Welcome to the Ecology, Faith and Justice Conference

February 20-21, 2025

  • Sessions will be held in the Warren Library Lassiter Rotunda, unless stated otherwise.

    • 8:00-9:00 AM
      Registration, Refreshments & Coffee

    • 9:00-10:15 AM

      • Conference Welcome

      • Climate Science 101: What God's Creation is Telling Us
        Rev. Dr. Jessica Moerman - President & CEO of the Evangelical Environmental Network

    • 10:15-10:45 AM
      Coffee Break

    • 10:45 AM-12:15 PM
      Is Church Unity Possible? Confronting Barriers on Environmental Action Knox Theological Seminary Paper Panel

      • Dr. Tim Sansbury - Professor of Philosophy and Theology, Knox Theological Seminary

      • Dr. Joel Satterly - Headmaster, Westminster Academy

      • Rev. Peter Bartuska - Pastor, Christ Community Church

      • Dan Read - Residence Life Area Coordinator, Palm Beach Atlantic University

    • 12:15-1:30 PM
      Lunch | Baxter Green Tent

    • 1:30-2:45 PM
      Between Rhetoric and Resilience: Observations of a Native Floridian Ecologist | Dr. Thomas Chesnes, Professor of Biology and Associate Dean for the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Palm Beach Atlantic University

    • 2:45-6:00 PM | Various Locations
      Ecological Explorations

      • Prior registration is required, along with a signed waiver.

      • Meet in the Lassiter Rotunda at 2:45 PM.

      Not going on an exploration? Visit the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary Tent on Rinker Green to meet some native Florida animals.

    • From 5:30 PM
      Dinner | Baxter Green Tent
      Full-day conference registrants can grab dinner from the Baxter Green Tent before the Ecology Fair.

    • 6:30-8:30 PM
      Ecology Fair and Panel Discussion with Plenary Speakers | Baxter Green Tent
      Special performance by PBA Dance

  • Sessions will be held in the Warren Library Lassiter Rotunda, unless stated otherwise.

    • 8:30-9:00 AM
      Refreshments & Coffee

    • 9:00-10:15 AM
      Thinking (and Acting) Theologically about Climate Change
      Dr. Norman Wirzba - Gilbert T Rowe Distinguished Professor of Theology and the Director of Research in the Office of Climate and Sustainability at Duke University

    • 10:15-10:45 AM
      Coffee Break

    • 10:45 AM-12:15 PM
      Paper Panel - Philosophical Interventions | Chaired by Dr. Austin Stevenson

      • On the Intrinsic Value of Nature | Michael Mohajer (PBA)

      • Openness to the Unexpected: an Intervention into Climate Research | Dan Read (PBA)

      • Ethical Implications of Emerging Technologies in Environmental Conservation | Lars R. Vadjina (University of Tübingen)

    • 12:15-1:30 PM
      Lunch | PBA Cafeteria

    • 1:30-3:00 PM
      Paper Panel - Collective Responses | Chaired by Dr. Jesse Grenz

      • God, His People, and the Land | Cari Cantrell (PBA)

      • Promoting Conversation and Action: Raising Awareness Within the American Protestant Church on the Human Impact on the Climate Crisis | Linnea Clay (PBA)

      • Using Our Inner Potential: Ethical Values and Consciousness for Innovative Climate Solutions | Dr. Silvia Schmalzl (University of Tübingen)

    • 3:00-3:30 PM
      Coffee Break

    • 3:30-4:45 PM
      Moving Forward: The Where, Who, and How of Caring for the Creation Dr. Thomas Chesnes | Dr. Ryan Gladwin | Dr. Paul Gould

Have questions for the speakers and panelists?

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Submit them on Vevox

Plenary Speakers

  • Dr. Thomas Chesnes is a Professor of Biology and Associate Dean for the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Palm Beach Atlantic University. A Florida native trained in systems ecology, he specializes in estuarine and field biology. Dr. Chesnes has studied wetlands, estuaries, salt marshes, and coastal systems across the western hemisphere, focusing on vertebrates, invertebrates, and plants. His research spans seagrass and invertebrate ecology, fisheries management, the invasive Burmese python in the Everglades, institutional sustainability and the intersection of science, faith, and culture. He has published extensively and received numerous awards for his contributions to research and teaching.

  • The Rev. Dr. Jessica Moerman is a climate and environmental scientist, pastor, educator, and advocate. She serves as the President and CEO of the Evangelical Environmental Network and is a Board Member of the National Association of Evangelicals. Jessica earned her Ph.D. in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences from Georgia Tech and has held research positions at Johns Hopkins University, the University of Michigan, and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, studying climate change throughout Earth’s history. Previously, she was a AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the U.S. Department of Energy. Jessica is passionate about guiding church communities toward solutions that protect our cities, neighborhoods, and future generations from climate change and pollution.

  • Norman Wirzba is the Gilbert T Rowe Distinguished Professor of Theology and the Director of Research in the Office of Climate and Sustainability at Duke University. He is the author of multiple books, most recently Love’s Braided Dance: Hope in a Time of Crisis, Agrarian Spirit: Cultivating Faith, Community, and the Land, and This Sacred Life: Humanity’s Place in a Wounded World. He loves to cook, bake, make things with wood, and play the guitar.

The conference is a joint effort between PBA’s Community Transformation Center, the School of Ministry and the Creation Care Project led by Dr. Paul Gould and Dr. Tom Chesnes, with support from Knox Theological Seminary.