The Year 2025 is a milestone for ecological action in the Philippines. This year, the government aims to update the country’s commitments to addressing the climate crisis, from reducing the pollution it produces to ensuring a just transition to a low-emissions, climate-resilient economy and society.

Yet, this is also a monumental 12 months for the Philippine Catholic community to follow through with its own pledges for taking care of Our Common Home.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Laudato Si’, Pope Francis’s landmark letter that called on all people, regardless of religion, to take urgent action against the climate crisis and ecological decline. It is a challenge to which the Philippines—home to one of the largest Catholic populations in the world—has the tall task of responding.

Is Divestment Possible?

In the past decade, divestment has emerged as one of the most critical issues for the Philippine Catholic Church. Numerous clergy members have been conducting dialogues with financial institutions and campaigning to find more sustainable businesses in which to invest their funds and other assets, working closely with civil society organizations and local communities.

This imperative is reflected in the pledge of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) to divest from banks supporting fossil fuels by this year, as stated in its 2022 Pastoral Letter. It is part of efforts to ensure all of its actions align with religious teachings on environmental protection and the promotion of human rights and dignity, as articulated in Laudato Si’.

The process of divestment has been steadily increasing among dioceses and congregations in the country, although at a slower pace than needed. Some religious groups also remain among the top 100 stockholders in corporations known to engage in extractive and environmentally destructive industries, such as fossil fuels and mining.

Over the next 12 months, the CBCP must figure out how to fulfill its commitment to fossil fuel divestment. Solutions need to be developed to urgently address issues such as the lack of capacity for divestment and the need to improve members’ knowledge and skills in identifying more sustainable options for reinvesting withdrawn assets.

Another commitment by the CBCP in the 2022 Pastoral Letter is the adoption of a non-acceptance policy for donations from financial institutions involved in ecologically harmful industries. This policy, formally adopted in last year’s assembly, covers sectors considered destructive, extractive, or anti-life.

The successful implementation of these two policies would send a strong message of a shift in Catholic-led financing in the Philippines towards actions that respond to the cries of the Earth and the poor while promoting genuine sustainable development.

Ecological Actions

These pledges on fossil fuel divestment and non-acceptance policies must be complemented with actions that benefit Filipinos at the local level. The structure of the Catholic Church in the Philippines allows it to reach communities and accelerate the implementation of ecologically sound solutions aligned with the government’s climate and environmental goals, but not without challenges.

The creation of an integral ecology ministry—a unit focused on addressing environmental issues within dioceses—is an important step in localizing the Church’s decisions and policies into concrete actions with communities. Establishing such ministries and making them functional would also be instrumental in forging partnerships with local or national government units for implementing climate and environmental programs, such as reforestation and solid waste management.

Promoting renewable energy, especially solar, is also part of the CBCP’s ecological agenda. Advocacy for cleaner energy sources that address the climate crisis has long been a point of convergence for the Church and its secular allies. Some dioceses are beginning to rely solely on solar power, with the Diocese of Maasin being the world’s first fully solarized diocese.

These developments in solar energy and reforestation would also contribute to the Philippine government’s dual goals of updating its commitment to reducing climate pollution, currently set at 75% within the decade. Renewable energy initiatives, coupled with financial divestment, would serve as strong examples of how to enable a just transition from fossil fuels in the nation.

Another point of convergence is ecological education. Ensuring that schools and universities promote sustainability not just through lessons and exams but also through practical initiatives on campuses is critical. Establishing criteria to recognize Laudato Si’ Schools as models for developing ecological citizenship would further support living up to the messages Pope Francis articulated a decade ago.

A Global Perspective

The cumulative impacts of Philippine groups’ ecological actions are poised to influence the global Catholic community at the 30th climate negotiations in Brazil, the world’s largest Catholic country. At a time when global climate action continues to fail the most vulnerable countries and communities, what Catholic actors say and do at what could be the biggest conference in history could make a difference.

2025 is an opportunity not only to learn from the past decade of successes and challenges but also to turn the tide on addressing the ecological crisis as highlighted in Laudato Si’. Faith in a greener, brighter future will only be as effective as the actions that support it—not just words.

John Leo Algo is the National Coordinator of Aksyon Klima Pilipinas and the Deputy Executive Director for Programs and Campaigns of Living Laudato Si’ Philippines. He is also a member of the Youth Advisory Group for Environmental and Climate Justice under the UNDP in Asia and the Pacific. He has been a climate and environment journalist since 2016.