Bellarmine University adopts Laudato Si’ Action Platform for campus sustainability efforts
Bellarmine University announced on Apr. 16 that its Sustainability Committee has adopted the Laudato Si’ Action Platform to guide and enhance environmental initiatives across its Highlands campus.
The adoption of this Vatican-led platform marks a step forward in the university’s ongoing commitment to environmental stewardship and aligns with its mission to educate students holistically. The initiative is part of a broader effort within Catholic institutions to integrate care for creation into their operations and community life.
Dr. Susan M. Donovan, president of Bellarmine University, said, “At Bellarmine, our mission to educate students in mind, body, and spirit, calls us to care not only for one another, but for the Earth we share.” The university has previously been recognized as a Tree Campus USA since 2014 and as a Bee Campus USA since 2023. It is also a member of the Catholic Garden Network.
Dr. Kate Bulinski, Bellarmine’s liaison for the initiative and fellow for Catholic identity, said that the action platform will provide structure for further activities by the committee. She explained that there are seven goals outlined by “Laudato Si’” and emphasized educational outreach: “A large effort of the Sustainability Committee this school year has been educating about the work happening on Bellarmine’s campus, and why it matters,” Bulinski said. “A large part of sustainable work is to change hearts, and to change minds, and to change culture towards being more responsible about the environment.”
Bulinski also noted how this framework helps students connect spiritual values with practical action: “It helps us to really articulate this important work and how it does connect to mission, and how it does connect to our Catholic faith.”
The Laudato Si’ Action Platform was developed by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development following Pope Francis’s 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home.” More information about this platform can be found at laudatosiactionplatform.org/.
The Archdiocese of Louisville promotes Catholic spiritual development through ministries while supporting community outreach according to its official website. The archdiocese maintains archives safeguarding historical documents from its institutions as reported by its official website, aligns with Roman Catholic Church structures according to its official website, seeks justice through spreading Gospel values according to its official website, operates under an Archbishop alongside consultative groups as described on its official site, and provides pastoral care across central Kentucky parishes according to information provided by its official website.
As Bellarmine continues these efforts underpinned by both institutional mission and church guidance from entities like the Archdiocese of Louisville, observers may look toward expanded education programs connecting faith-based values with ecological responsibility.
