From the .
In his 2015 encyclical letter, 鈥淟audato Si鈥,鈥 Pope Francis calls for greater care for our planet and its people. Following St. Kate鈥檚 formal signing-on to the Laudato Si鈥 Action Platform in June 2023, a bright array of sustainability and social justice measures have bloomed in collaboration between University departments and programs (read more).
The titles below, recommended by faculty and staff members from all across St. Kate鈥檚, explore the intersections of environmental, economic, and social justice issues, as demonstrated in Laudato Si鈥. One thing is for sure: it鈥檚 all connected.
- Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer (2019), nonfiction.
- Recommended by Suzanne Lehman 鈥93, MSN鈥11, DNP鈥18, assistant dean of undergraduate nursing and interim dean of nursing
Read this to: learn about Indigenous perspectives on health, wholeness, and sustainability.
- Prosperity Without Growth by Tim Jackson (2009), nonfiction.
- Recommended by Deep Shikha, PhD, professor of economics
Read this to: rethink the conventional Western definition of a successful economy.
- Pollination Power by Heather Angel (2016), nonfiction.
- Recommended by Rahul Roy, PhD, assistant professor of biology
Read this to: treat your eyes to a stunning, up-close visual tour of the way flowers attract pollinators.
- Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts. by Bren茅 Brown (2018), nonfiction.
- Recommended by Namibia Little, director of Katie Leadership Impact
Read this to: reimagine your work life with the empathy at the foundation of Laudato Si鈥.
- The Seed Keeper by Diane Wilson (2021), fiction.
- Recommended by Jill Underdahl, CSJ, 鈥92, Leadership Team
Read this to: experience a Dakota woman鈥檚 relationship to family identity and the legacy, both literal and figurative, of seeds.
- Red Alert!: Saving the Planet with Indigenous Knowledge by Daniel Wildcat (2009), nonfiction.
- Recommended by Jeff Johnson, PhD, associate dean of the School of Humanities, Arts, and Sciences; associate professor of philosophy
Read this to: get motivated to make a concrete difference, through the Indigenous wisdom shared by the author.
- Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers (2018), fiction.
- Recommended by Rafael Cervantes, PhD, director of the Antonian Honors program; associate professor of communication studies
Read this to: dive into a science fiction imagining of sustainable civilization.
- Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things by William McDonough and Michael Braungart (2002), nonfiction.
- Recommended by Sarah Rand, PhD, Endowed Mission Chair in Women鈥檚 Education; department chair and associate professor of business administration
Read this to: understand how manufacturing can be designed to prioritize reusing resources instead of disposal.
- Consumed: The Need for Collective Change: Colonialism, Climate Change, and Consumerism by Aja Barber (2021), nonfiction.
- Recommended by Anupama Pasricha, PhD, interim dean for the School of Business; professor of fashion design and merchandising
Read this to: learn, and unlearn, the culture of consumerism that lead to the injustices of the textile industry.
- The Sea Around Us by Rachel Carson (1950), nonfiction.
- Recommended by Amy Mars MLIS鈥12, research and instruction librarian,
Read this to: be awed by the vastness, mystery, and beauty of the ocean through the poetic descriptions by the author of Silent Spring.
- The Meaning of Gardens, ed. Mark Francis and Randolph T. Hester Jr. (1992), nonfiction.
- Recommended by Stephanie de Sam Lazaro 鈥05, MAOT鈥06, OTD鈥14, IPE director for the Institute of Simulation and Interprofessional Learning (I-SAIL); associate professor of occupational therapy
Read this to: reflect on gardening as both a sustainable and meaningful practice in daily life, a key idea in occupational therapy.