“Pope Francis’ green revolution”. A talk with Franca Giansoldati

The planet is our shared home and we must all take care of it in an informed and responsible way. This means we must all do our part to combat climate change. Every single daily action, from deciding whether to take the car instead of public transport through to how we do our shopping, affects our present and our future. Pope Francis wanted to call on Catholics to respect the Earth and observe their responsibilities, placing ethics at the centre of the approach to environmental matters. But is this decision to root the doctrine of the Church in the ecological transition, ESG (environment, social and governance) criteria and a vision of integral human development a message for the faithful alone? A revolution or a return to the past? And can it change the lives of hundreds of millions of people, regardless of their religious views? How? We asked Franca Giansoldati, Vaticanist correspondent for Italian newspaper Il Messaggero, who has written L’alfabeto verde di papa Francesco” [The Green Alphabet of Pope Francis] (edizioni San Paolo, 2019) and “Custodi del creato. Salvare la Terra con la Laudato si’” [Custodians of Creation. Saving the World with Laudato si’] (San Paolo), which will be released on occasion of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26).

Can you summarise the Pope’s doctrine on climate and the environment?

«Everything is rooted in the encyclical Laudato si’, promulgated by Pope Francis in 2015. This is the most important document of his entire pontificate, a text which will still be discussed 100 years from now, because it marks a historic change for the Church. Thanks to this encyclical, believers the world over have the chance to establish an ecological citizenship. The historical significance of this document reminds me of Rerum Novarum, promulgated after the first and second industrial revolutions, with which Pope Leo XIII tackled political and economic matters head on. Reading Rerum Novarum today (it dates back to 1891), we are struck by the modernity and concrete nature of the Church’s approach. At the time, the Pope requested that children should not work in factories, despite child labour being permitted at the time, along with a limit on daily working hours and incentivisation of microcredit. In the space of 20 years, the document brought enormous social benefits and the same could occur with Laudato si’ in coming years».

What led to the promulgation of this “historic document”?

«Francis is the first Pope to involve himself in climate change, green issues and safeguarding creation, and this is rooted in a path actually started by Pope Paul VI. The Popes before him had always demonstrated a strong interest in these areas, but they did not promulgate magisterial documents because, until a few years ago, international scientists were not fully in agreement that humans were responsible for altering the climate balance. Pope John Paul II too, at the end of the ‘90s, would have liked to offer a document on environmental issues, but there were still too many divisions in the scientific world for him to do so. Then came Benedict XVI, a staunch environmentalist, who used very strong words on his travels in Brazil against the systematic deforestation of the Amazon rainforest, calling for international intervention to protect the green lung of the planet. Over the years, science reached a common view that anthropocentrism had led to alteration of climate balances, placing the planet’s future at risk. Pope Francis therefore collected the work that had been done in the past and had the courage to act, issuing a binding document that pre-dates even the Paris Climate Conference, where the Member States of the UN Framework Convention signed an agreement to reduce atmospheric CO₂».

What actions are promoted by the Church’s new doctrine in the fight against climate change?

«The Church represents a hugely important element of moral suasion and soft power at an international level, which can provide an essential drive for resolution of the big climate issues. How? Laudato si’ contains a series of key points: the first regarding the existing relationship between the environmental crisis and the social crisis. It is not possible to handle one without handling the other, as they are two sides of the same coin. The second component of the encyclical highlights that no State can ignore is responsibility, as this is a global and intergenerational issue that affects young and old, rich and poor, North and South, more-developed and less-developed countries. This interdependence therefore translates into a network. The third point begins with a definition of “integral human development” provided by Pope Francis. According to him, in order to protect the planet, it is necessary to promote a global view, fighting against the extinction of pandas and the destruction of certain areas, but also avoiding circumstances that force migrants to leave their homes due to climate change. Life must be protected in its entirety. Finally, the encyclical insists that Catholics develop a concept of environmental citizenship, learning to apply these ethics in their daily lives. Pope Francis also provides practical examples: as the planet’s resources are limited, we cannot simply continue with our same behaviour in the future. We need an informed perspective, we need to learn to plant trees, use fewer private vehicles, consume less food and less water and share more».

What changes could this new position have for finance and the economy?

«Pope Francis had invited the faithful to spend their money more wisely. He sees spending as a moral choice, because safeguarding the environment also relies on small, individual daily choices: choosing local produce or products that do not use child labour and so forth. In terms of investment, it is important to put our money into banks that are not involved in immoral investments, and those which observe ESG criteria and do not fund the arms industry. Also in the world of finance, it is necessary to educate Catholics to make decisions with an open heart and a focused mind, quizzing banks on how investment decisions are made and acting based on the replies to these questions. This is the real revolution proposed by Pope Francis”.

When will we see the initial effects of this revolution?

«The initial effects are already visible. Out of 120 Italian dioceses, 70 are already planning projects. The Episcopal Conference of Trentino, for example, is very much at the forefront in environmental terms, having established a cooperative structure that analyses its operations on the basis of ESG criteria in order to avoid greenwashing, which refers to the promotion of a green image that does not correspond to the actual activities of the enterprise. In 15 years’ time, once these principles have been assimilated by the general public and translated into tangible actions, they will represent a force to be reckoned with. Imagine a movement of consumers formed of hundreds of millions of people that make an informed choice to favour a bank that safeguards the environment rather than another that does not. For Pope Francis, it is important to create movements that apply pressure and are capable of positively influencing decision makers in political, financial and economic spheres. And all in the context of an evangelical vision».