Caring for and cultivating the world. Caring for and cultivating the world involves: a joyful appreciation for the God-given beauty and wonder of nature; protection and preservation of the environment, which would be the stewardship of ecological concern; respect for human life but doing all that can be done to enhance this gift and make life flourish; and developing the world through human effort. As stewards of God's gifts, we are not passive beneficiaries. We cooperate with God by continuing the redemptive work of Jesus in the mission of the Church.
Integral ecology: Ecology is the study of the relationships between living things and the environment in which they live and grow. Ecology considers the conditions required for life and acknowledges that everything is interconnected, one organism affecting the next. The environment refers to the relationship between nature and the community of creatures that lives in it. Humans are in nature and nature is in humans. An integral ecology, as Pope Francis describes, seeks comprehensive solutions from a humanism capable of bringing together different fields of knowledge, that considers the interactions with nature and social systems; an integral approach to combating poverty, restoring dignity to the excluded and at the same time protecting nature. (139) Laudato Si