Filipino environmental activist Joanna Sustento, who lost family members to super typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, is traveling to the Arctic to protest oil drilling in the region. (Photo courtesy of Greenpeace's Will Rose)
Pope Francis' encyclical Laudato si' has inspired a Filipino woman who survived super typhoon Haiyan in 2013 to become a "climate warrior" in Arctic waters.
Joanna Sustento, 26, joined other environmental activists on board the Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise who are protesting against oil drilling in the Barents Sea.
"I can't say that I'm a religious person but I am a believer," Sustento told ucanews.com.
"I believe that one does not need to be a Christian to care for our common home," she added.
Sustento, from Tacloban in the central Philippines, said she got "a lot of strength and inspiration" from the pope's encyclical on the environment.
Her father and nephew remain missing after Haiyan hit the central part of the country in 2013, killing at least 7,500 people.
"It's like meeting the monster who killed and wiped away everything that was important to you," she said.
"I am hopeful that as I take part in this protest, I'd be able to put a human face on the impacts of climate change," said Sustento.
She will be on board the Arctic Sunrise until Aug. 6.
Sustento said it is important for victims of natural disasters "to share our stories because climate change is such an abstract concept most people cannot relate."
"For them, it's like listening to a lecture in science class, but if we combine numbers with human stories, we can create a powerful voice," she said.
She said climate change mitigation policies remain largely taken for granted by people.
"It is scary that strong storms become the new normal, but what's even more frightening is the thought of people resigning to that fate and not taking action," Sustento said.