Pope Leo XIV encouraged the world to unify around care for the planet as he took the stage at a climate justice conference headlined by actor and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger outside of Rome on Wednesday.

“We are one family, with one Father, who makes the sun to rise and sends rain on everyone (Mt 5:45),” Leo said Oct. 1 at a conference center in Castel Gandolfo, Italy. “We inhabit the same planet and must care for it together. I therefore renew my strong appeal for unity around integral ecology and for peace!”

The pontiff and Schwarzenegger addressed the opening day of the Oct. 1–3 “Raising Hope for Climate Justice” conference, held at a center near the papal villa of Castel Gandolfo.

Speakers at the gathering, promoted by the Laudato Si’ Movement in collaboration with international organizations, will include bishops, heads of international organizations, Indigenous leaders, climate and biodiversity experts, and representatives of civil society.

In remarks before the pope’s speech, Schwarzenegger cited the Catholic Church’s 1.4 billion members, 400,000 priests, and 200,000 churches as a “power … involved in our movement, in our environmental movement to terminate pollution.”

“And of course, I’m very honored to be here, because I am next to an action hero,” he added, gesturing toward Pope Leo. “The reason I call him an action hero is because as soon as he became pope, he ordered the Vatican to put solar panels on the buildings. This will be one of the first states to be carbon neutral. Let’s give him a big, big hand for this action.”

The “Terminator” actor suggested more people talk about the problem of pollution over “climate change” as an easier concept for people to understand: “We have to talk to the heart so people understand it.”

“I have a very clear vision that we can [terminate pollution] together,” he added.

The pope, in comments before his prepared remarks, said “there is indeed an action hero with us today, it’s all of you.”

Call to conversion

In his message, Leo praised Pope Francis’ environmental encyclical Laudato Si’ as a source of inspiration and dialogue that has prompted action to care for our common home.

“As with every anniversary of this nature, we remember the past with gratitude, but we also ask ourselves what remains to be done,” he said.

The pontiff said that in the 10 years since the publication of Laudato Si’, the focus has moved from studying the encyclical to putting it into practice.

“What must be done now to ensure that caring for our common home and listening to the cry of the earth and the poor do not appear as mere passing trends or, worse still, are seen and felt as divisive issues?” he asked.

Pope Leo’s speech also emphasized a need for spiritual renewal.

“The challenges identified in Laudato Si’ are in fact even more relevant today than they were 10 years ago,” he said. “These challenges are of a social and political nature, but first and foremost of a spiritual nature: They call for conversion.”

He encouraged people to grow in relationship with God, others, nature, and themselves, because “we cannot love God, whom we cannot see, while despising his creatures. Nor can we call ourselves disciples of Jesus Christ without participating in his outlook on creation and his care for all that is fragile and wounded.”

The pope expressed the hope that upcoming international summits at the United Nations, such as the 2025 Climate Change Conference (COP 30), the 53rd Plenary Session of the Committee on World Food Security, and the 2026 Water Conference, “will listen to the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor, families, Indigenous peoples, involuntary migrants, and believers throughout the world.”

He encouraged everyone, from young adults and parents to politicians, to do their part to find solutions to educational, cultural, and spiritual challenges. “There is no room for indifference or resignation,” he underlined.

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This article was originally published on Catholic News Agency.