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Pope Francis was a pioneering voice for climate justice as a moral imperative in the Catholic Church

Pope Francis was a pioneering voice for climate justice as a moral imperative in the Catholic Church
Simon Mbatha was a South African waste picker-turned-activist who co-founded the South African Waste Pickers Association. Mbata met Pope Francis in 2014 where he advocated for waste pickers' rights. (Photo: groundWork)
Julia Evans
By Julia Evans
23 Apr 2025
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Pope Francis, who died on 21 April 2025 aged 88, is widely recognised as the first pontiff to place the climate crisis at the centre of Catholic teaching. Where his predecessors spoke about nature in broad spiritual terms, Pope Francis went further, framing global warming as a matter of justice, inequality, and human dignity.

Pope Francis, who died on Monday morning, 21 April 2025, was a pontiff of many firsts: the first from Latin America, the first pope from the southern hemisphere, the first Jesuit to lead the Catholic Church, and the first born outside Europe since the 8th century. 

But perhaps his greatest influence was in shaping how he spoke about climate change. Unlike his predecessors, who spoke of nature in spiritual terms, Pope Francis framed global warming as a matter of justice, inequality, and human dignity.

His 2015 encyclical Laudato si’ — an open letter from the pope to the global Catholic community and all people of goodwill — not only addressed environmental degradation but also criticised overconsumption, economic inequality, and moral indifference, presenting the climate crisis as a profound moral and spiritual issue.

In it, he unabashedly states: “The Earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an immense pile of filth,” which remains one of the most cited lines in climate discussions, frequently referenced in academic articles, in media coverage and environmental commentary.

From the outset, Pope Francis signalled his priorities. 

“When the Pope was selected, he chose his papal name to honour St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of ecology and of animals, as well as a man of peace who renounced wealth,” noted Francesca de Gasparis, executive director of the Southern African Faith Communities’ Environment Institute. 

“He was globally the most imminent faith leader to stand up for climate justice and for all faiths to care for creation. His life was an example for us all on leadership and being in service.”

Read more: South Africa mourns death of Pope Francis, a unifying figure and a voice for the poor

Pope Francis, who studied chemistry before becoming a priest, grounded his arguments in science. He wrote that there was “very solid” scientific consensus that human activity was driving global warming. He called for faith and science to work together, saying the environmental crisis was both a spiritual and scientific challenge.

Global and political influence


Pope Francis’ influence extended far beyond the Church. In 2015, his address to the United Nations reinforced that “any harm done to the environment is harm done to humanity”. His efforts to influence international policy culminated in his subtle diplomacy, contributing to the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C target. The Laudato Si’ Movement, launched in more than 140 countries, has become a catalyst for Catholic-led environmental activism.

But his work wasn’t limited to the religious sphere. In 2018, Pope Francis met with oil executives, urging them to address climate change. He often criticised the weak international response, calling on wealthy nations to “pay their fair share”. His leadership presented a stark contrast to the rising climate denial movements, particularly among conservative religious groups.

Professor Sarojini Nadar, the Desmond Tutu Research Chair in Religion and Social Justice at the University of the Western Cape, noted that Pope Francis’ stance directly challenged the co-option of religion by right-wing populism, especially in the US.

Waste pickers Douglas Mali and Refuoe Mokuoane pushing a trolley full of recyclable waste up a hill in Johannesburg, South Africa. (Photo: Julia Evans)



Pope Francis attends a meeting with young people during his Apostolic Journey in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, on 2 February 2023. (Photo: EPA-EFE / Ciro Fusco)



“Pope Francis’ voice is a counter-witness to ecological apathy and political nationalism,” she said. “By placing care for the Earth at the heart of Catholic teaching, he reoriented the moral compass of faith communities.”

Lance Thomas, a researcher at the University of Pretoria, said Laudato si’ offered institutions like the UN a clear ethical narrative: “In the absence of a powerful story of care, the UN turned to Laudato si’ as a counterweight to state-funded science and industry,” he said. “It gave environmentalists a moral ally with real weight.”

He added that in an era where religion was often misused politically, Pope Francis offered an important corrective: “Just because a religious leader says there’s no genocide in Gaza doesn’t mean that’s Christian teaching. Figures like the Pope still remind the world that faith can serve as a moral compass.”

The olive agenda


Professor Nadar acknowledged that Pope Francis made an incredible contribution to theological thinking around climate justice.

 “What is important for me is that he did not just address the environmental crisis; his interventions on social and economic justice were equally robust,” she said.

 “By insisting that the destruction of the Earth is inseparable from the exploitation of the poor, he helped collapse the false binary between the ‘green’ (ecology) and ‘brown’ (poverty) agendas.”

She described this integrated approach as aligning with South African theologian Steve de Gruchy’s “olive agenda” — a moral framework uniting environmental and social justice. Yet she noted Laudato si’ lacked a fully intersectional analysis, missing opportunities to link ecological harm with patriarchy and colonialism, and to include women and LGBTQIA+ people in its justice framework.

“Nonetheless, its global impact is undeniable,” said Nadar. “It opened space for faith communities to engage with climate change not just as a technical issue, but as a spiritual, moral and existential crisis.”

She added that there was “profound potential for African faith leaders to take this further”.

Recognising the most vulnerable, least responsible


In his 2015 encyclical, Pope Francis tied climate change to poverty and consumerism, asserting that the Global North owed an “ecological debt” to the South due to centuries of resource exploitation.

“Long before Pope Francis, activists at the grassroots recognised that environmental problems and climate change affected the poor most, and that they are the hardest hit,” said Bishop Allwyn D’Silva, Chair of the Office for Human Development at the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences.

“But it took a spiritual leader of Pope Francis’s stature to give a tremendous boost to integral ecology.”

In his Laudato si’, Pope Francis said: “A true ecological approach always becomes a social approach; it must integrate questions of justice in debates on the environment, so as to hear both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.” This emphasised that environmental issues are inseparable from social justice, calling for an integrated response that addresses both ecological and human suffering.

Read more: Pope Francis leaves behind a legacy of faith and service in the Catholic Church

Bobby Peek, director of South African grassroots environmental justice organisation groundWork, noted that: “It was critical that he took the environment from a discussion within the Bible to the public. Away from the domain of corporates and senior government people to the people on the street — such as waste pickers.”

Waste pickers are informal recyclers who collect, sort, and sell discarded materials. In South Africa, they play a crucial role in recovering a significant portion of the country’s recycled packaging and paper. However, many waste pickers live in poverty and are not formally recognised or supported for their environmental contributions.

One of their most prominent leaders was Simon Mbatha — a waste picker from KwaZulu-Natal, who went on to co-found the South African Waste Pickers Association (Sawpa) and became a longtime partner of groundWork. In 2014, Mbatha met Pope Francis in Rome during a global gathering of informal workers, where he had dinner with the pope and highlighted the plight of waste pickers.

Simon Mbatha was a South African waste picker turned activist who co-founded the South African Waste Pickers Association. Mbatha met Pope Francis in 2014 and advocated for waste pickers' rights. (Photo: groundWork)



Francis was known to highlight waste pickers as representatives of the excluded workers and emphasise their role in environmental care and social justice

As Archbishop of Buenos Aires, he regularly held masses dedicated to cartoneros — Argentina’s informal recyclers — and spoke out in defence of their right to work and be respected.

In doing so, Pope Francis reframed the climate emergency not just as a planetary crisis, but a deeply human one.

Professor Nadar reflected that: “When figures like Pope Francis speak with conviction and moral clarity, they do more than shift discourse — they create new theological space and embolden grassroots action. I remain deeply grateful for his voice.

 “I only hope those who follow will deepen the olive agenda with fuller intersectional insight, including women, LGBTQIA+ persons, indigenous communities, and the broader webs of life with whom we share this wounded planet.” DM

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