Commentary: Biophysical limits, women’s rights and the climate encyclical

“The Pope has made a strong call for action on climate change, but it fails to address the complex linkages between sustainable development and demographic growth.”

Paul Ehrlich and John Harte reflect on the Pope’s 2015 encyclical. While the authors commend the passionate and compelling call made for societal changes to reduce environmental degradation, they do find that “it overlooks a crucial incompatibility at the heard of the climate change problem: marrying shared and sustainable development with demographic growth.”