With almost 1000 Laudato Si’ Animators, thirty Member Organizations and twenty Laudato Si’ Circles, Spain is now officially a Chapter of the Laudato Si’ Movement.
After two years of intense work and a fluid growth in different regions of the country, the branches that make up LSM in Spain were consolidated to form the Chapter. Antonio A. Garrido Salcedo, LSM Program Coordinator in Spain and now also Chapter Coordinator, explained the growth process, which began in early 2020 and grew exponentially.
In these years, networks have been systematically woven around Laudato Si’, integral ecology and care for creation. Dioceses, institutions and movements of different charisms began to address these issues and LSM became a channel to establish and forge links.
During Laudato Si’ Week 2022, the countless number of events organized by the Spanish and by organizations from different corners of the country stood out.
In February 2022, the process of creating the Chapter began, bringing together Member Organizations, Animators and Circle representatives, and steps for moving forward were laid out.
“The continuity of LSM is the main objective of the creation of the Chapter. There is now an established structure that invites us to continue working,” said Antonio Garrido.
Likewise, LSM seeks to be “a common meeting point,” since “there are many entities in Spain that are working on integral ecology and the care of creation that do not know each other. So the Chapter creates a space for them to get to know each other and for links and relationships to be born among them,” the coordinator mentioned.
Currently, the Chapter holds periodic meetings in each of the areas it works in, and they dream of holding a nationwide general assembly to continue growing and walking in communion.