Pope Benedict has called for delegates attending the UN conference for revising the Kyoto deal to craft a credible deal to cut greenhouse gases.
Benedict, dubbed the ‘green pope’ for his environmental concerns, launched his appeal on Sunday during his regular Angelus message.
He said the deal needs to take into account the poor and future generations.
“I hope that all members of the international community agree on a responsible and credible response to this worrisome and complex phenomenon, taking into account the needs of the poorest and future generations,” he said.
Benedict denounced the failure of world leaders to agree to a successor treaty to Kyoto during a 2009 U.N. climate summit in Copenhagen.
World peace depends on safeguarding God’s creation, Benedict said.
For Benedict, looking after the climate is not an optional extra, it’s a moral issue.
Church teaching holds that humanity must respect creation because it’s destined for the benefit of humanity’s future.
The pope has repeatedly argued that climate change and natural catastrophes threaten people’s rights to life, food, health and ultimately peace.
Benedict has regularly has voiced concern about protecting the environment in his writings, during foreign trips, speeches to diplomats and in his annual peace message.
Under Benedict’s watch, the Vatican has installed photovoltaic cells on its main auditorium to convert sunlight into electricity and has joined a reforestation project aimed at offsetting its CO2 emissions.
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