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APPC Postdoctoral Fellow to Speak at Workshop on Pope’s Encyclical

APPC postdoctoral fellow Asheley Landrum.
APPC postdoctoral fellow Asheley Landrum.

Annenberg Public Policy Center postdoctoral fellow Asheley R. Landrum will be contributing to a workshop on the papal encyclical on climate change, to be held September 12-14 in Potsdam, Germany. The workshop, “A Letter From Rome: Laudato Si’ as a Catalyst for Societal Transformation?,” is convened under the auspices of the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, the Catholic University at Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, and the Federation of German Scientists.

The workshop aims to use Pope Francis’ encyclical letter Laudato Si’, published in the summer of 2015, and his proposed concept of an “integral ecology” that combines scientific, economic, social and cultural considerations, to discuss the accuracy, impact, and usefulness of this encyclical and other statements made by religious leaders. Speakers and attendees will include Church officials, theologians, natural and social scientists, economists, political scientists, and others.

Landrum will be giving a framing talk during the final session on the question: “To what extent can charismatic religious figures or statements offered by religious leaders catalyze societal transformation?” Landrum will present and discuss some of the research she and others at APPC have done on the influence and potential of the Pope’s encyclical.