ROME — Pope Francis offered prayers Sunday for the success of the COP26 U.N. Climate Change Conference beginning in Glasgow, Scotland.
“Today, in Glasgow, in Scotland, the United Nations conference on climate change, COP26, begins,” the pope stated after his weekly Angelus prayer in Saint Peter’s Square.
A giant globe hangs from the ceiling as delegates attend on day one of the COP 26 United Nations Climate Change Conference on October 31, 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)
“Let us pray so that the cry of the Earth and the cry of the poor might be heard,” he continued, and “that this meeting might provide efficacious responses, offering concrete hope to future generations.”
Vatican News announced Sunday that “over 30,000 activists, political leaders, journalists, and others are gathering in the Scottish city to kick start efforts to combat climate change and limit global warming.”
Extinction Rebellion activists are seen protesting on October 31, 2021 in Edinburgh, United Kingdom. (Photo by Peter Summers/Getty Images)
In Sunday’s address, the pontiff went on to announce the inauguration of a photographic exhibition in St Peter’s Square, titled “Emotions to generate change – pushing the issue of care for creation at COP26 in Glasgow,” dedicated to the pope’s encyclical letter in the environment Laudato si’.
The work was the joint effort of Lia Beltrami, writer and director, and the young Muslim photographer Asaf Ud Daula, originally from Bangladesh.
The exhibition was unveiled Sunday and will be open to visitors to Saint Peter’s Square through November 8.
Pope Francis has been a vocal supporter of U.N. efforts to commit nations to lowering greenhouse gas emissions in the hope of curbing global warming.