On April 21, Pope Francis, known for his inclusivity to various communities worldwide, passed away after decades of serving as Pope of the Catholic church. Pope Leo XIV was inducted shortly thereafter, and with Pope Francis’s tremendous legacy of activism aiding the environment, there are questions and fears whether Pope Leo will be able to uphold the values of his predecessor.
One of Pope Francis’s passions was the impact of climate on marginalized communities, and the harshness of consumerism that maintained these inadequacies. In one of his speeches to the General Audience of April 22, 2015 in Saint Peters Square, he stated: “May the relationship between man and nature not be driven by greed, to manipulate and exploit, but may the divine harmony between beings and creation be conserved in the logic of respect and care.” Shortly thereafter, his activism on climate issues and the environment was evidently showcased through his creation of Laudato si on May 24, 2015, which detailed the horrors of global warming and criticized humanity’s materialism over planetary wellbeing.
Furthermore, he used Laudato si to negotiate with other world leaders during the United Nations meeting in 2015, leading to the Paris Agreement. “He’s been one of the strongest voices, pushing to get things done,” John Kerry, a former U.S. climate envoy, told Time. The work further led to the creation of an organization called Laudato Si’ Movement to activate Catholics and non-believers around the globe to take action on various environmental issues.
Despite this activism, Indigenous peoples, specifically those in Amazonian and South America, remained harshly affected by global warming. In response to these devastations, Pope Francis released “Querida Amazonia” (Dear Amazon), a plea for the world to join together to save and respect the Amazon rainforest. “…the forest is not a resource to be exploited; it is a being, or various beings, with which we have to relate,’ he wrote. In partial response to Pope Francis’s forest advocacy, the UN Environment Programme founded the Interfaith Rainforest Initiative, which serves to lobby local governments in South America for environmental protection and Indigenous rights.
With the past legacy of Pope Francis, many speculate whether Pope Leo will uphold the same values. A study from the College of Cardinals Report shows that he is heading in the right direction, with the report claiming he is following Pope Leo’s policies. In 2024 remarks at a global seminar in Rome, he called for the church to move “from words to action,” claiming that humanity’s “dominion over nature” should not be “tyrannical” but instead a “relationship of reciprocity” with the environment. While not as confrontational as Pope Francis, Pope Leo still aims to implement the same policies.
CONTACTS: Where does Pope Leo XIV stand on key issues like sexual abuse, climate and poverty?, theguardian.com/world/2025/may/10/where-does-pope-leo-xiv-stand-on-key-issues-like-sexual-abuse-climate-and-poverty; Remembering Pope Francis’s Climate Legacy, time.com/7278986/pope-francis-environment-climate-legacy.
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