A cardinal has said natural birth control could “offer a solution” to the impacts of climate change, particularly the lack of food in a warmer world. Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana told the BBC the Church has never been against natural family planning. During the Pope’s trip back from the Philippines, the Pontiff invited people Read more
In the greatest environmental disaster of the 21st Century (so far), Indonesia has been blotted out by smoke. And the media. I’ve often wondered how the media would respond when eco-apocalypse struck. I pictured the news programmes producing brief, sensational reports, while failing to explain why it was happening or how it might be stopped. Read more
Back in 2009, I ran a very large event in the Ha’apai Islands of Tonga. We managed to motivate over 3,000 people (from a total population of 4,500) to clean up the coastline and shipped 50 tonnes of rubbish to a location with a proper landfill to make an example of how a waste management Read more
From where I’m standing, the city-sized Baogang Steel and Rare Earth complex dominates the horizon, its endless cooling towers and chimneys reaching up into grey, washed-out sky. Between it and me, stretching into the distance, lies an artificial lake filled with a black, barely-liquid, toxic sludge. Dozens of pipes line the shore, churning out a Read more
This summer, Pope Francis plans to release an encyclical letter in which he will address environmental issues, and very likely climate change. His statement will have a profound impact on the public debate. For one, it will elevate the spiritual, moral and religious dimensions of the issue. Calling on people to protect the global climate Read more
Pope Francis has made no secret of his conviction that human-induced climate change, along with other forms of environmental degradation, represents a grave threat to humanity’s future. At times he even speaks in quasi-apocalyptic terms: “Let us not allow omens of destruction and death to accompany the advance of this world!” His forthcoming “ecological encyclical” Read more
If you haven’t already, meet the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a collection of oceanic junk that has ballooned over the last four decades. No one is sure how big it is, but it’s probably enormous. A new study in Science Magazine tried to pin down some firm numbers by digging into various data: waste generation Read more
Book Review: This Changes Everything, Capitalism vs the Climate by Naomi Klein. This is a comprehensive and timely book. Klein says in part one, “If there has ever been a moment to advance a plan to heal the planet that also heals our broken economies and our shattered communities, this is it.” In the introduction Read more
In 1971 the document Justice in the World, issued by the Synod of Bishops, represented a major step in the development of Catholic teaching on the environment. Barbara Ward-Jackson was a consultant before and during the synod and undoubtedly had a considerable influence on its outcome. This document emphasised the close link between ecology and Read more
During the papal audience at the 23rd World Congress of the Apostleship Of the Sea, Benedictus XVI addressed encouraging words to those working in the vast fishing sector and their families: “…, they more than others must face the difficulties of the present time and live the uncertainty of the future, marked by the negative Read more