13 of the hottest 15 years on record have all occurred since the year 2000 and the odds of this happening without global warming are not very good, this year’s Founder’s Day speaker said.
Founder’s Day is a day that honors the birthday of Cabrini’s founder, Sister Ursula Infante, MSC.
“She was known to possess an omnipresence,” Sr. Arlene Primus, MSC, said.
Each year, the college chooses a theme that exemplifies the omnipresence and visionary leadership of Sister Ursula and the devoted service of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. This year’s speaker, invited by Dr. John Burke, was Dr. Richard W. Miller.
Miller, associate professor of systemic theology and director of the master’s in theology program at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, has been published in the Heythrop Journal, New Blackfriars, and the Journal for Peace & Justice Studies. He has contributed and edited seven books, including “God, Creation, and Climate Change: A Catholic Response to the Environmental Crisis,” winner of the 2011 Catholic Press Association of the U.S. and Canada book award in the faith and science category.
Miller’s keynote presentation, “The Unfolding Climate Change Tragedy and the Mission of Catholic Universities,” focused on the history of climate change, as well as what the future holds if it continues on its current path.
Glaciers are melting, snow cover is declining, temperatures over land are on the rise, and the surface temperature of the sea is rising. 90 percent of warming is going into the oceans.
“When you think of climate change, think of your body… think of how it is when you have a fever,” Miller said.
What are the forecasted impacts of climate change on our present path? How will this impact the youth of America?
By the time college students have children that are in their 40’s, the coral reefs will be destroyed.
By 2050, the global water crisis will connect to the global food crisis, making it harder to produce crops and food that humans need to survive.
“Safety is really going to be a concern for generations to come. Animals are going to go extinct and certain foods like rice will be unavailable,” sophomore attendee, Emma Shields, said. “Humans in general are selfish and do not take into consideration what will be affected and for how long.”
50 to 70 percent of California’s forests will go up in flames, and the height of the sea will increase by about a foot.
“What I’m doing here is not just to scare the hell out of you, it might, but we need to realize that we have a responsibility to be in touch with reality,” Miller said.
Junior Jasmine Rivera felt that Miller’s words opened her eyes to the issue of climate change.
“I had no idea how much of an issue this could be until now,” Rivera said. “I think it’s important that we do something about this now, because of how much of an issue this can be over time. People don’t realize it now because changes are happening slowly.”
“You have to talk to people, you have to encourage others to help. When you walk away from this issue, you steal another person’s hope,” Miller said. “People don’t realize that what you do has a lot of impact on everyone else around you.”
