By Alessandro Di Bussolo & Linda Bordoni

No matter who wins the US presidential election, the United States officially pulled out of the Paris Climate Agreement today, 4 November 2020. 

The landmark deal, struck in 2016 and adopted by 197 countries, aims to limit global warming to below 2° Celsius and strive to hold it at 1.5 degrees, by garnering increasingly ambitious voluntary commitments from governments.

But in June 2017, President Donald Trump announced that the US would withdraw from the agreement and has since put in motion a process to remove his country, the world’s No. 2 emitter of greenhouse gases behind China, from the agreement saying it was too costly.

Climate change has been one of the battlefields of the just-ended presidential campaign with Democratic candidate, Joe Biden, promising not only to recommit to the Paris Agreement but to make the US a global leader on climate action.

Pope Francis

Pope Francis has repeatedly urged nations to care for creation and fight global warming. He has expressed support to the Paris Agreement and said that modern society has “pushed the planet beyond its limits and the time to fix a climate emergency is running out.”

His encyclical Laudato sì calls on humanity to take action for climate justice and on this year’s World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation in September, he said “forests are leached, topsoil erodes, fields fail, deserts advance, seas acidify and storms intensify. Creation is groaning!”

Global Catholic Climate Movement

We spoke to Tomás Insua, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Global Catholic Climate Movement, an independent movement that aims to help the Catholic Church turn the Laudato sì’ call into action, about the impact of the US’s withdrawal from the Climate Accord.

Insua explained that today’s deadline is really a formality “that is pretty irrelevant because the United States already exited the Agreement four years ago, on the first day of the Trump Administration.”

“Trump has consistently dismantled all environmental regulations, boosting pollution in the United States, which means that de facto they already left a long time ago,” he said.

Insua said that huge damage has been done in the past four years, but it remains to be seen as a result of this election, expressing his belief that: “The result of the elections will determine the severity of the climate crisis for centuries to come.” 

“So if Trump wins, it is ‘Game-Over’ for the climate crisis. The climate cannot deal with four more years of this destruction. If Biden wins instead, we will see what happens, but he has to quickly bring the United States back into the Paris Agreement,“ he said.

In either case, Insua continued, the emergency couldn’t be greater. He said the Paris Agreement requires urgent implementation at all levels, in all countries, “especially in the US given that is the greatest carbon emitter in historical terms,” and therefore has the biggest responsibility to tackle this crisis.

But of course, he concluded, it is not up to the United States alone: it’s the whole of humanity that needs to act together and “respond to the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor which are as intense as ever.”

By Vatican News staff writer

Leaders of the South Sudan Council of Churches (SSCC) are appealing to faith communities, international donors and people in the private sector to extend a helping hand in support of a scaled-up response to rescue people in areas hard-hit by floods that continue to cause destruction across the country.

“We, the South Sudan Council of Churches (SSCC) leaders working within these communities appeal for assistance to be expedited to communities currently without humanitarian assistance,” read a jointly signed letter by several religious leaders, including Archbishop Stephen Mulla of Juba.

In recent months, several counties located along the Nile River have been flooded after the river banks overflowed due to heavy rainfall in catchment areas. An estimated 700,000 people have been displaced due to the resulting floods which have also destroyed livestock, farms, homes and other property.

South Sudan’s many challenges

The Church leaders estimate that about five hundred thousand dollars (USD $500,000) is required to respond to the immediate needs of about 100,000 people in Jonglei, Lakes, Upper Nile, Equatoria and Unity – areas which are most affected by the crises.

This money, SSCC says, will go towards providing basic humanitarian needs including water, sanitation, health, shelter, food security, livelihoods and psychosocial support.

South Sudan, – the world’s youngest nation – is currently trying to end years of ongoing conflict and inter-communal violence which began in 2013, barely two years after its independence. 

In the wake of the long-running conflict, 1.6 million of the nation’s estimated 11.1 million people are internally displaced, with 7.5 million in need of humanitarian assistance. About half of the population is food insecure with famine threatening some areas and nearly 300,000 children facing severe to acute malnutrition.

The country’s already existing challenges have been further exacerbated by the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic which “has decimated supply chains leading to escalating prices for staple foods and basic commodities,” the church leaders said. The conflicts and the pandemic have also adversely affected aid delivery efforts while poor roads have made it hard for humanitarian organizations to reach flooded areas.

In partnership with Caritas and other humanitarian organizations, the SSCC is collaborating in the hope they can “jointly deliver support to affected populations currently without assistance if adequate funds are available.”

Currently, the UN says that an estimated US $80 million is required for overall flood response, including US $46 million in immediate assistance to 360,000 people until the end of this year.

By Vatican News staff writer

The President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, has joined UK faith leaders in writing to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, saying there is “no scientific justification for the wholesale suspension of public worship” due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

A national lockdown is due to come into effect on 5 November.

Public worship is secure

In a letter, faith representatives say, “We strongly disagree with the decision to suspend public worship during this time.”

They also highlight “the contribution made by the UK’s faith communities in responding to the pandemic.”

The letter states that “public worship is secure” and that in the last six months faith communities have “collaborated closely with Ministers and officials to keep people safe.” 

The faith leaders note that during the first period of restrictions, they ceased public worship in buildings and moved to an online approach.

Commitment of faith communities

They also underline that they have “provided significant resources to support our communities and our nation, from practical support such as foodbanks and volunteering, to promoting social cohesion, mental health and coping during these months.”

The letter stresses that “common worship is constitutive of our identity, and essential for our self-understanding. Without the worshipping community, our social action and support cannot be energised and sustained indefinitely.”

Common worship for health and well being

It adds, “Common worship is also necessary to sustain the health and wellbeing of faith community members engaged in caring for others whether paid or voluntary.”

“The health benefits of attending worship are well known, and the burden of psychological and physical ill-health from isolation and during the pandemic are increasingly well understood. This is especially so for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people. Public Health England’s own review found that faith communities were an important connect for Black Asian and Minority Ethnic people during this period,” the letter states.

Moreover, it reads, “it is a well-known and well-studied phenomenon that people turn to faith communities as a way of coping with trauma and grief.” 

By Vatican News staff writer

Americans went to the polls on Tuesday for national and local elections.

The election for president was still undecided early Wednesday morning, with vote counting continuing throughout the country. In the United States, the president is not elected by popular vote; rather voters in each state choose a number of electors based in part on the population of the state. With 538 electoral votes at stake, a candidate needs 270 to be elected president.

As each state tallies votes separately, it is possible that preliminary results of the election may not be known for several days. Legal challenges could delay a final result even longer.

Incumbent Donald Trump, the Republican party candidate, claimed victory in key states early on Wednesday, prompting widespread criticism as the final results in those states were still uncertain. The incumbent president also threatened legal action, saying his opponents were trying to “disenfranchise voters.” Democratic party candidate Joe Biden also spoke on Wednesday morning, urging patience as results came in. “I’m optimistic about this outcome,” said the former US vice president.

Tuesday’s election will also determine the composition of the United States Congress. Despite several close races, Republicans are expected to retain control of the Senate, while Democrats will continue to hold the House of Representatives.