-led efforts to bring clean drinking water to those without. But project committee member Sr. Judy Sinnwell said the venture has been as much about changing those involved as it is about changing the lives of those given fresh water. "When we set out to do this, we were thinking of what would happen out there as we met a need," Sinnwell said. "But what happened in the congregation was it impacted all of us."

More than 1 million people who took refuge in relief camps as unprecedented floods battered 12 of Kerala's 14 districts during July and August. At least 474 people died in the floods, most of them when the deluge was severest Aug. 15-20, says Fr. George Vettikattil, who heads the relief operations under the Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council, in the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church. The floods affected more than 5.41 million people, he estimates, based on data from various jurisdictions.

Three congregations, the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, Kentucky, Adrian Dominican Sisters and Sisters of the Humility of Mary, are charting toward a sustainable tomorrow by establishing goals that reduce greenhouse emissions and focus on sustainable energy. The sisters are applying principles such as permaculture to all aspects of community life.

Contemplate This - Even in the face of such an alarming forecast based on factual data, there are still people who do not accept the reality of climate change. We must acknowledge that we are in service to the future generations of all species and to the planet. These realizations do not come from data alone.