By Inés San Martín

ROME – When it comes to protecting God’s creation, leaders of Catholic movements active in the COP26 Glasgow summit say it’s time for a little less conversation and a lot of more action.

“Pope Francis is urging world leaders to take the boldest possible actions to heal and protect our planet,” said Eric LeCompte, Executive Director Jubilee USA Network. His focus on the environment and protecting our common home, is galvanizing world leaders to do more.

He believes that for too long, humanity has failed to do enough and it’s running out of time.

“COP 26 needs to be about implementation and understanding that many decisions on climate are being made a part of pandemic response by the G20 and the International Monetary Fund,” he told Crux. “Those decisions need to be influenced by COP 26.

LeCompte said one issue that needs to be addressed is supporting developing countries in transitioning to green economies and ensuring they receive the aid promised to deal with increased climate driven natural disasters and challenges.

“This is one of the main themes of Laudato Si’,” said LeCompte, referring to Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical on the care of creation. “The industrialization of the North occurred by taking natural resources from the South. The consumption of these resources by developed countries fueled a climate crisis that created climate driven challenges and food shortages for developing countries. In this sense the Church expresses that because of this, the North owes a debt to the South.”

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