Pope Francis began his tour of Africa Wednesday with a speech in Kenya highlighting an urgent need for humanity to focus on renewing our environment and reducing our footprint on the earth.

The Pope said that a divisiveness in humanity would directly translate to a divisiveness between humanity and nature and that in order to heal the earth, we first needed to heal the division between races, economic classes, and religious groups.

Said the Pope, “In effect, there is a clear link between the protection of nature and the building of a just and equitable social order. There can be no renewal of our relationship with nature, without a renewal of humanity itself.”

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Sydney Robinson is a political writer for the Ring of Fire Network. She has also appeared in political news videos for Ring of Fire. Sydney has a degree in English Literature from the University of West Florida, and has an active interest in politics, social justice, and environmental issues. She would love to hear from you on Twitter @SydneyMkay or via email at srobinson@ringoffireradio.com