Catholic Leaders Urge Climate Action Before COP31
Three U.S. Catholic leaders call for decisive climate action ahead of the UN COP31 conference in Antalya, Turkey.
Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Catholicism
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Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre, Bishop A. Elias Zaidan, and Sean Callahan issued a joint statement on November 6, 2026, calling for decisive action on climate change. The statement comes days before the UN COP31 climate conference opens in Antalya.
Why it matters
The statement frames climate action as a matter of protecting human flourishing and the common home, citing extreme weather, floods, droughts, and rising seas. It adds a faith-based voice to negotiations focused on limiting temperature rise and moving beyond fossil fuels.
The joint statement was issued November 6, 2026, days before COP31 runs November 9-20 in Antalya, Turkey. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, which COP31 operates under, counts 198 parties, and the outcome of the talks has not yet been reported.
The players
Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre
Fabre chairs the U.S. Catholic bishops' Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development and leads the Archdiocese of Louisville.
Bishop A. Elias Zaidan
Zaidan heads the U.S. Catholic bishops' Committee on International Justice and Peace and leads the Maronite Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon.
Sean Callahan
Callahan is president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services, the international humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic community.
The details
The three leaders ask world leaders to leave Antalya having matched their commitments to the scale of need. The statement quotes Pope Leo XIV's COP30 message, which said national progress on climate change is not enough.
Timeline
November 6, 2026: Joint statement issued by Fabre, Zaidan, and Callahan.
November 9-20, 2026: COP31 climate conference held in Antalya, Turkey.
Faith and Policy
The statement sits within the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, in force since 1994 with 198 parties, whose annual COP talks have set the agenda for global emissions and climate finance. Religious leaders have increasingly joined this process, with Pope Leo XIV's COP30 message calling current national efforts insufficient.
Readers following the climate talks can track the November 9-20 COP31 negotiations in Antalya for outcomes on emissions and climate finance. The joint statement reflects advocacy that may shape how faith communities engage with climate policy locally.
The takeaway
Faith leaders are increasingly voicing urgency on climate change as international talks approach. Readers can watch how the COP31 outcomes respond to calls for matching commitments to the scale of need.
What happens next
The UN COP31 climate conference runs November 9-20, 2026, in Antalya, Turkey, where negotiators will address emissions reduction and climate finance.
Further reading
Explore more faith-based perspectives in the Catholicism section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Catholic Telegraph.
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