ON THE WAY TO BETHLEHEM ...

Who can forget that young couple, the woman heavily pregnant, who had to travel more than 140 kilometers on foot, through hostile territory, so that the husband could register as a member of a certain tribe—and who, after such a difficult journey, could not find shelter for the birth of their child...
That was from Nazareth to Bethlehem... about 2000 years ago. 

However, also today countless people are forced to travel to an (inhospitable) Bethlehem. Millions and millions of persons have to flee for political or military violence and so do the climate refugees, often for thousands of kilometers, because of the disastrous effects of climate change: drought, erosion, floods, rising sea level, tornado's and more...

And now, next month, there is another movement towards Bethlehem, not the Bethlehem behind the wall built by Israel in Palestine, but to the large city of Belém, which is Brazilian Bethlehem.

To this Bethlehem, deliberately chosen because situated at the mouth of the Amazone, the main river of the huge Amazon region, very soon will travel thousands of people, full of desires, predictions, ideals, good cheer, and also with assignments, reservations and concerns, all of whom are in one way or another concerned about the changing climate, the polluting environment, and the many (negative) consequences thereof for so many, especially poor people.

In Belém will take place the major UNITED NATIONS CLIMATE CONFERENCE from November 10 to 21, ten years after the historic meeting in Paris, where the 2015 Paris Agreement was concluded.

This global meeting, with the technical name COP30 (Conference of Parties 30), is undoubtedly of crucial importance for the near and distant future of “our common home,” as Pope Francis called our beautiful, fertile, and now so threatened earth.

During this climate summit, governments must take new steps to limit the climate crisis and achieve the Paris 2015 target of a maximum of 1.5 degrees of global warming. 
The conference is essential for making global agreements and for finding (better) climate financing for those most affected. 
COP decisions are made on the basis of consensus and apply to all countries that are members of the UN.

TWO ZONES
The formal negotiations take place in the so-called BLUE ZONE. This is where the most important negotiations and decisions on climate change are discussed. This area is only accessible to delegates from member states, observers, UNorganizations, and accredited civil society organizations.

In addition, there is the large GREEN ZONE. This is where many organizations from all over the world come together a) to share initiatives on sustainability in its many forms and b) to actively network: to help each other, which is extremely important for keeping up morale and for the creative translation of good ideas into practice.

THE AGENDA
It's dizzying to see what's on the agenda:
The main points:

* NATIONAL CLIMATE PLANS: countries will (have to) present new and ambitiousnational climate plans, which should contribute to the global goal of 1.5 degreesCelsius.

* CLIMATE FINANCING: Much more funding is needed to help developing countries,which contribute little to global warming but suffer the most from it, to takecountermeasures. Related to this is
*ADAPTATION AND RESILIENCE: Increasing adaptations to better preparecommunities for or help them cope with the effects of climate change. E.g.,assistance with drought or protection against sea level rise.

* FOSSIL FUELS: This is a very hot topic: the use of coal, natural gas, petroleum, shale gas and shale oil must be rapidly reduced and, at the same time a just energy transition must be stimulated: the transition to forms of “clean” (i.e. not polluting) energy, such as solar, wind, water, geothermal, hydrogen, etc. 
One of the great dilemmas is : Clean energy is gradually becoming cheaper, but polluting energy still generates much more money !

* JUSTICE AND INCLUSION: a just transition, with a focus on gender equality (including particularly the rights and possibilities for women and girls), the rights of indigenous peoples and of other vulnerable communities.


* TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY: 
Central matters are: Monitoring progress on the agreements made and strengthening the accountability mechanisms.

* PROTECTION OF ECOSYSTEMS: Brazil, as the host country, will call for specificattention to be paid to the protection of forests and ecosystems that are essentialto climate policy (e.g. the rainforests of the Amazon, Borneo, Congo).

CONTINUATION

This, of course, is an enormous amount of work, but it is no new work : all items are CONTINUATION of what has been worked on for a long time already. All these issues have been on the agenda for years, especially since “Paris2015”. 
In fact most of them are still 'older': All these efforts at the global level were already on the agenda of the EARTH SUMMIT in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, also in Brazil. And that was, be aware, already many years after the warning, in 1972, by the Club of Rome in its report: LIMITS TO THE GROWTH.

It is very understandable that this long development threatens to discourage many people. The need is so great and progress so small – at least, that is how it looks like and often also is.
The fact that President Trump of the United States (which belong to the worse polluters) has withdrawn from the Paris Agreement – and is now pursuing a highly environmentally damaging policy – is also something that disappoints and discourages, not only many Americans !

Yet and happily, ‘the Americans’ are not giving up and many ‘lower authorities’ are participating fully in the green zone on their own initiative: governors, non-governmental organizations, representatives of religious groups, etc.
All these and so many other people struggle but are convinced:

DISCOURAGEMENT IS NO SOLUTION.

Out of sincere concern, a huge number of ‘counter-movements’ are underway worldwide. Not only within the Catholic / Christian world, but also in the world of Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, the Baha'i movement, Buddhism, Shikism and so on. In all these 'worlds' is great concern and commitment and practical involvement. Some communities even have their own ‘Laudato Si’ document, such as the inspiring 2019 Islamic AL MIZAN, A covenant for the Earth.

Within the Catholic world, since the publication of the encyclical Laudato Si, a worldwide Laudato Si Movement has emerged, strongly encouraged by the late Pope Francis.
Recently, this Movement held a COP30-focused preparatory meeting with the theme: CREATING HOPE FOR CLIMATE JUSTICE.
Some highlights:

* POPE LEO strongly encouraged the more than 500 representatives of a wide spectrum of organizations, associations, and groups, emphasizing that, for perseverance and fruitfulness, two things are necessary: our spiritual conviction and inner depth and our practical commitment. Both are needed, because they  feed each other and also guide each other: contemplation and action, action and contemplation.

* ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGER, the former governor of California, spoke from his many years of commitment to the environment and painted, in an amusing and clear way, difficulties and successes - and in that way he fueled the fire among his audience.
He called Pope Leo XIV an “action hero for climate justice.” However, with a smile, the pope deflected attention from himself and focused it on the people gathered before him: “There is indeed an action hero among us—it is all of you, working together to make a difference.”
And our pope concluded with a challenge that continues to resonate:
“God will ask us whether we have cherished and cared for the world He created,and whether we have cared for our brothers and sisters. What will our answer be?”

* MARINA SILVA, the Brazilian Minister of the Environment, was also challenging. She gave an enlightening analysis of what many see as the moral obstacles to climate action (which, for all of us, is good to be aware of) and also encouragingly described how much good has already been done in many areas since previous COPs. She mentioned among others: it has been agreed that by 2030, renewable energy will be tripled and energy efficiency will at least double. These may seem like technical matters, but they are in fact of great importance to the climate –and are already having a measurable impact in many companies and factories worldwide.

* The president of the Brazilian Bishops' Conference, Cardinal JAIME SPENGLER,  emphasized that, precisely as people of faith, we must have the courage to be prophetic, not hesitate to call things by their name, not be afraid of contradiction, criticism, or cynicism, and courageously continue to work, individually and especially together. With "This is our part; the future belongs to our Creator." he resonated the pope.

Dear reader, thank you for reading this far.

As noted earlier, both the large gathering in Bethlehem, Brazil, and an inspiring meeting like that in Rome, are just the tips of a great mountain of commitment to the climate, the environment, and its victims.

At the same time, there is also the pain that so much more could be done.

In any case, I hope that the above has increased your interest and your confidence and that you can continue to participate in this commitment for our “common home”, that beautiful world, entrusted to us humans, which St.Francis sang about in his Canticle of the Sun, which opened with “Laudato Si,Signore ...”


Johan Muijtjens
October/November 2025