SECAM President among Catholic Leaders Urging “profound ecological conversion” in Global South Ahead of COP30

Nairobi, 12 September, 2025 / 11:30 PM

The leaders of the Catholic Episcopal Conferences and Councils of Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean are calling for “a profound ecological conversion” in the Global South ahead of the 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) scheduled for November 10-21 in Brazil.

In their Wednesday, September 10 statement, the Catholic Church leaders who include Fridolin Cardinal Ambongo Besungu of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrão of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC), and Cardinal Jaime Spengler of the Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano (CELAM) say the people of God they represent “will not remain silent” amid ecological injustices, especially in the Global South.

The term “Global South” refers to a group of countries, particularly those in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and parts of Asia and Oceania. These countries are characterized by shared historical experiences, often linked to colonialism, and a focus on socio-economic and political development.

While this group of countries is not formally organized, the term “Global South” does represent a collective identity of nations that seek to gain greater influence in global affairs; they challenge Western-led institutions and narratives, often through strategic alliances.

In their September 10 statement, the three representatives of Catholic Church leaders refer to Pope Francis’ Encyclical Letter on care for our common home, Laudato Si’ and Pope Leo XIV’s call to live an integral ecology with justice, saying, “we call for a profound ecological conversion.”

The Catholic Church leaders say that they find it regrettable that 10 years after the publication of Laudato Si’ and the signing of the Paris Agreement, world leaders have not responded with the necessary urgency to climate injustices.

“The Church will not remain silent. We will continue to raise our voice alongside science, civil society, and the most vulnerable, with truth, courage, and consistency, until justice is done,” they say.

In their joint statement, the three Catholic Presidents say that the climate crisis “is an urgent reality, with global warming reaching 1.55°C in 2024. It is not just a technical problem: it is an existential issue of justice, dignity, and care for our common home.”

“The science is clear: we must limit global warming to 1.5°C to avoid catastrophic effects. We must never abandon this goal. It is the Global South and future generations who are already suffering the consequences,” they say.

The Church leaders underline the need to reject “false solutions such as ‘green’ capitalism, technocracy, the commodification of nature and extractivism,” which they say perpetuate exploitation and injustice.

In the statement addressed to the UN Secretary-General, Mr. António Guterres, the President of the 80th UN General Assembly, Ms. Annalena Baerbock, and the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Mr. Simon Stiell, the leaders demand equity, justice, and protection in addressing the climate crisis.

On equity, the Church leaders urge rich nations to pay their ecological debt with fair climate finance without further indebting the Global South, to recover losses and damages in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Oceania.

For justice, they urge the UN to promote economic degrowth and phase out fossil fuels, ending “all new fossil fuel infrastructure and properly taxing those who have profited from them, ushering in a new era of governance that includes and prioritizes the communities most affected by the climate crises, the loss of biodiversity and climate migration as a challenge of justice and human rights.”

They also urge the UN to “Listen to and defend Indigenous peoples, ecosystems and impoverished communities, recognizing the greater vulnerability of women, girls, the marginalized, as well as future generations and of the highly impacted regions such as the Pacific Islands in Oceania.”

In their statement, the Catholic Church leaders urge the decision makers to “fulfil the Paris Agreement, commit to new and enhanced NDCs in line with the 1.5-degree threshold and climate justice, and implement these NDCs commensurate with the urgency of the climate crisis.”

Decision makers should also ensure sufficient climate finance, they say, explaining that this will enable the recovery of losses and damages and build resilient communities – without further indebting the Global South.

“Use COP30 as a moment to agree on a joint multilateral mechanism that aims to accelerate and support people’s and communities’ transitions by facilitating access to financing and technical assistance for just transitions that foster people-centered development, in accordance with the preservation of biodiversity, and by taking measures to remove barriers to transition,” they say.

The three presidents also want the decision makers to transform the economic system towards “a restorative model that prioritizes solidarity, people’s well-being, and ensures conditions for sustainable life on the planet.”

Encouraging the need to prioritize the common good above profit, the church leaders urge the decision makers to promote climate and nature policies anchored in human rights and the rights of nature.

Sharing and implementation of ethical, decentralized, and appropriate technological solutions and achieving zero deforestation by 2030, restoring vital aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, and ending loss of biodiversity are also among the proposals to the decision makers to address the climate crisis.

“We invite you and all decision makers and people of goodwill to join forces to strengthen democratic multilateral processes, such as the Paris Agreement, and rebuild trust in cooperation and dialogue, uniting us as humanity, North and South, for the well-being of the planet,” they say.

The Church leaders express confidence that genuine dialogue, grounded in truth and justice, can guide the international community towards the profound transformations required.

“The urgency of this moment leaves no room for delay, compromise, or half-measures: may our common efforts at COP30 and beyond foster real hope, safeguard creation, and ensure a dignified future for the generations to come,” they say.