Man working the land (Pexels)
With the celebration of World Environment Day on June 5, the United Nations (UN) launched the Decade for Ecosystem Restoration, with the aim of making ten-year commitments “to care for our common home”.
In this context, Pope Francis sent a message in which he asked to put our gaze on future generations. “We are part of nature, we are not separate from it. This is what the Bible tells us,” Francis said, stressing that the current environmental situation “calls us to take urgent action now to become increasingly responsible stewards of creation and give back to nature what we have damaged and exploited for too long.”
This week, June 8, also marked World Oceans Day and, sadly, it has been highlighted by the amount of plastic that inhabits them. However, Unesco has launched the first actions of the decade devoted to oceans.
In addition, Francis’ concern for the world’s continuing armed conflicts continues. For this reason, on June 8, the Minute for Peace campaign was repeated, calling on all people of good will to pray for peace, in particular for the Holy Land and Myanmar.
In Argentina, the Social Pastoral of Rosario warned about a bill under study on biofuels, which, if approved, would imply “a serious setback in Argentina’s environmental policy”, in addition to strong consequences for the environment.
Do not miss out on what has happened
The Laudato Si’ Animators Course has ended with the graduation of more than 1000 new Laudato Si’ Animators from Latin America! Isn’t it exciting? If you are interested, you can sign up for the next edition here.
Each month we share a Monthly Prayer Gathering and last Friday it was held from North America. If you missed it, you can watch it here. Also, on World Environment Day, we recommend some tips to take action.
Have you already signed the Healthy Planet, Healthy People petition? With the upcoming UN conferences on biodiversity and climate change, Catholics need to get involved! If you haven’t seen what it’s all about yet, find out here.
Read more about these topics:
- The Pope: “It is urgent to manage creation responsibly with an eye on the future”.
- Ten actions to restore the planet
- United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030)
- Mexico joins the restoration of ecosystems called by the UN for the next decade
- Europe’s Drive to Slash Plastic Waste Moves Into High Gear
- The oceans face their world day turned into “plastic soups”.
- In the context of global celebrations for World Oceans Day, UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission announced the first Actions officially endorsed as part of the Ocean Decade.
- We cannot achieve sustainable development with sick oceans.
- June 8: One minute for peace in the Holy Land, Myanmar and around the world
- Biofuels: Concerns about the consequences of a change to the regulatory framework