Africa Peace and Environment Summit: Catholic University VC Urges “sense of ecological citizenship, virtue”

Founded on the inaugural APES 1 realized in 2024, APES 2 has been organized by CUEA’s Centre for Social Justice and Ethics in partnership with Amani Communities Africa (ACA), Centre for Environmental Stewardship (CES), and the Mother Earth Network (MEN).

Scheduled to conclude on Thursday, September 4, the event has brought together leaders, policymakers, environmental experts, and civil society representatives from across the continent to address the critical nexus between peace and environmental sustainability in Africa

In his September 2 remarks, the VC of CUEA said that he finds it unfortunate that there is “an escalating human-to-human, human-to-animal, and natural conflict caused by the disruption of human symbiosis with their partners around the environment.” 

He decried the contributing factors to the conflict, citing global sea pollution, deforestation, and other forms of environmental degradation that pose grave threats to biodiversity, ecosystems, public health, and human well-being.

Due to the degradation, Fr. Mbugua went on to say, oceans are threatened by plastic pollution, agricultural runoff, and also oil spills, while deforestation from human activities like agriculture and urbanization causes habitat loss, releases carbon emissions, and disrupts ecosystems.

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“We are getting to attack our environment like the military does. We are having an air attack, we are also having a water attack, and we are also having a land and living organisms attack,” he said.

The Kenyan VC explained, “We know that millions of tons of plastic enter the oceans annually, and deforestation has led to the loss of approximately 30 percent of the world's forests, impacting the planet's ability to absorb carbon and support life.”

“Pollution profoundly harms human health and the climate by causing millions of deaths annually from diseases like heart disease, cancers, and respiratory illnesses, while also exacerbating climate change through the release of pollutants that intensify extreme weather events, food and water insecurity, and the spread of infectious diseases,” he said.

Fr. Mbugua further lamented that air, water, and soil attacked by human beings have led to contamination and introduced heavy metals, microplastics, and other toxins into the food chain. 

He also lamented climate change induced also by humans that has resulted in heat and extreme weather events, such as floods and wildfires, which he said directly impact mental health and destroy livelihoods.

Referring to Pope Francis’ Encyclical Letter on care for our common home, Laudato Si’, the CUEA VC underlined the need to connect environmental preservation to a deep spiritual and social conversion.

The May 2015 Papal document, he said, “reframes the ecological crisis not merely as a technical problem but as a moral one, rooted in human behaviour, economics, and even our changed culture.”

“The Encyclical calls for a profound change in lifestyle, policy, and spirituality to address the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor,” Fr. Mbugua said, adding that one of the striking ethical features in the document “is its focus on the intrinsic value and rights of non-human creatures and ecosystems.”

Another striking feature of Laudato Si’ ethical content is “how much it amplifies the notion of the common good,” the Kenyan Catholic Priest said, and emphasised,  “Everything, human and non-human, is connected.”

“The document says repeatedly that human moral failure in engagement with the natural world often occurs when this interconnectedness is forgotten, not seen, or ignored,” he said.

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Fr. Mbugua expressed the hope that the three-day summit will foster connectedness. He said, “We are meeting today to ensure that there is this connectedness, because I am very happy that all of you have a serious and major social impact, attitude, and knowledge impact on our communities, and they are going to respond favourably to our quest.”

“One kind of moral reasoning that comes in for special criticism in the Encyclical is an arid utilization associated with an economic and technological logic detached from the broader moral concerns concerning the universe, the world, the living, and every other feature that we have on the surface and above the world,” he said.

“May God bless you as you take up this responsibility to be managers and ambassadors of peace to the environment, to the people, and to our world today,” the VC of CUEA implored on September 1.

Silas Mwale Isenjia is a Kenyan journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communication from Moi University in Kenya. Silas has vast experience in the Media production industry. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.