COP23: message from Patriarch Bartholomew, appeal for “governments to intensify their efforts” to save the planet

The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, urged “faith communities and leaders, who can make an enormous difference in convincing governments and corporations”, to “amplify and intensify their efforts to save the planet”. He launched the appeal at the 23^rd UN Conference on Climate Change (COP23) in Bonn, which opened on Monday, 6 November, and will end on 17 November.
“Still, even as so many recognize climate change arguably as the greatest crisis that humanity has faced, there is much resistance to any call for change”, the Patriarch wrote in his message to the Summit. “Some continue to ignore the signs of our times with unprecedented ice melting, extreme weather patterns, and devastating impact on world poverty”.
Hence the wake-up call made by Bartholomew, who is also known as the “green” Patriarch for his unfailing commitment to the environment, which echoed that of Pope Francis in recent years: “It is unacceptable to backpedal. Yet, it is also unjustifiable any longer to mark time. We are all called to move forward in our commitment to the sacredness of the least of our brothers and sisters as well as to the uniqueness of every last grain of sand on this planet that we call home”.