This week the world has come together to mourn the death of Pope Francis, who died on Easter Monday, age 88. As speculation mounts about who will replace him, and whether they will be a reformer or traditionalist, we want to reflect on Pope France’s contribution to the climate movement and the change he drove around the world, not just across the 1.4 billion Catholics he led, but beyond to other religions and cultures too.

Pope Francis was an unapologetic environmental advocate, and he used his papacy to raise awareness about the critical need to curb greenhouse gas emissions. While many believed he shouldn’t discuss it, because it was considered ‘political,’ the Pope said that climate change was a spiritual issue, and he clearly laid out the consequences of not tackling it in his 2015 “Laudato Si” - the first-ever papal encyclical focused solely on the environment. In it, he discussed climate change, loss of biodiversity to water scarcity, as well as societal breakdown, and how the poorest would suffer the most.

A follow-up “Laudato Si” was published in 2023, and in this, Pope Francis called for a broad change in the “irresponsible lifestyle connected with the Western model.” So, we must ask - did we listen? Because global emissions have kept rising, including record emissions released in 2024.

One positive sign of the Pope’s contribution is environmental leaders from around the world acknowledging the impact he had in waking the world up to the dangers we face, leaving a legacy firmly entrenched in the climate movement. The Pope was a climate activist.

We had two very special guests join us. Clare Westwood, who is a powerhouse in the climate movement, and regional director of the Roman Catholic Episcopal Commission for Creation Justice of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, and the Co-Founder and Executive Chair of Laudato Si' Asia – a Coalition for Culture of Care, Resilience and Ecological Justice (LSIA-CAREJ).

Dr Lorna Gold is the Executive Director of the Laudato Sì Movement. Lorna’s focus is on supporting the team at a time of significant change, amplifying the intersection of faith and environmental stewardship. Since 2015, LSM's team's dedication has cultivated a global network advancing ecological conversion. Dr Gold’s tenure as Interim CEO at FaithInvest fortified her resolve to align faith-based investments with environmental and social sustainability, pioneering strategies that resonate with shared values for a healthier planet.

We’ll be discussing the Pope’s legacy and a lot more of the environmental news we think you should be aware of, including the economic and geopolitical situation the world is currently in, so come and join us, 25th April, 8am UK, 2pm TH, 3pm SG, 6pm AEST.

Climate Courage is a livestream, held every two weeks and is co-hosted by Andrea T Edwards, Dr. David Ko and Richard Busellato. On the show, we cover critical topics across the full spectrum of the polycrisis, in everyday language, and we go big picture on the climate crisis, while also drilling down and focusing on the actions we can all take to be part of the solution. Whether individual action, community action, or national/global action - every single one of us can be part of ensuring a live-able future for our children and grandchildren. We owe them that!

#ClimateCourage #RethinkingChoices #UncommonCourage

To get in touch with me, all of my contact details are here https://linktr.ee/andreatedwards

My book Uncommon Courage, an invitation, is here https://mybook.to/UncommonCourage

My book 18 Steps to an All-Star LinkedIn Profile, is here https://mybook.to/18stepstoanallstar

It’s been hard to have a break from the show with so much going on in the news, but our sanity is important, as is spending time with family. That said, we are very happy to be back this week, and of course, we are going to talk about the tariff battle between the US and China, digging into the question – who is going to win? If you’re in the US, you might have a different view, but out here in Asia, we see things very differently and we’re looking forward to exploring it.

No question, the news has been relentless, and we will talk about coping with the onslaught, but to give you a flavour for topics, we have to ask - has the US already gone fully fascist? Ignoring a Supreme Court ruling, attempting to control universities, attacking law firms who don’t comply, axing the wire service from the Whitehouse coverage pool, as well suing any media organisations reporting on topics the Trump administration doesn’t like, all the way through to pondering whether it’s legal to send US citizens to El Salvadorian prisons… to name a few, but it doesn’t sound very Democratic, does it?

But what does it all mean to us – living beyond the US? The economy is obviously top of mind, as is world peace, but how do we understand this within the context of the even more alarming research from Copernicus’ Climate Change Service and James Hansen’s latest paper on accelerated warming? It’s a lot, so come and join us as we dig into a complicated time in human history. It’s all happening Friday 18th April, 8am UK, 2pm TH, 3pm SG and 6pm AEST.

To help us this week, we’ve got two special guests, as Tim Wade will be delivering an Easter sermon at this time. First up is Coen (陈坚明) Tan, CSP, whose goal is to help the silenced reclaim their true voice one story at a time. Coen coaches business leaders to inspire and lead through magnetic stories, and he’s the host of "The Wholehearted Podcast.” Our other guest is Philip F. Hisn. Philip is a speaker, author, strategic parenting advisor, investment management advisor, as well as an EduTech and non-profit community advisor. What a great combination of guest speakers to liven up the conversation.

The Know Show is a Livestream held every fortnight on Friday, where Andrea T Edwards, Tim Wade and Joe Augustin, and at least one special guest, review the news that’s getting everyone’s attention, as well as perhaps what requires our attention. We’ll talk about what it means to us, the world and we hope to inspire great conversations on the news that matters in the world today.

The Know Show is based on Andrea T Edwards Weekend Reads, which are published every Saturday on andreatedwards.com, and covers the planetary crisis, topical moments in the world, global politics and war, business and technology, social issues, and passion/humour/history. Join us.

#TheKnowShow #UncommonCourage

To get in touch with me, all of my contact details are here https://linktr.ee/andreatedwards

My book Uncommon Courage, an invitation, is here https://mybook.to/UncommonCourage

My book 18 Steps to an All-Star LinkedIn Profile, is here https://mybook.to/18stepstoanallstar

In February, Caroline Lucas and Rupert Read wrote an article in The New Statesman titled: It’s time for climate populism. They suggest that as politics turns against net zero, we need to mobilise a genuine mass movement against ecological catastrophe. It’s an adaptation message and concludes with: a depolarising wave of action that mobilises communities’ instinctive protective instincts could really be… popular. And that is climate popularism.

In response, Joseph Gelfer wrote: Climate Populism is Coming, But Not The Way Progressives Think. He argues that progressives may be right that climate populism is coming, but that they fundamentally do not understand the form it is going to take. A primary reason for this is because you can’t take your existing agenda and “make it populist.”

Climate Populism is Coming, But Not The Way Progressives Think - ZNetwork

We think this is a really important issue, so we’re going to discuss the bigger story and opportunity/threat around the idea of climate populism, AND we’re going to talk about how to operationalise it, as well as the barriers leaders of the climate movement face if they are serious about taking real-world action, which must prioritize those most at risk within our societies. If we don’t carry them, we will not succeed, and extremism will continue to rise.

To help us explore this far-reaching topic, we are delighted that Joseph Gelfer said yes to joining us on Climate Courage. Joseph is a British-based sustainability strategist and green jobs advocate. Currently he is thought leadership lead at Kite Insights, which helps businesses and organisations achieve their sustainability, climate and biodiversity goals. Kite Insights focus includes: supporting thought leadership, research, communications and strategy; maximizing presence at major events such as COP, WEF, Climate Week NYC and London Climate Action Week; as well as building capacity via The Climate School and its Sustainability Action Readiness Assessment. Joseph speaks it like it is, so it’s going to be a great conversation, join us!

Climate Courage is a livestream, held every two weeks and is co-hosted by Andrea T Edwards, Dr. David Ko and Richard Busellato. On the show, we cover critical topics across the full spectrum of the polycrisis, in everyday language, and we go big picture on the climate crisis, while also drilling down and focusing on the actions we can all take to be part of the solution. Whether individual action, community action, or national/global action - every single one of us can be part of ensuring a live-able future for our children and grandchildren. We owe them that!

#ClimateCourage #RethinkingChoices #UncommonCourage

To get in touch with me, all of my contact details are here https://linktr.ee/andreatedwards

My book Uncommon Courage, an invitation, is here https://mybook.to/UncommonCourage

My book 18 Steps to an All-Star LinkedIn Profile, is here https://mybook.to/18stepstoanallstar