Catholic Religious Australia (CRA) urges international decision-makers for the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, COP15, to strike an accord on the global actions that will protect global biodiversity and meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
COP15 is an international treaty on how the world agrees to protect nature globally and is especially important because little progress has been made in the past 20 years. COP15 is being held from December 7 to 19 in Montreal, Canada.
In Laudato Si’, Pope Francis writes "Each year sees the disappearance of thousands of plant and animal species which we will never know, which our children will never see, because they have been lost forever" (LS 33).
"Goal 1 of the Laudato Si’ Action Plan, to which many Religious have committed, speaks directly to the need to protect and enhance biodiversity as we respond to the ‘cry of Earth,’ said CRA President Peter Jones OSA.
Biodiversity loss, climate change, and waste and pollution have been described by the UN Environment Programme as the ‘three prongs of a triple planetary crisis’.
“Implementing a bold global biodiversity framework that addresses the key drivers of nature loss is needed to secure our own health and well-being alongside that of the planet,” added Anne Walker, CRA National Executive Director.
CRA prays that COP15 decision-makers from 196 governments will be able to create goals and targets that all national governments will integrate into their own activities and thereby stop biodiversity loss and reverse it.
MEDIA ENQUIRIES:
Sylvia MacRitchie-Hook | M: 0410 644 356 | E: comms@catholicreligious.org.au