AI’s Sustainability and Climate Challenges: A Catholic Response

STEWARDS OF OUR EARTH

All of God’s Creation

Social Justice Committee, Holy Cross Parish, Mt. Airy, August 31, 2025

“Artificial Intelligence (AI) is everywhere, and though AI presents us with exciting new opportunities and benefits, it also presents serious challenges and risks to our common home, human dignity, and the totality of the human experience” (Catholic Climate Covenant Webinar 2/19/25).

Antiqua et Nova (Ancient and New) is a doctrinal note on the Relationship Between Artificial Intelligence and Human Intelligence co-issued by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Dicastery for Culture and Education on 25 January 2025. It calls for a deep ethical commitment to fairness, transparency, and responsibility. The Vatican warns against reducing people to data points or allowing algorithms to dictate human worth. Instead, it insists that AI must be designed with human dignity at its core.

The responsibility for managing [the good of every person] wisely pertains to every level of society, guided by…principles of Catholic Social Teaching (§42). This includes Stewardship of Creation, Human Dignity, Dignity of Work, and Option for the Poor and Marginalized.

Unfortunately, current AI models and the hardware required to support them consume vast amounts of energy and water, significantly contributing to CO2 emissions and straining resources (§96). A single large data center can consume as much electric power as a small city.

Antiqua et Nova says, The concentration of the power over mainstream AI applications in the hands of a few powerful companies raises significant ethical concerns (§53). “AI’s implementation prioritizes technological expansion and harms vulnerable and marginalized communities in the process. As a result, AI companies violate the option for poor and marginalized.” ( Céire Kealty, PhD, Critiquing AI From A Catholic Perspective, Catholic Climate Covenant Webinar 2/19/25) 

Further, Human work must not only be at the service of profit but “at the service of the whole human person” (§69). AI must never reduce workers to mere “cogs in a machine” (§70). “Yet, by using exploited, subcontracted labor in AI training, AI systems are undermining human dignity by perpetuating undignified working conditions” (Céire Kealty).

“As a tool, AI can be programmed or employed in ways that serve the human and common good, or in ways that detract from the authentic and common good…. The responsibility for the ethical creation and implementation of AI systems falls on us humans, whether developers or end users, since AI systems are not capable of moral judgment themselves (§39). AI can be used to assist human decision-making, but only humans can actually make decisions (§43–48). Hence, ‘the regulatory frameworks should ensure that all legal entities remain accountable for the use of AI and all its consequences, with appropriate safeguards for transparency, privacy, and accountability’ (§46)….

The vast expanse of the world’s knowledge is now accessible in ways that would have filled past generations with awe. However, to ensure that advancements in knowledge do not become humanly or spiritually barren, one must go beyond the mere accumulation of data and strive to achieve true wisdom(§113).” (Dr. Richard DeClue, Antiqua et Nova on Human and Artificial Intelligence, 2/13/25)

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