What is our responsibility towards our common home? In his second encyclical letter, Pope Francis addresses environmental issues and our place in creation, calling for "swift and unified global action". Explaining that this letter is to be added to the body of Catholic Social Teaching, Pope Francis explains his hope that it will "help us to acknowledge the appeal, immensity and urgency of the challenge we face."

"I urgently appeal, then, for a new dialogue about how we are shaping the future of our planet. We need a conversation which includes everyone, since the environmental challenge we are undergoing, and its human roots, concern and affect us all." (LS14)