Published in 2015, the encyclical letter Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home is the first-ever papal encyclical devoted to the crisis of our planetary home. It is a call to the Church and “all people of good will” to urgently come together and respond to “the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.” That same year, nearly 200 nations came together to sign the Paris Agreement, a common plan to address the climate crisis before it is too late.
It is in this context and on this same date that the Global Catholic Climate Movement (GCCM) was born. A global Catholic network, it currently brings together 737 Catholic organizations working to care for creation by responding to climate change.
Member organizations (religious congregations, dioceses and parishes, movements, etc.) share and receive practical resources useful for developing their work on creation care.
CICS is a member of GCCM and has been on its steering committee since 2019. It has already received direct support from GCCM at least twice: a GCCM overview presentation at the World Council in Rome (2017) and the organization of a Laudato Si’ retreat at the Europe-Mediterranean National Chaplains meeting (jointly with CICG-E) in Lille (2018).
As part of the Laudato Si’ Year, CICS will propose initiatives regarding the care of our common home, which we – as scouts – are attached to and used to.
CICS members are also invited to join the GCCM and participate in local chapters where they will have the opportunity to share with other local organizations engaged in the Laudato Si’ process. Unit leaders and companions/rovers are also invited to become Laudato Si’ facilitators by participating in regular online training in several languages.
To learn more about the GCCM: https://catholicclimatemovement.global/