Catholic church calls on UN climate change conference to set goals

The Catholic church has called on UN negotiators convening in Paris at the end of November to agree a goal for “complete decarbonisation” by 2050, and set a legally binding agreement to limit global temperature increase.

 

The statement, which was announced by the Vatican on Monday and signed by Catholic officials from five continents, represents a sweeping attempt to link climate change to social justice and the exclusion of poor people who stand to lose the most from global warming.

 

The 10-point plan was delivered about five months after Pope Francis released his encyclical on the environment, which firmly established that the fight against global warming is a key imperative for the Vatican under the leadership of the Argentinian pope. Climate change was a significant focus of the pope’s recent trip to the US, where he spoke about the issue in front of the UN general assembly and the US Congress.

 

While in America, the pope said the environment itself – not just humanity – was deserving of rights. He has stated unequivocally that climate change is a result of human activity and the result of excessive reliance on fossil fuels.

 

Read More: Catholic church calls on UN climate change conference to set goals | World news | The Guardian