The Office of Religious Congregations for Integral Ecology

Ecological Debt

ORCIE Endorses Open Letter on Canada’s International Climate Finance

ORCIE has endorsed the C4D Open Letter to the Prime Minister’s Office — Cementing Canada’s International Climate Finance Leadership in Budget 2026 — coordinated by the Canadian Coalition on Climate Change and Development (C4D). This endorsement builds on ORCIE’s advocacy through the Turn Debt into Hope and Fair Shares campaigns, calling for justice in the intertwined debt and climate crises.

The open letter responds to the Government of Canada’s renewed international climate finance pledge announced in the Spring Economic Statement ($5.9 billion package). While the renewed commitment is a positive step, the letter underscores the need for greater clarity and ambition to ensure Canada’s climate finance package is allocated effectively and delivers meaningful results for communities on the front lines of climate change.

ORCIE supported this initiative because it reflects positions we have consistently advanced through our climate finance advocacy. The letter addresses gaps in Canada’s climate finance commitments at a time when many countries are reducing or delaying international climate finance pledges.

Read the letter here:

July 2026 – (EN) PMO Letter on Climate Finance.docx

July 2026 – (FR) PMO Letter on Climate Finance.docx

What’s Next?

ORCIE will continue monitoring the development of the federal government’s climate finance policy framework in the lead-up to COP31, as well as climate finance commitments included in the 2026 federal budget. These will be important opportunities to assess Canada’s progress in supporting global climate action and climate justice.

From Santa Marta to Tuvalu: What the First TAFF Conference Means for Catholics Advocacy

The first Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels (TAFF) in Santa Marta, Colombia brought together 57 countries and a wide range of stakeholders to focus on one question: how to move from global commitments to implementation on transitioning away from fossil fuels.

What the conference is — and is not

Santa Marta is a sustained political platform for implementation-oriented cooperation among countries ready to advance an orderly fossil fuel phase-out. It is complementary to the UNFCCC process and contributes to broader climate roadmaps while enabling more practical, cross-country collaboration.

It is not a replacement for the UNFCCC or COP processes, not a negotiation space for a fossil fuel treaty, and not designed to convince skeptics.

Key outcomes

The conference delivered several important results, including:

  • a second TAFF conference in 2027, co-hosted by Tuvalu and Ireland;
  • a coordination mechanism to maintain momentum and link with COP processes;
  • three implementation workstreams on transition roadmaps, financial and macroeconomic barriers, and producer–consumer cooperation;
  • and the launch of a Science Panel on the Global Energy Transition.

Why this matters

Santa Marta highlights that the transition away from fossil fuels is increasingly about implementation challenges: debt, fiscal dependency, investment gaps, energy access, and just transition pathways. These issues sit at the centre of Catholic advocacy on ecological justice, particularly where economic and social inequality intersect with climate action.

The process also reinforces the importance of people-centred transitions, including worker participation, Indigenous rights, and community-led energy access.

Read here some of the key outcomes from the conference: Santa Marta: Key outcomes from first summit on ‘transitioning away’ from fossil fuels – Carbon Brief

Looking ahead

Santa Marta is part of a broader trajectory toward COP31, and the next TAFF conference in Tuvalu in 2027, where progress on implementation workstreams will be assessed and further shaped.

As ORCIE considers its role moving forward, several questions will guide our work:

  • What priority emerging from Santa Marta should shape ORCIE’s advocacy over the next six months?
  • How is ORCIE positioning its advocacy and partnerships in light of these outcomes toward COP31, and TAFF2 in Tuvalu?
  • What is the greatest opportunity for Catholic coordination ahead of TAFF2, and how might ORCIE integrate?

This week, ORCIE will continue discussions with partners in the Climate Action Network (CAN-Rac) to explore coordinated responses and shared advocacy strategies.

Turning Debt Into Hope: ORCIE’s Role in a Collective Call for Debt Justice

After fifteen months of steady advocacy and education, the Turn Debt Into Hope campaign reached a powerful culmination on April 28 with a Parliamentary breakfast and a rally on Parliament Hill.

The global campaign was led by Caritas Internationalis in 2025 to mark the Jubilee Year around the world. In Canada, it was carried out by an ecumenical coalition of organizations, including Development and Peace – Caritas Canada (DPCC), KAIROS Canada, Citizens for Public Justice, the Canadian Council of Churches, and ORCIE.

For ORCIE, this moment marked not only the close of a national campaign and a recognition of the strength of coalition work, but also a clear demonstration of what becomes possible when Religious Congregations engage their elected leaders with courage and hope.

ORCIE in the Shared Effort

Through the Turn Debt into Hope campaign, ORCIE shifted its advocacy to a Canadian focus—calling for grants instead of loans for climate finance and the cancellation of unsustainable debts for developing countries.

How we took part

A Crucial Meeting: Sisters of St. Joseph and MP Rob Oliphant

Sasquia Antúnez Pineda, Vickie McNally, Sister Pat Boucher, MP Rob Oliphant, and Sister Janet Speth

A turning point came on March 30, when the Sisters of St. Joseph of Toronto, accompanied by ORCIE staff Sasquia Antúnez Pineda, met with MP Rob Oliphant, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

This meeting—rooted in the Sisters’ ongoing presence and ministry in his riding—opened the door to everything that followed. MP Oliphant agreed to:

  • Sponsor the Parliamentary Panel
  • Present the Parliamentary Paper Petition in the House of Commons
  • Receive all 75,500+ petition signatures at the rally

April 28: A Day of Witness and Hope

The day began with a Parliamentary breakfast, sponsored by MP Oliphant and the Sisters of St. Joseph, titled “Turn Debt Into Hope: Why tackling sovereign debt matters for global stability and sustainable development.”

MPs from multiple parties attended, including Elizabeth May, Brendan Hanley, and Greg Fergus, along with Parliamentary staffers, representatives from civil society organizations including ONE Campaign, Results Canada, the Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability, Climate Action Network Canada, Citizens’ Climate Lobby and KAIROS members. Their presence reflected the broad, cross‑party concern for debt justice.

Speakers

Wesley Chibamba (Caritas Africa); Dean Detloff and Kiegan Irish (Development and Peace–Caritas Canada); Caroline Brouillette (Climate Action Network Canada)
Moderators: Beth Lorimer (KAIROS) and Geneviève Gallant (ORCIE)

At noon, more than 100 people gathered for the rally on Parliament Hill. MP Oliphant accepted 75,500+ Canadian signatures, joined by MP Judy Sgro. Students, sisters, professors, and coalition partners brought energy and justice calls to the moment.

MP Oliphant spoke about Jubilee’s biblical foundations and Canada’s past involvement in sovereign debt cancellation, while also underscoring the urgent need to confront today’s unsustainable and unfair debt burdens crippling developing countries: “Canada has led the way for almost seventy years in debt forgiveness. We don’t forgive all debt, because the reality is that we want a combination of grants and loans—this helps countries establish sustainability, credit ratings, it establishes them as full partners in our global world. But debt can be crippling, can be unsustainable and can drop down the level and standard of living that all of us can benefit from. So, I am pleased to receive these petitions.”

MP Judy Sgro: “We are waiting for you to work with us to ensure that we have a better world”

A Visible Impact — Thanks to Your Engagement

This campaign showed something important: MPs respond to their local communities. The engagement of ORCIE congregations—your signatures, your meetings with your MPs, your faithful presence—wove an important thread into the wider coalition effort.

Together, this helped nurture:

• The Parliamentary breakfast

 • The public petition handover on Parliament Hill

• Cross‑party MP engagement

• A united coalition voice for debt and climate justice

We are deeply grateful to every congregation that participated, and especially to the Sisters of St. Joseph of Toronto for their decisive role in meeting MP Oliphant. Your witness made these moments possible.

What’s Next

The coalition has already held more than 20 meetings with MPs, with a few additional conversations still anticipated. On April 21, MP Brendan Hanley presented the Parliamentary Paper Petition in the House of Commons, and several other MPs are expected to table petitions in the coming weeks.

The coalition has also submitted a request to appear before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development as part of its study on the sovereign debt crisis. If invited, ORCIE would participate as a supporting witness on ecological debt.

As these final petition readings unfold, ORCIE will continue offering accompaniment to congregations engaging their local MPs, recognizing that advocacy grounded in community relationships has the greatest impact.

Watch MP Brendan Hanley read the Parliamentary Paper Petition in the House of Commons: ParlVu

Transformer la dette en espoir — Pétition parlementaire

Avez-vous déjà signé la pétition en ligne « Transformer la dette en espoir » ? Super! Alors que nous entrons dans la dernière phase de la campagne Jubilé 2025, avec la coalition le BCRÉI lance une dernière initiative coordonnée afin de traduire le large soutien du public en une action politique significative.

De la pétition mondiale à l’action parlementaire au Canada

La pétition parlementaire « Transformez la dette en espoir » constitue la prochaine étape stratégique de notre travail en faveur de la justice en matière de dette. S’appuyant sur plus de 70 000 signatures recueillies au Canada, cette pétition parlementaire permet aux députés de présenter officiellement la question à la Chambre des communes, introduisant ainsi la crise mondiale de la dette directement dans le discours politique fédéral.

D’ici avril 2026, avec votre aide, notre objectif est de créer une visibilité durable en encourageant 10 à 15 députés à présenter la pétition tout au long de la session. Chaque présentation renforce la pression publique, accroît l’attention des médias et signale aux dirigeants fédéraux que la justice en matière de dette et le financement de la lutte contre le changement climatique restent des priorités nationales urgentes.

Février 2026: Kiegan Irish DP-CC, Geneviève Gallant BCRÉI, Beth Lorimer KAIROS: Kiegan ont rencontré des directrices et des économistes du ministère des Finances du Canada pour discuter de la responsabilité du Canada d’alléger la pression sur les pays ayant une dette insoutenable ou injuste.

Comment vous et votre congrégation pouvez participer

Si vous, ou votre congrégation, souhaitez soutenir cette initiative en recueillant des signatures, en contactant votre député local ou en contribuant à cette campagne de sensibilisation coordonnée de quatre mois, nous vous invitons chaleureusement à vous impliquer. L’ORCIE est prête à vous accompagner et à vous soutenir à chaque étape.

Pour confirmer votre participation, veuillez contacter : Geneviève Gallant – Directrice générale ggallant@orcie.org

Prochaines étapes pour les membres participants

Pour participer à la campagne de pétition papier :

  1. Veuillez consulter la page d’instructions pour obtenir des conseils détaillés sur la manière d’utiliser la pétition parlementaire papier et d’impliquer votre député.
  2. Veuillez télécharger le document pétition parlementaire imprimable et commencer à recueillir des signatures au sein de votre congrégation ou communauté.
Instructions-pour-la-petition-papier-parlementaireDownload
Pétition papier parlementaire – Transformer la dette en espoirDownload

Pour les ressources additionel, visiter notre dossier ici!

Turn Debt Into Hope — Parliamentary Paper Petition

(toutes les info en francais ici)

Have you already signed the Turn Debt Into Hope online petition? Wonderful. As we enter the final stretch of the Jubilee 2025 campaign, ORCIE is launching one final coordinated effort to translate broad public support into meaningful political action.

From Global Petition to Parliamentary Action

The Turn Debt Into Hope parliamentary paper petition is the next strategic phase of our debt justice work. Building on more than 60,000 public signatures gathered globally, this petition enables Members of Parliament to formally present the issue in the House of Commons—bringing the global debt crisis directly into federal political discourse.

From January to April 2026, our goal is to create sustained visibility by encouraging 10–15 MPs to table the petition throughout the session. Each presentation strengthens public pressure, elevates media attention, and signals to federal leaders that debt justice and climate finance remain urgent national priorities.

February 2026: Kiegan Irish DP-CC, Geneviève Gallant ORCIE, Beth Lorimer KAIROS: Genevieve, Beth and Kiegan met with Directors and Senior Economists from the Department of Finance Canada to discuss Canada’s responsibility to relieve pressure on countries with unsustainable or unjust debt.

How You and Your Congregation Can Participate

If you—or your congregation—would like to support this effort by gathering signatures, approaching your local MP, or contributing to this coordinated four‑month advocacy push, we warmly welcome your involvement. ORCIE is ready to accompany and support you every step of the way.

To confirm your participation, please contact: Genevieve Gallant – Executive Director
📧 ggallant@orcie.org

Next Steps

To participate in the paper petition effort:

  1. Visit the Instruction Page for step‑by‑step guidance on the parliamentary petition and how to engage your MP.
Instructions Turn Debt Into Hope Parliamentary Paper PetitionDownload

2. Download the printable Parliamentary Paper Petition and begin collecting signatures within your congregation or community.

Turn Debt Into Hope Paper Parliamentary PetitionDownload

For additional advocacy tools visit our resource folder here