The Pope praised the «fundamental» contribution of indigenous peoples in the fight against climate change and exclaimed that it is not possible to «continue to greedily devour natural resources».
«We should listen more to indigenous peoples and learn from their way of life to properly understand that we cannot continue to greedily devour natural resources,» the pontiff said as he received at the Vatican a group of indigenous peoples who are participating in the Indigenous Peoples’ Forum, which is taking place at the headquarters of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), under the theme ‘Indigenous Peoples’ Leadership on Climate Issues: Community-Based Solutions for Improving Resilience and Biodiversity’.
«I call on governments to recognize indigenous peoples around the world, with their cultures, languages, traditions and spiritualities, and to respect their dignity and rights with the awareness that the richness of our great human family consists precisely in its diversity,» he added.
The Pope called for «a process of reconversion of the consolidated power structures» that govern the society of Western culture and, at the same time, asked that historical relations «marked by colonialism, exclusion and discrimination» give way to «a renewed dialogue».
«We urgently need joint actions, the fruit of loyal and constant collaboration, because the environmental challenge we are experiencing and its human roots have an impact on each one of us,» he added.
Thus, he stressed that «ignoring» the native communities in safeguarding the earth is a «grave error» and «a great injustice».
Francis thus urged to recognize «the fundamental role» played by indigenous peoples in the protection of the environment and «to highlight their wisdom in finding global solutions to the immense challenges that climate change poses to humanity on a daily basis».
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
