The 30th UN climate negotiations (COP30) in Belem, Brazil, were hyped up to be the turning point for global climate action. They were branded with different nicknames, including the Amazon COP, the Indigenous Peoples’ COP, and the just transition COP.

But given it was set in the world’s largest Catholic nation, it was as close to a “Catholic COP” as this world will ever see. This was the ideal platform for the Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church in the Vatican, to champion the moral and ethical dimensions of the climate crisis that have been largely overlooked at the negotiating table.

As one of the newest signatories to the Paris Agreement in 2022, the Holy See is still establishing itself in the complicated world of climate negotiations. It is not part of a negotiating bloc; instead, it positions itself as a moral and ethical bridge between the nearly 200 other countries that attend these talks.

Inside the rooms

In Belem, the Holy See made its presence felt more strongly inside and outside the negotiating rooms. It continued to highlight its main positions in the climate COPs, centered on prioritizing the dignity and lives of communities hardest hit by the climate crisis.

Aligned with this, it vocalized its support for a just transition away from fossil fuels to keep alive the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Interestingly, it was not among the 80-plus countries that signed on to the fossil fuel roadmap that emerged in these past few weeks.

Another position of the Holy See for COP30 is the cancellation of debt of climate-vulnerable nations. This is linked to the concept of “ecological debt” that developed countries, those who polluted the world the most, must pay to countries like the Philippines as an act of justice.

One more staple of its positioning is the promotion of ecological education, a key enabler of the holistic “integral ecology” framework within Laudato Si’. With the workplan for the Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE) workstream, which includes education, to be updated at next year’s summit in Türkiye, the delegation has already begun its groundwork.

However, it also earned criticism from progressive civil society groups because of its refusal to recognize “gender equality” in discussions on developing a new Gender Action Plan, reflecting a more traditional Catholic stance on basing these on biological sexes.

Outside the halls

The Holy See was more proactive in engaging with global Catholic actors compared to previous years. Through its engagements with the multisectoral group Network of Catholic Climate and Environment Actors, working groups have been set up for its members from civil society and faith-based organizations per thematic area — mitigation, adaptation, just transition, and ACE — for more effective engagements with the delegation moving forward.

Given the setting of the negotiations, Catholic actors showed up in force to engage directly with the Holy See. Eight cardinals, 47 bishops, and more than 100 lay advocates and representatives of Catholic organizations engaged with the delegation and among themselves during the two-week negotiations and in parallel conferences, including the Peoples’ Summit held a few minutes away.

These engagements, while mostly productive and energetic, did not come without hiccups. As noted by delegates like first-time attendee Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, there is a difference in expectations between the Holy See and the Catholic actors in terms of what the delegation truly represents.

While the Holy See formally represents the Vatican and its population of less than 1,000 people, it also represents the interests and moral voice of around 1.3 billion Catholics worldwide. This is why it aims to strengthen its engagements with Catholic actors. Through these stakeholders, and strong Catholic presences in many countries such as the Philippines, the Holy See can amplify the moral and ethical voice in climate COPs.

However, based on the disappointing outcomes of COP30 and feedback from David and others, it seems the delegation still needs to increase its own capacity in the negotiations and find the right mix of legally representing the world’s smallest sovereign state and carrying the hopes of more than a billion of the faithful globally.

Looking ahead

The Belem climate negotiations showed a growing divide between developed countries and developing nations in critical issues, most notably how to move away from fossil fuels and how to provide finance for the most vulnerable. It is reminiscent of the fracturing multilateralism and the urgent need to reform it, as mentioned in Laudate Deum.

Moving forward, the Holy See needs to be more welcoming to the wealth of expertise and support from existing global Catholic actors, especially those that have the expertise and skills to be part of its official delegation. It also needs to decide whose interests it would carry into future climate COPs, and how to use its unique position to its advantage.

Whatever reforms are imposed in the conduct of the UN climate negotiations, hopefully sooner than later, the Holy See remains in a good position to bring forward the moral and ethical voice to ensure they stay in one direction: achieving climate justice.

John Leo Algo is the National Coordinator of Aksyon Klima Pilipinas and the Deputy Executive Director for Programs and Campaigns at Living Laudato Si’ Philippines. He has been representing Philippine civil society at UN climate and environmental conferences since 2016 and has worked as a climate and environment journalist since 2016.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial stance of LiCAS News.