By Alick Ponje in Belem, Brazil:
Pope Leo XIV spoke on Monday in a video message to leaders of the Churches of the Global South in Belém at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30), calling for faith and science to work together in addressing climate change.
He described the Amazon, in whose region Belem is located at the mouth of the Amazon River, as a living symbol of creation with an urgent need for care.
“I greet the particular Churches of the Global South gathered at the Amazonian Museum of Belém, joining the prophetic voice of my brother Cardinals who have taken part in COP30,” Pope Leo XIV said.
He told the audience that hope and action must be chosen over despair and that progress achieved so far is not enough.
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Determination must be renewed through concrete actions as well as words, the Pope said.
He weighed in on the effects of climate change, saying floods, droughts, storms and relentless heat are already affecting one in three people who live in “great vulnerability”.
Ignoring their plight, he said, is denying shared humanity.
The Pope also warned that the window to keep global temperature rise below 1.5°C is closing and called on humanity to act swiftly “with faith and prophecy” to protect creation.
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He said the Paris Agreement, a global treaty aimed at addressing climate change, has delivered real progress but cautioned that failure lies not in the agreement itself but in political will.
“We walk alongside scientists, leaders and pastors of every nation and creed. We are guardians of creation, not rivals for its spoils.
“Let us send a clear global signal together: nations standing in unwavering solidarity behind the Paris Agreement and behind climate cooperation,” Pope Leo XIV said.
UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell welcomed the Pope’s address, saying it challenges the world to keep choosing hope and action.
“[That is] honouring our shared humanity and standing with communities all around the world already crying out in floods, droughts, storms and relentless heat,” Stiell said.
He added that Pope Leo XIV’s message is a reminder that the Paris Agreement is delivering progress and remains the strongest tool for climate action.
“But we must work together for more and that bolder climate action is an investment in stronger and fairer economies and more stable world,” Stiell said.
Pope Leo XIV has consistently linked environmental stewardship with spiritual responsibility, framing the climate crisis as both a moral and ecological challenge.
In October 2025, during a conference marking the 10th anniversary of the second encyclical of Pope Francis, subtitled ‘on care for our common home’, he called for a shift “from collecting data to caring, from environmental discourse to an ecological conversion” that transforms personal lifestyles.
Pope Leo XIV reiterated that true ecological conversion requires a change of heart, connecting care for creation with spiritual transformation.
Earlier in July 2025, he introduced the first ‘Mass for the Care of Creation’, a new liturgical formulary approved by the Vatican that integrated ecological responsibility into Christian worship and prayer.
During the Mass, he prayed specifically for those “who have yet to recognise the urgency of climate change” and urged a conversion of hearts towards the protection of the planet.
This story was produced as part of the 2025 Climate Change Media Partnership, a journalism fellowship organised by Internews’ Earth Journalism Network and the Stanley Center for Peace and Security.
