Pope: Montreal Protocol to
protect ozone layer is a “model of international cooperation”
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| Cardinal Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin reads a letter from Pope Francis for the XXI Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol |
On Thursday, Pope Francis sent a message to the 31st Meeting
of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone
Layer. His message was read by Pietro Parolin, the Cardinal Secretary of State.
By Vatican News
Pope Francis has praised the Montreal Protocol on Substances
that Deplete the Ozone Layer as a “model of international cooperation, not only
in the area of environmental protection, but also that of the promotion of
integral human development”.
The Montreal Protocol is an addendum to the Vienna
Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer, which provides a framework
for international reductions in the productions of certain chemicals that
contribute to the destruction of the so-called “ozone layer” in the earth’s
atmosphere. As Pope Francis noted, this became “the first Convention of the
United Nations system to gain universal endorsement on the part of the entire
family of nations”. One hundred ninety-six States, as well as the European
Union, have signed the agreement.
In a message to the 31st Meeting of the
Parties to the Montreal Protocol, Pope Francis noted the positive results that
have been achieved since the signing of the Vienna Convention thirty-five years
ago. “In fact”, he said, “many scientific studies, including more recent ones,
attest to how the thinning of the ozone layer is gradually being reduced”.
Three lessons
Pope Francis chose to focus on three lessons that can be
learned since the implementation of the international ozone regime.
First, he pointed to the cooperation among various sectors
of human society that led to the accord. “This cooperation has shown how we can
achieve important outcomes” that make it possible to safeguard creation and
promote human development.
The second lesson is that the “cultural challenge” we face
“cannot be met solely on the basis” of a technological solution that ignores
“the mysterious network of relations between things, and so sometimes solves
one problem only to create others”. He noted the adoption of the Kigali
Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which aims at prohibiting substances that
lead to global warming, even if they don’t directly harm the ozone layer; and
he announced the Holy See’s adherence to that Amendment.
Finally, Pope Francis spoke about the importance of
recognizing that “everything is connected”, noting that the Kigali Amendment
appeals to this principle. “Careful consideration of the various
interconnections of our decisions and their resulting impact involves numerous
levels of complexity”, he said.
Is progress directed toward the common good?
Pope Francis concluded his letter by urging us to ask the
question of whether the goals of progress are “truly directed to the common
good” or, instead, “cause harm to our world and to the quality of life of much
of humanity”.
An appropriate response to that question, he said, can only
be made in light of the three lessons he had already indicated: “First, to give
real life to dialogue for the sake of shared responsibility for the care of our
common home, one in which no one ‘absolutizes’ his or her own point of
view. Then, to make technological solutions part of a broader vision that
takes into consideration the variety of existing relationships. Finally,
to structure our decisions on the basis of the central concept of what we can
call ‘integral ecology’, grounded in the realization that ‘everything is
connected’”.
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