EarthBeat

10/12/2024

In an exclusive, RNS is publishing the leaked minutes of a heavenly committee on the future of humanity, weighing in on global warming's progression, which if not stopped will have catastrophic consequences for the planet and its inhabitants.

06/12/2024

Negotiations in South Korea were expected to deliver a treaty on plastics two years in the making, but the U.N. meeting adjourned early Dec. 2 with delegates for some 170 nations still deadlocked on key issues.

04/12/2024

Pope Francis received a new, emission-free, all-electric popemobile from representatives of Mercedes-Benz, the German car manufacturer that has been supplying vehicles for the popes for nearly 100 years. https://bit.ly/4f0QxC7

03/12/2024

This week, the International Court of Justice began hearing oral arguments in a high-profile case brought by the island nation of Vanuatu on what obligations United Nations member states have under international law to protect the planet from greenhouse gas emissions for future generations.

02/12/2024

Pope Francis' plan to build an eco-village in the historic gardens of Castel Gandolfo, the summer residence of the popes, will be complete for the 2025 Jubilee. The "Borgo Laudato Sì" project, which combines sustainable agriculture with environmentally friendly teaching programs aimed especially at vulnerable and marginalized groups.

Pope Francis' plan to build an eco-village in the historic gardens of Castel Gandolfo, the summer residence of the popes, will be complete for the 2025 Jubilee. The "Borgo Laudato Sì" project, which combines sustainable agriculture with environmentally friendly teaching programs aimed especially at

29/11/2024

Fast fashion has a growing impact on the climate, responsible for an estimated 8% to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions that are projected to grow quickly as the industry expands.

25/11/2024

Nearly 200 countries adopted a new financing target to assist developing countries respond to climate change at the United Nations climate change conference in Baku, Azerbaijan.

22/11/2024

Throughout the nearly two weeks of the COP29 climate talks in Baku, Azerbaijan, religious sisters and women's organizations have worked to ensure decisions made on climate finances adequately address the unique needs of women and girls.

Nearly 200 countries here at the United Nations climate change conference, known as COP29, have been working to establish a new monetary target for funding climate responses in developing countries, from transitioning to clean energy to adapting and recovering from climate-related disasters.

The summit was scheduled to end Nov. 22. Late that day in Baku, the closing plenary was delayed, suggesting the conference would extend for an undetermined amount of time.

"The climate crisis is not gender-neutral. Women and girls disproportionately bear the brunt of climate change, yet their voices remain largely underrepresented in climate decision-making," said Jemimah Njuki, U.N. Women's chief of women's economic empowerment.

21/11/2024

Debate about how much money countries should direct toward addressing climate change has overlooked the massive spending on weapons and wars, say faith activists here at the United Nations climate conference.

Debate about how much money countries should direct toward addressing climate change has overlooked the massive spending on weapons and wars, say faith activists at the U.N. climate conference in Azerbaijan.

19/11/2024

As the U.N. climate change conference reached the halfway point, faith groups appealed for countries to set an ambitious new target to finance the transition to clean energy and adaptation measures for a rapidly warming world.

18/11/2024

Donald Trump's looming return has cast a shadow over COP29, say Catholic officials here who worry Trump will not only halt U.S. progress in reducing heat-trapping emissions but also undermine international efforts.

15/11/2024

COP29, the United Nations climate change conference taking place in Baku, Azerbaijan, will be assessed by many based on the outcomes of the negotiations on a new global climate finance target.

Developed countries at COP29 should focus less on finding ways to slow down the progress of negotiations for the loss and damage fund, and instead look at what matters: responding to the needs of the most vulnerable.

14/11/2024

Sundays spent in nature and a return of year-round meatless Fridays were a few of the ideas floated Nov. 13 at the U.S. bishops' meeting as ways to mark the 10th anniversary of Pope Francis' 2015 encyclical on ecology.

14/11/2024

Zambia and other African nations are grappling with an extreme drought, worsened by the effects of climate change. One possible funding source Zambia has waited to access is the loss and damage fund, established in 2022 under the United Nations.

13/11/2024

The 2024 hurricane season is nearly over. But many displaced families will continue to bounce from place to place as they grapple with rebuilding their lives after a busy storm season.

08/11/2024

COP16 ended without decisions in key areas around implementing a global conservation treaty. But faith groups applauded the summit's establishment of a permanent body for Indigenous peoples in conservation matters.

07/11/2024

At least 10 people, including a Catholic nun, have been killed in a volcanic eruption on Indonesia's predominantly Catholic Flores Island.

Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki in south Asian country spewed ash and lava Nov. 3, peppering the surrounding areas with fireballs.

05/11/2024

As Spain mourns the death of over 200 victims of the biggest peacetime disaster in decades, volunteers poured into the country's Valencia region to give a helping hand in cleaning up and to offer support to the devastated community.