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Pope Leo XIV on Monday urged countries united nations Climate talks are being called on to take “concrete action” to stop climate change threatening the planet, they are being told that humans are failing to respond to global warming and that God’s creation is “screaming from floods, droughts, storms and relentless heat.”
In a video message played for religious leaders gathered in Belém, Leo said countries had made progress, “but not enough.”
“One in three people live in extremely vulnerable situations because of these climate changes,” Leo said. “For them, climate change is not a distant threat, and to ignore these people is to deny our shared humanity.”
His message came as the talks moved into their second week, with high-level ministers from governments around the world arriving on the edge of the Brazilian Amazon to join the talks. Monday was dominated by speeches, with leaders from several Global South countries giving emotional testimony on the devastating costs of recent extreme weather and natural disasters.
Weaker nations have pressed for greater ambition in these negotiations as world leaders begin to accept that the Earth will almost certainly exceed the expected limit of 1.5 °C (2.7 °F) warming since pre-industrial times. This was the goal set in the historic talks of 2015. Paris agreement.
Scientists say that in addition to deadly heat, a warmer climate is causing more frequent and deadly extreme weather such as floods, droughts, violent rains and more powerful storms.
Leo said there is still time to stay within the scope of the Paris Agreement, but not much.
He said, “As stewards of God’s creation, we are called to act swiftly with faith and providence to safeguard the gift he has entrusted to us.” And he added: “But we must be honest: it is not the agreement that is failing, we are failing in our response. What is failing is the political will of some people.”
Leo made history this year by becoming the first American Pope and has adopted Pope Francis’ environmental legacy, including his rejection of climate skepticism.
The US, the world’s second largest polluter, is not participating in the conference. us President donald trump Called climate change “the biggest fraud the world has ever seen” during a speech to the United Nations General Assembly in September.
UN climate chief Simon Still said Leo’s words “challenge us to choose hope and action.”
LEO “reminds us that the Paris Agreement is delivering progress and remains our strongest tool – but we must work together for more, and bold climate action is an investment in stronger and fairer economies and a more stable world,” Still said.
David Gibson, director of the Center on Religion and Culture at Fordham University in New York, said Leo is becoming the world’s most prominent moral leader against climate change.
“This message positions LEO as a voice for the rest of the world, especially the Southern Hemisphere, where climate change is wreaking havoc on vulnerable people in Asia, Africa and Latin America,” Gibson said.
And he said it shows that Leo, who spent decades working as a missionary in Peru and is a naturalized Peruvian citizen, “has a Latin American heart and voice.”
The Laudato Si movement, a Catholic climate movement that takes its name from a 2015 encyclical in which Pope Francis called for climate action, called Leo’s message “a profound moral intervention.”
“He reminds the world that creation is screaming and vulnerable communities cannot be pushed aside. His voice cuts through the conversation noise and calls leaders back to what really matters: our shared humanity and urgent duty to act with courage, compassion and justice,” said Lorna Gould, the group’s executive director.
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The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from several private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropy, a list of supporters, and funded coverage areas on AP.org.
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This story was produced as part of the 2025 Climate Change Media Partnership, a journalism fellowship hosted by Internews’ Earth Journalism Network and the Stanley Center for Peace and Security.