VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis urged countries on Saturday to work towards net zero carbon emissions and committed Vatican City - the world's smallest state - to reaching the target by 2050.
"The current pandemic and climate change, which are not only environmentally relevant, but also ethically, socially, economically and politically, affect, above all, the lives of the poorest and most fragile," he said in a video message to the summit. He committed the Vatican "to reducing net emissions to zero by 2050," as well as intensifying environmental management efforts and furthering the rational use of natural resources such as water and planting more trees.
It said the Vatican, which began installing solar panels in 2008 and banned single-use plastic bags last year, was now recycling 65% of its waste and aimed to reach 75% in 2023.