Energetic communities and the future

Rome (Italy). On 25 March 2023, in the Aula Magna «John Paul II» of the Pontifical Faculty of Educational Sciences «Auxilium» in Rome, the 3^rd and last appointment of the ecological training project “Guardians of the Garden”,  is held, dedicated to theme of “energetic sustainability”, to build renewable energy communities.

The meeting, promoted by the Faculty’s Laudato Si’ Circle in collaboration with the Terra e Missione and Greenaccord Associations, will open with a greeting from Card. Matteo Zuppi, president of the Italian Episcopal Conference, followed by reports from: Gabriella Chiellino, CDA Iuav University of Venice, CO-Founder and Chief Executive Officer IMQ e Ambiente; Giuseppe Morelli, Animator of the Circolo Laudato Si’ in the Woods of Rome; Milvo Angelo Ferrara, changemaker; and Pietro Lorenzo Maggioni, theologian and founding member of Rete Ambiente Lombardia.

“The Renewable Energy Communities are called that – explains Dr. Chiellino – because they should lead us to consider our co-citizenship as an expression of a pact of mutual commitment towards each other in energy consumption”. If on the one hand, therefore, “they represent a concrete way of producing and consuming with respect for the environment, fueling that social cohesion and universal solidarity”, on the other hand it is a great challenge “not only for the production and self-consumption of electricity, but also for the realization of pacts between citizens who will have to know how to share rules of good living”.

Two active citizens in the Roman district of Selva Candida, where the Auxilium Faculty is located, will speak of concrete communities to be re-woven within territories that are fraying. For Giuseppe Morelli “the challenge of the energy transition leads to assuming greater responsibilities in communion among all the subjects – citizens and realities – who operate, work and live in the area”, since, according to Milvo Angelo Ferrara, “each of us can hold a piece of human capital, precisely because renewable energies – as opposed to fossil ones – are a widespread, distributed and not concentrated good.”

For this, explains Pietro Lorenzo Maggioni, “it is necessary to have the contractual strength to direct the market towards sustainable sources without any more delays and hesitations, in order to minimize our political and economic dependence on the various oligarchies of fossil fuels.” With the aim of ‘building communities’, therefore “the churches can become a reference point in the context of their respective villages and city districts towards an effective transition, as well as play an essential driving role in the direction of a new development model.” This is an opportunity to be seized and an option that can no longer be postponed, to put a new model of community and participatory democracy back at the center.

The interdisciplinary path in which this event takes place has the objective of deepening some themes related to ecology, favoring a change of mentality and providing the tools to educate the younger generations to respect, care for creation, and adopt the concept of integral ecology. The previous meetings, which had trees as their theme (5 November 2022) and the sea (18 February 2023) as a resource, can be reviewed on the YouTube Channel of the «Auxilium» Faculty.

The “Guardians of the Garden” ecological training project is carried out with the patronage of the Department of Social Policies and Health of Rome Capital, and with the collaboration of the “My friend tree” Association; of the «Greenaccord» non-profit association; of the Canção Nova Community; and the «Futuro Ponderano» Committee.

Each meeting is offered as a Continuing Professional Training Course of the Order of Journalists with the acquisition of 4 credits.

Source: pfse-auxilium.org