Pope Francis receives indigenous leaders who call for climate justice - NaijaAgtoNet

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The head of the Catholic Church, the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State, Pope Francis, has met some 40 indigenous leaders in a private audience, report NaijaAgroNet.

The leaders also used the opportunity to raise their concerns about the toll that extractive and exploitive industries fueling the global economy were having on growing inequality, preventing access to basic human rights and hindering environmental sustainability.

The indigenous leaders, who were in Rome to attend the 6th Global Meeting of the Indigenous Peoples’ Forum hosted by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), hand delivered their message during a private audience with His Holiness, Pope Francis.

“The dangers facing our world have not only persisted since our last encounter in 2019 but have grown even more dire in many respects. Human beings continue to destroy nature, pollute our waters, and ignite our jungles and forests,” said the indigenous leaders in their message.

The scramble for natural resources in areas where they live, including timber-rich rainforests and mineral-rich mining areas continues to see encroachments on Indigenous Peoples’ lands and territories by extractive industries. The lack of effective support and protection often leads to a variety of incidence of intimidation, extreme violence and even assassination. In 2020, over one-third of the 227 climate and environmental activists murdered globally came from indigenous communities; almost three out of four murders took place in Latin America.

IFAD President Alvaro Lario, also in attendance, emphasized the role of Indigenous Peoples as climate leaders who are essential to protect biodiversity and ensure a viable future on Earth for future generations.

“No one, no agronomist or development professional will ever understand nature as deeply as the Indigenous Peoples. Nurtured over millennia, their knowledge of the Earth’s plant and animal life remains unrivalled,” said Lario.