The Vatican Goes Green

The Pope may wear fancy red shoes (rumor has it they're Prada), but it turns out he lives green. (Makes sense; together they're the colors of Christmas.)

Catholic News Service reports that Mark Hopkins, the director of the United Nations Foundation's energy policy program, has been favorably impressed with the substantial progress the Vatican has been making in improving its carbon footprint. The U.S. Embassy to the Vatican invited Hopkins to speak to journalists about his experience in the field of energy efficiency.

At the rate the Vatican's going, Hopkins said, it may well become the first carbon-neutral sovereignty in the world. A major plan to construct a solar farm on some of its property near Rome would speed it toward a status as the greenest country on earth. There is already a solar-power generator perched atop the Paul VI audience hall, producing around 300,000 kilowatt-hours of energy annually.

Carbon-neutrality is a no-brainer for the Vatican. Climate change, after all, can be seen as a right-to-life issue. And we all know how the Pope feels about that.

But my question is: How many miles per gallon does the Pope-Mobile get?