Integrating the riches of our Catholic faith with a call to care for creation

We are absolutely thrilled to be in the process of adding our 3500 sq ft building addition; The Wayne and Donna Neu Building. This addition allows us more spaces to meet our current demand while enabling us to grow well into the future. This addition includes the Holy Family Chapel, Frassati Breakout Room, Welcome Area, Outdoor Viewing Deck and full handicap accessibility. Within this new addition, we wanted to capture our unique mission of integrating the richness of our Catholic faith with stained glass windows, statuary and religious artwork but couple it with sustainability features including renewable energy, water conservation, locally sourced products and reclaimed materials. We want to thank the many people who are making this addition and our mission possible. If you would like to give, please visit us HERE.

Renewable Energy at the CEC

We are showcasing two major sources of renewable energy in our new addition, Geothermal Heating/Cooling and Solar Energy. These two energy sources eliminate the use of fossil fuels for the heating of the building and provide the electricity to run our lighting and the geothermal heat pumps to heat/cool our buildings.

Geothermal Heating and Cooling

Geothermal energy utilizes the constant temperature below ground to either bring heat into the building or dissipate heat from the building. We will have 18 geothermal tubing loops running 20 feet underground for a length of 250 feet; totaling 9000 feet of tubing! The special liquid inside the loops (Ethanol based) does the heat transfer that is required for maintaining the temperature desired in the building. The actually ductwork and control panel in the building is the same as you would have with traditional HVAC. We are utilizing this amazing renewable energy in our 3500 sq ft addition but also converting our existing 4000 sq ft building to it as well!!

Solar Energy

Solar technology has been around for decades and it has become more efficient and cost effective as time has gone on. We are installing a USA made 13.8 kW solar panel array on our new addition to power the electric needs of both the existing building and its new addition. This rooftop solar will produce roughly 85% of our electricity needs which will be coupled with energy efficient lighting and appliances. The energy produced on our roof in one year could power an electric car to drive from New York City to LA and back 10.5 times!!

Water Conservation

We are so very blessed to be in a “water-rich” state but that doesn’t give us the license to neglect our precious water resources. We wanted our new addition to showcase water conservation in a way that will empower visitors to change the way they think about and use water.

Green Roof

Our Green Roof utilizes modules that consist of a drought tolerant sedum that can absorb 70% of rainfall- draining 1700 sq ft of our roof. This roof also adds insulation value to that part of the building. Rainwater that is not intercepted by the green roof will make its way to our Pollinator Rain Garden that will capture the remainder of the rainfall.

Grey Water System

The term “grey water” refers to any water that has been used in a sink, laundry machine or shower. Although this water contains soaps and some dirt, a grey water system is designed to filter out these particulates and re-utilize this water for another, non-drinking use . In our grey water system, we will capture grey water from the bathroom sinks, bubbler and laundry machine to used in an irrigation system in our native pollinator rain garden. This ensures we are using water to its greatest potential before facilitating its return back into the groundwater. Another way we are maximizing water conservation is with dual-flush toilets (you can flush less for #1 and more for #2) and a waterless urinal.

Sustainable Materials

We are committed to using materials in our building addition that are made from recycled materials, reduce or eliminate indoor pollutants like VOC’s (volatile organic compounds), are sourced responsibly and are reclaimed/reused.

FSC Certified Lumber

Not all forestry practices are done responsibly or sustainably. FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) is a designation that ensures that the lumber you are purchasing is grown and harvested using the most environmentally sustainable forestry practices like selective logging vs clear cutting. This certification would be akin to the organic designation for food. It also ensures that the forestry practices used maintain high water quality, like reducing erosion, in adjacent waterways to where the forestry is taking place.

Wood Alternatives

We are able to highlight several types of products that are made from wood alternatives. Our reception desk countertop is made from pressed sunflower seeds. The front paneling on the reception desk is made from “hemp wood” which is a pressed hemp fiber product. The flooring in The Holy Family Chapel and Frassati Breakout Room is made from cork. Cork flooring is made from the bark of the cork tree and our flooring is made from both renewable and recycled cork bark. After the life of the flooring, 30+ years, the cork can be recycled or composted, as it 100% biodegradable.

Recycled Content Flooring

The carpeting in both our new addition and existing building is made from high recycled plastic content. To ensure indoor air quality, the flooring is also low VOC and the adhesives used to affix the carpet tiles are zero VOC compliant.

St Kateri Classroom flooring contains recycled plastic content equal to 5800 plastic water bottles!

Local Reclaimed Lumber

Our live edge benches inside the new addition vestibule and welcome area are made from dead ash trees cut from the CEC property and locally milled. The outdoor front entrance cross is made from a spruce tree that had to be removed for the new addition. Our gallery art wall in the corridor between the welcome area and Holy Family Chapel is made from trees removed from the Trinity Woods campus of the School Sisters of Notre Dame. This was during their building project for our partner Milwaukee Catholic Home.

Repurposed

The majority of all our furniture, shelving, and kitchen appliances in both the existing building and new addition have been reused and repurposed from various schools, parishes and other organizations. This also includes the many religious items and statuary that will be in our new Holy Family Chapel (we will showcase these in a future blog post).

Going Native

Beyond the 2.5 acres of our property that we planted in pollinator prairie, the landscape plantings around the new addition will also serve as both beautiful landscaping and a natural ecosystem function. The pollinator rain garden in front of the new building will be able to handle rainwater that is not captured by the green roof while also receiving irrigation water from our grey water system. Native prairie plantings and shrubs will surround our building, creating habitat and food sources for our many native birds, bugs and butterflies.

If you want to learn more about this exciting building project, you can read more or donate at https://catholicecologycenter.org/cec-building-addition

Captain’s Chocolate & the Catholic Ecology Center

We want to highlight a local business just down the road from the Catholic Ecology Center called Captain’s Chocolate. We are excited about our new partnership that will allow us to educate people on sustainability, organic food and supporting small farms through fair trade practices. See our Events Page for our Chocolate Workshops for adults and kids.

Captain’s Chocolate began with an Alaskan Salmon Fisherman who wanted a warm winter. That led him eventually to building a house in the Costa Rican mountains where he met Joel Sanchez, a Louisiana missionary turned Costa Rican beef farmer. Being the kind of guys they are, they had both become involved with local life and the indigenous tribes. Seeing that the tribes were having a difficult time financially spurred Captain Mark to come up with the idea of starting a chocolate factory. 

Wanting to have consistent high quality, Mark and Joel decided to build their own processing plant. Captain Mark purchased a piece of land containing an old restaurant foundation where he built the processing plant and an apartment for our employee, Robeen, and his family. When the processing plant was built, the real work began. Joel and Mark worked long grueling hours building all of the necessary equipment, such as drying sheds, fermenting boxes, and our own bean roaster. 

During this time, Mark’s sister Sarah heard about the chocolate project and joined the team. Sarah started work on the current chocolate production facility and retail store in the heart of the Wisconsin countryside. Using the nibs from Costa Rica Sarah creates the chocolate and handles the retail and wholesale selling side of Captain’s. Between the production facility in Costa Rica and the one in Wisconsin, our chocolate is created entirely by Captain’s Chocolate. This is truly single source, bean to bar, and farm to table chocolate.

One of the goals of Captain’s Cocoa is to give the Indigenous an opportunity to move out of the poverty level into a higher social class where they can give themselves and their children a better future.  Talking to them quickly reveals they want to give their families a steadier and reliable income.  One of the ways we accomplish this is buying their beans at over double the current price they are paid from the other corporation.  This encourages the Indigenous to really work their plantations to get the maximum production so they will be able to earn more money.  Respecting and treating others fairly creates a great working environment.  This business has allowed us to build strong relationships with the Indigenous and has allowed us to get to know and experience a different culture while building relationships.

What is the difference between Cacao and Cocoa?

Cocoa beans and cacao beans are often used interchangeably, but there is a subtle difference between the two. Cacao is the purest form of chocolate and refers to the plant species, Theobroma cacao, from which chocolate is made. Cocoa, on the other hand, is the term used for the processed and roasted beans used in the production of chocolate and other cocoa-based products.

What are Cacao Beans?

Cacao beans are harvested from the Theobroma cacao tree, which grows in tropical regions, primarily in South America, Africa, and Asia. The beans are removed from the pod and fermented, a process that develops the chocolate flavor and reduces bitterness. After fermentation, the beans are dried and then roasted to further develop the flavor. These beans are then referred to as cocoa beans.

What are Cocoa Beans?

Cocoa beans are processed to produce chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, and cocoa powder. The beans are roasted at a higher temperature than cacao beans, and the outer shell is removed, leaving behind the nib, which is ground into a paste to make chocolate. Cocoa powder is produced by pressing the chocolate liquor to remove most of the cocoa butter, resulting in a fine powder.

Cacao is Pre-Process; Cocoa is Post-Process

In summary, cacao refers to the plant species, while cocoa refers to the roasted and processed beans. Both cacao and cocoa are essential ingredients in the production of chocolate and other cocoa-based products, and their unique flavors and properties are highly valued by chocolatiers and consumers alike.

Visit their website to purchase some amazing organic chocolate; Captains Chocolate

Join us for one of our Chocolate Workshops https://catholicecologycenter.org/events