Time: 3:30pm
Date: Monday, February 6
Location: Boardroom, St. Joseph's College
Presenter: Dr. Reinhard Vehring
Pope Francis' encyclical letter Laudato si' has received much attention in the context of the climate change debate. However, its scope goes much beyond global warming. Anthropogenic climate change is matter-of-factly described as one of several global environmental and social threats and is treated as just one symptom of many that reveal our unhealthy relationship with Creation, which in turn leads to the deterioration of both natural and human environments. In this document, Pope Francis is concerned with identifying the root causes for these troubling developments.
This presentation will reflect on Pope Francis' critique of the 'technocratic paradigm' from the perspective of engineering. Does scientific and technological progress hold the keys to solving environmental problems and global inequality? Do we control technology or does it control us? Are our current technological and economic power structures compatible with Christian ethics and human dignity?
Dr. Reinhard Vehring is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and George Ford Chair in Materials Engineering at the University of Alberta
Everyone is welcome; an RSVP is requested but not required to Sara at: sara.mckeon@ualberta.ca
Light refreshments will be available.
Stay tuned for our upcoming academic lecture series presentations!