Early in October, Pope Francis issued a warning to the world.
The leader of the Catholic Church said he was concerned about the environment, stating in a 7,000-word document that "the world in which we live is collapsing and may be nearing the breaking point."
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“It is indubitable that the impact of climate change will increasingly prejudice the lives and families of many persons,” he wrote, according to Reuters.
The document was addressed to "All people of good will on the climate crisis."
"Despite all attempts to deny, conceal, gloss over or relativize the issue, the signs of climate change are here and increasingly evident," Pope Francis said.
Francis acknowledged that even the church was divided on climate change.
“I feel obliged to make these clarifications, which may appear obvious, because of certain dismissive and scarcely reasonable opinions that I encounter, even within the Catholic Church,” Francis wrote.
'A fact that cannot be concealed': Pope Francis
“Yet we can no longer doubt that the reason for the unusual rapidity of these dangerous changes is a fact that cannot be concealed.”
The document, “Praise God,” was released on the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the pontiff’s namesake, who is the patron saint of ecology.
Pope Francis criticized the U.S., saying that per-capita emissions there are twice as high as those in China and seven times greater than the average in poor countries.
While individual household efforts are helping, “we can state that a broad change in the irresponsible lifestyle connected with the Western model would have a significant long-term impact,” he said.
Earlier this month, Pope Francis said that he would travel to Dubai in early December for the COP28 conference on climate change, a global challenge that he has deeply worried about during his papacy, stressing care for the environment.
The international climate conference in Dubai begins on Nov. 30 and runs through Dec. 12.
And now the Vatican is stepping up its environmental game.
VW and the Vatican in a electric-vehicle accord
The Vatican signed an agreement with German carmaker Volkswagen AG (VLKAF) -) to gradually replace its auto fleet with electric vehicles as part of the city-state's efforts to reduce its carbon emissions, the Associated Press reported on Nov. 15.
The partnership falls under the Vatican’s “Ecological Conversion 2030” plan, which aims to pursue sustainable, carbon-neutral projects and technologies in the 109-acre city-state in the center of Rome.
A statement from the Vatican City State administration said it was committed to pursuing net-zero emissions technologies and sustainable transport projects to reduce the carbon footprint of its auto fleet. Francis currently moves around the Vatican in a Fiat.
The Vatican said its partnership with Volkwagen and its Skoda brand involves medium- and long-term leases, calling the carmaker its top “strategic partner for the project to renovate the state’s car park.”
The administration said it intended to gradually replace its fleet with electric vehicles by 2030; will increase the number of charging stations throughout the territory and ensure the city state’s energy needs are provided exclusively by renewable sources.
The pontiff's predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, was also concerned about the environment.
Benedict was referred to as the “green pope,” in part because of his sustainability initiatives in Vatican City, which included installing solar panels on the main Vatican audience hall.
Separately, Volkswagen Chief Executive Oliver Blume said an electric car priced at around $22,000 was possible by the latter part of the decade.
“We have a responsibility to bring the right products at the right price onto the market,” Blume said.
“After early adopters were reached with electric cars, we now need consumers to be convinced by the technology, who don't have the opportunity to install a charging station at home.”
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