Professor Lucia Silecchia of Catholic Law has contributed a thought-provoking article to the Fordham Environmental Law Review titled "Laudato Si’ and the Limits of Law: Reflections on the Vocation to Protect Integral Ecology." The piece, written to commemorate the tenth anniversary of Laudato Si', explores the ambitious vision of integral ecology articulated by Pope Francis in this landmark encyclical. Silecchia examines the encyclical’s dual perspective on law—both hopeful about its potential and critical of its limitations. She highlights how the encyclical’s expansive approach to caring for “our common home” extends far beyond traditional environmental concerns to include human relationships, poverty, morality, solidarity, and intergenerational responsibility. This breadth, while inspiring, presents challenges for the legal system, which is often better suited to addressing narrowly defined issues rather than the sweeping, interconnected concerns of integral ecology.

Silecchia’s article underscores the enduring legacy of Pope Francis’s call for integral ecology, which demands a holistic approach to protecting the planet and its people. In response to the limitations of law, she proposes a framework inspired by the legal concept of a “duty to protect,” reimagined as a “vocation to protect.” This perspective encourages lawyers to adopt a proactive and ethical role in safeguarding the interconnected goods that define integral ecology. The article concludes with a practical checklist for evaluating decisions that impact our common home and a call for the legal profession to embrace this challenge with humility and hope.