quick and easy solution under the guise of a certain commitment to the environment, but in no way
does it allow for the radical change which present circumstances require. Rather, it may simply
become aploywhich permitsmaintaining the excessive consumptionof some countries and sectors.
172. For poor countries, the prioritiesmust be to eliminate extreme poverty and to promote the social
development of their people. At the same time, they need to acknowledge the scandalous level of
consumption in some privileged sectors of their population and to combat corruptionmore effectively.
They are likewise bound to develop less polluting forms of energyproduction, but to do so they require
the help of countries which have experienced great growth at the cost of the ongoing pollution of the
planet. Taking advantage of abundant solar energywill require the establishment of mechanisms and
subsidies which allow developing countries access to technology transfer, technical assistance and
financial resources, but in a way which respects their concrete situations, since “the compatibility of
[infrastructures] with the context for which they have been designed is not always adequately
assessed”.
128
The costs of this would be low, compared to the risks of climate change. In any event,
these are primarilyethical decisions, rooted in solidaritybetween all peoples.
173. Enforceable international agreements are urgentlyneeded, since local authorities are not always
capable of effective intervention. Relations between states must be respectful of each other’s
sovereignty, but must also laydownmutually agreedmeans of averting regional disasters whichwould
eventually affect everyone. Global regulatory norms are needed to impose obligations and prevent
unacceptable actions, for example, when powerful companies dump contaminated waste or offshore
polluting industries inother countries.
174. Let us also mention the system of governance of the oceans. International and regional
conventions do exist, but fragmentation and the lack of strict mechanisms of regulation, control and
penalization end up undermining these efforts. The growing problem of marine waste and the
protection of the open seas represent particular challenges. What is needed, in effect, is an agreement
on systems ofgovernance for thewhole range of so-called “global commons”.
128
PONTIFICALCOUNCILFOR JUSTICEANDPEACE,
Energy, Justice and Peace,
IV, 1,VaticanCity (2014), 53.
