Vatican's New Pope Leads Charge on Climate Change

In the lead-up to the 10th anniversary of the landmark Laudato Si encyclical, Pope Leo XIV, the newest leader of the Catholic Church, is preparing to deliver a major address on climate change this week. The speech, which will take place at the Vatican's summer residence in Castel Gandolfo, is expected to build on the teachings of Laudato Si and signal whether Leo is inheriting or putting his own spin on the Church's stance on the environmental crisis.

Laudato Si, written by Leo's predecessor Pope Francis, was a groundbreaking document that urged Catholics to undergo a "profound interior conversion" to reconsider the effects of consumer culture on the planet. The encyclical was released just months before the Paris Agreement, and was widely seen as a nudge toward negotiators at the time.

Now, a decade later, Leo is taking the Church's climate advocacy a step further. In the past year, he has greenlighted a plan to use solar power for all the Vatican's energy needs and inaugurated a new 55-acre educational center in the gardens of Castel Gandolfo focused on sustainable farming and ecological stewardship.

As the Catholic Church continues to wield significant influence globally, with nearly a fifth of the world's population identifying as Catholic, Leo's speech on Wednesday is poised to send a powerful message. Vatican-watchers say the new pope is clearly moved by the topic of climate change, particularly its disproportionate harm to poor and vulnerable communities.