Br. Adolf Mugume, C.S.C., Director of Communications for the Holy Cross Generalate, was one of 400 people from around the world invited to participate in the Raising Hope Conference at Castel Gandolfo along with Pope Leo XIV. The conference brought together faith leaders, scientists, and politicians to mark the 10th anniversary of Laudato Si’ and address the climate crisis. Br. Mugume was representing the Congregation of Holy Cross, the Laudato Youth Initiative (which he helped to found), and the Bethany Lands Institute.

Pope Leo XIV participated in the opening ceremony, which was “A Celebration of Hope”. Reminding the attendees that “we cannot love God, whom we cannot see, while despising His creatures,” the Holy Father urged collective engagement, stronger environmental policies, and a vision of integral ecology that links care for creation with social justice and spiritual conversion.

Learn more about the Laudato Si' Platform

“Hearing the Holy Father speak was unforgettable,” said Br. Mugume. “Pope Leo XIV asked us to take actions of the heart, which aligns with our Holy Cross notion of forming hearts. He called upon each participant to recognize their responsibility towards creation.”

One of the featured testimonies came from Mr. Arnold Schwarzenegger, former Governor of California in the United States, who reinforced the urgency of transitioning from fossil fuels and called on faith communities to lead by example, urging Catholics to “terminate pollution.”

In a poignant moment, Pope Leo XIV placed his hands on a 20,000-year-old piece of glacial ice from Greenland, offering a prayer as it melted. That simple, yet profound gesture captured the urgent message of the whole conference: the climate crisis is a moral and spiritual challenge that demands immediate action from individuals, communities, and governments alike.

Read about the Laudato Youth Initiative

While at the conference, Br. Mugume was able to share with others the work of the Congregation of Holy Cross, the Laudato Youth Initiative, and the Bethany Lands Institute on matters of justice, peace, and integrity of creation. The Congregation of Holy Cross remains committed to deepening and expanding its efforts in caring for our common home.

“Attending, listening, and witnessing these moments of prayer and reflection reinforced a simple truth: we are called to be caretakers of our common home,” said Br. Mugume. “The gathering emphasized that solutions require both global political commitment and local, personal action, reminding us that every gesture, however small, matters.”

Br. Mugume continued, “All of us can respond through prayer, action, education, and sustainable living. Remaining true to our mission together, we want to inspire our ministries to broaden their involvement in implementing the message of Laudato Si’and in taking more actionable steps toward providing education of integral ecology that advances the message of serving God and caring for his Creation with a special preference to the poor, in line with our charism.”