Salvatore Coppola-Finegan

Salvatore Coppola-Finegan

Louise McDonald from Cheltenham Laudato Si' Circle writes:

Salvatore Coppola-Finegan joined us for this month's meeting, only just home arrived back at his home in Luxembourg from Rome, where he had taken part in the conference 'Ten Years of Laudato Si': Challenges and Hope' at the Gregorian University, representing the Laudato Si' Research Institute (LSRI) based at Campion Hall, Oxford.

Of Italian-Irish heritage, Salvatore was brought up as a Catholic in a family committed to public service. His ecological conversion took place at university and afterwards on moving to Costa Rica, where he witnessed the reality of the interconnectedness between humanity and the natural world, seeing how social conflicts are often inextricably entwined with environmental issues - for example in the balancing act between conservation efforts and the livelihoods of local communities.

His academic work, lecturing and research, brought him into contact with priests engaged with liberation theology, calling for social and economic justice for the poor and marginalised. Salvatore was inspired by the work of the then Cardinal Bergoglio elsewhere in Latin America and was elated to see how his faith and professional life came together.

When Laudato Si' was published, Salvatore was a special adviser to the Costa Rican government: the milestone encyclical was motivational to him - it was good to be able to talk about faith with colleagues.

The recent conference in Rome gave delegates from universities around the world an opportunity to make a critical appraisal of a decade of efforts to implement the encyclical's message, to discuss how far integral ecology has developed, and to share ideas and best practice. As well as presentations and working groups, the participants were able to visit Borgo Laudato Si' at Castel Gandolfo, described as "a new Eden".

As well as being the tenth anniversary of Laudato Si', this year is 10 years on from the Paris Climate Agreement, and the conference was a platform for telling some inconvenient truths about the non-fulfilment of promises, on matters which are life and death to the Global South. A receptive and tolerant conference heard that the continuing result of failure to act - floods, lost crops in Africa, sinking islands in the Pacific - cannot be ignored as too far away. Academia is moving closer from its ivory tower in the Global North, learning how to use its power to reduce the distance to the communities who need solutions.

The conference looked at how universities can be models for society, making social and ecological transitions and serving as a beacon. Salvatore cited Abidjan and Manila Universities as excellent examples of this, and also told us a little about Oxford, where the LSRI was established in 2019. They seek to collaborate in partnerships seeking transdisciplinary solutions, actively listening to stakeholders on the ground, who may not be experts but hold vital knowledge, and applying the expertise of scientists.

Whilst things are outward looking and positive in academia, there is perceived to be a problem in how little the teaching of Laudato Si' (LS) is absorbed in parish life. Salvatore is now living in multicultural, multilingual Luxembourg and attends Mass in a vibrant expat community there. He suggested that LS was well organised in some French & Luxembourgish communities (with walks, talks and other activities), but less so amongst the international community. LS too often exists 'just on paper', as Cardinal Hollerich has put it.

Salvatore spoke of "Iglesia en salida", which translates to "Church on the move" or "Church going out". It refers to the Catholic Church's call to be more engaged and present in the world, reaching out to those outside its traditional structures. This concept emphasizes a missionary and outward-focused approach, encouraging the Church to actively engage with contemporary society and its challenges.

Since the end of 2023, a group of motivated people in his parish has been building co-ordination and outreach, and this weekend will be celebrating LS's 10th anniversary with cake!

Things are very different in the Global South where LS is extremely vibrant & youth movements are actively engaged. The principles of LS are lived out in personal practice of faith, in academic study & in professional choices. Salvatore was also positive about the UK, seeing here a welcoming multicultural society that is reflected at church.

Asked about ideas for getting people aware & involved, Salvatore suggested

-Showing the film The Letter, as a catalyst for conversation
-Birthday cake, for parishioners who would like to go further with engagement
-Supporting a project in the Global South, with a faith led component
-Garnering support from other groups to make a greater impact together
-Creating opportunities to talk, with authority, about the reality of life in the Global South, and to raise consciousness of the inequality and urgency of the situation
-Discussion turned to how things are connected: displacement of people and its effect on democracies; biodiversity collapse being at the root of migration, and wars caused by ecological issues.

Salvatore believes that if we can reach people in their hearts and minds, we can motivate them to do something with their hands. LS is one of few opportunities to talk with people about how we connect with others on the planet, about moral leadership, professional capability and shared responsibility.

He does unfortunately frequently meet with denial, which is painful, as is the 'race to the bottom' among EU countries in the face of Trumpism, deindustrialisation, and lack of political leadership. Rampant consumerism is not compatible with a healthy natural world and leads to waste and other issues downstream. Salvatore laments the denial and the lack of driving force in leadership.

The hour passed very quickly. We ended considering the many challenges faced by our common home, but surely if we had had more time we would have discussed at greater length the problem of 'growth'. 'Consumption is manufactured', Salvatore said.

We were privileged to have with us our guest someone who is committed in both his faith and his work to the reordering of society toward care for our common home and care for the poor. He is an impressive and persuasive speaker.

The meeting closed, as it had opened, in prayer.

Salvatore Coppola-Finegan is an expert in Sustainability and Digitalisation. He is currently Research Affiliate at Integral Ecology Research Network, Campion Hall, University of Oxford; and Board Member of EcoCitizen in Luxembourg.