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Cardinal hopes Laudato si' will impact UN climate summit

World leaders have 'hard decisions' to make in Paris, prelate says
Cardinal hopes Laudato si' will impact UN climate summit
Published: November 06, 2015 09:23 AM GMT
Updated: November 06, 2015 12:01 AM GMT

Cardinal Peter Turkson, the lead consultant on the papal encyclical on the environment, told a crowd of 1,200 in Columbus, Ohio, that he hoped the document would have a significant impact on the upcoming U.N. Climate Change Conference in Paris.

"The world is turning its gaze toward Paris" for the event, which begins Nov. 30 and continues through Dec. 11, said the Ghanaian cardinal, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. "It is the hope and desire of the Holy See that the guidance of (the encyclical) Laudato si’ will provide the moral fiber" to enable leaders of the 196 nations taking part in the conference to come to the hard decisions they need to make.

The conference's stated goal is to achieve a new international agreement on the climate, applicable to all nations, with the aim of limiting the rise of the earth's average temperature to 2 degrees Celsius (35.6 degrees Fahrenheit), widely seen as the benchmark for avoiding catastrophic global warming.

"I am hoping the world's leaders in Paris will come away with concrete gestures and actions" related to climate change, Cardinal Turkson said Nov. 2, the last day of his three-day visit to Columbus.

The upcoming Paris meeting is the 21st such gathering of partners to a U.N. convention on climate change, which was adopted in 1992. The cardinal noted that the first 20 meetings have resulted in little progress, but said he felt people are slowly beginning to realize the threat posed by global warming and the need to take better care of the environment.

"Government leaders are preparing to take action, and now business leaders have accepted an invitation from Pope Francis" to come to the Vatican for a dialogue on the environment in December, Cardinal Turkson said. In addition, he said several national bishops' conferences have committed themselves to encouraging their nations' leaders to take decisive steps on climate change at the meeting and at home.

"Catholic social teaching demands a sense of justice in which we respect the demands of relationships in which we exist, including a respect for the demands of our relationship with Mother Earth," he said during remarks to a capacity crowd at Ohio State University's Mershon Auditorium. His appearance was part of a series of events the university is conducting relating to sustainability of the planet's resources.

In response to a student's question on how individuals can help control climate change, Cardinal Turkson referred to a papal suggestion: "Turn off your air conditioners." He also mentioned turning off lights when not in use and paying attention to what's in the food we buy.

"Every small gesture that reduces carbon in the atmosphere can help," he said.

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