In November 2019, we were visited by Cafod and decided to start the Cafod Laudato Si’ challenge. The challenge is in response to Pope Francis’ call to ‘live wisely, think deeply and love generously’.
Laudato Si’ is an encyclical written by Pope Francis, it was published on the 18 June 2015. Encyclicals are open letters written by the pope.
Laudato Si’ discusses the damage being inflicted on the Earth by humans and calls on ‘every person living on this planet’ to make urgent changes to our lifestyles and how we consume energy in order to protect the planet. It deals with many environmental issues. In his letter, Pope Francis implores us to work together to create a better world for future generations and asks us to make the necessary changes in our lives in order to take care of, respect and value our ‘common home’.
At St Elizabeth’s we responded in the following way:
Live wisely – each child decided on one thing that they would do to personally show they are caring for our common home. These were written on special templates and displayed in class and around school.
Think deeply – each class chose one issue to look at in greater detail and the Prayer and Eco Councillors discussed how then school to work together on this issue. As a school, we decided to reduce the use of single use plastic. The Prayer and Eco Councillors wrote to Mr Daniels and the PTFA to persuade them to reduce the use of plastic in school. The PTFA agreed to provide every child with a reusable water bottle.
Love generously – during Advent 2019, each class raised money for Cafod by holding their own fund raising event. As a school, we raised £500 for Cafod.
In October 2020, we achieved the Laudato Si’ Award.
