Maryknoll representatives attended the United Nations Climate Change Conference in November in the Brazilian city of Belém in the Amazon rainforest — land of torrential rains, thunderous rivers and communities whose calls for climate justice echoed far beyond the official venue. This was the 30th annual “COP,” or Conference of the Parties, which is the U.N.’s primary forum for addressing the climate crisis.
More than 56,000 official delegates from 193 countries attended, with significant participation from world leaders, scientists, businesses, faith groups and Indigenous peoples. Ten years after countries adopted the Paris Agreement — a global pact to limit catastrophic warming — many arrived in Belém hoping this COP would chart a clear path forward.
By formal measures, the summit achieved limited results. A small group of countries blocked the words “fossil fuels” — the primary source of heat-trapping emissions — from any of the final texts and could not agree to a proposed roadmap for a just and fair phaseout of coal, oil and gas.
However, the gathering affirmed the importance of multilateralism in addressing climate change, and, despite the U.S. government’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, all other nations remained actively engaged. The United States was represented through civil society, faith-based actors and subnational elected leaders, underscoring the rising influence of grassroots and local action.
Outside the venue, the energy was electric. More than 70,000 joined the People’s Summit and the People’s Climate March. Nature itself punctuated the urgency: torrential downpours interrupted meetings, and a fire at the venue only hours before the final negotiations symbolized the world on fire — a stark, unforgettable reminder of the stakes of inaction.
Catholic organizations and leaders, including eight cardinals and 40 bishops, played an unprecedented and unifying role. The Global South bishops’ statement, “A Call for Climate Justice and the Common Home,” called for an immediate halt to fossil fuel exploration, describing the climate crisis as “an urgent reality” and “an existential issue of justice, dignity and care for our common home.” Their message became the moral anchor of the conference and was the focus of a side event sponsored by Maryknoll featuring speakers from the African, Asian, and Latin American bishops conferences.
Pope Leo sent a video message to the bishops and cardinals at the conference, encouraging their efforts and reminding world leaders that “we are guardians of creation, not rivals for its spoils,” reinforcing the urgent need for climate action grounded in justice.
As the final negotiations closed without addressing fossil fuels, hope and momentum emerged in the form of a new coalition of 20 countries willing to join the First International Convention on the Just Transition Away from Fossil Fuels to be hosted by Colombia in April, signaling that meaningful climate action can — and must — happen at multiple levels.
Featured image: Maryknoll Father Patrick Okok and Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns staff member Lisa Sullivan attended the United Nations Climate Change Conference, known as COP30, in Belém, Brazil, the gateway to the Amazon River, last November. (Courtesy of Lisa Sullivan/Brazil)
FAITH IN ACTION:
• Read about the joint statement by bishops from the Global South titled A Call for Climate Justice and the Common Home. https://bit.ly/GlobalSouthBishops
• Watch Pope Leo’s video message to bishops and cardinals at COP30. https://bit.ly/PopeLeoCOP30
• Tell your state leaders to take action on fossil fuels. https://bit.ly/StateLevelAction
The Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, based in Washington, D.C., is a resource for Maryknoll on matters of peace, social justice and integrity of creation, and brings Maryknoll’s mission experience into U.S. policy discussions. Phone (202) 832-1780, visit www.maryknollogc.org or email ogc@maryknollogc.org.
