Pope Francis is actively involved in the issue of climate change

Addressing climate change requires concrete actions and full involvement from global leaders. Pope Francis will have a full day of bilateral meetings with world leaders attending next month's United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai, according to a schedule published by the Vatican. It will be the first time during his tenure that Pope Francis, 86 years old and also the head of state, will have so many high-level individual meetings with counterparts and other individuals in such a short timeframe.

Pope Francis's position on climate change is well-known, and the event will provide him with the opportunity to personally meet with Arab leaders and other world leaders to discuss conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine. The pontiff will be in Dubai from December 1-3, and the conference will take place from November 30 to December 12. After delivering a speech at the conference on the morning of December 2, Pope Francis will participate in two sessions of private meetings on the same day. Dubai organizers have not yet released a list of high-level participants, and the Vatican has not specified confirmed individual meetings.

Buckingham Palace has stated that King Charles III will deliver the opening speech at COP28. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is also expected to attend. Two U.S. officials said last week to Reuters that President Joe Biden is unlikely to attend COP28, but they emphasized that a final decision has not yet been made. Last year, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Jordanian King Abdullah II, and French President Emmanuel Macron were among the participants at COP27.

At the Dubai meeting, dozens of countries intend to push for the signing of the first global agreement on the gradual phase-out of coal, oil, and natural gas - fuels that emit CO2. It will be the first time a pope participates in the UN climate meetings since their inception in 1995, and it is expected that the Vatican leader will echo a recent call to action to limit global warming.

In a significant document dated October 4, Pope Francis appealed to climate change deniers and politicians delaying action, urging them to reconsider and stating that they cannot overlook human causes or mock science as the planet "may be approaching the point of collapse." The document, known as the Apostolic Exhortation and titled "Laudate Deum" ("Praise God"), is a continuation of Pope Francis's 2015 encyclical on the environment, titled "Laudato Si." The "Laudate Deum" encyclical was inspired by recent extreme weather events and repeatedly mentioned the challenges facing COP28.