By Antonio Guterres
UN Secretary General
It is a great honor and a privilege to join you for this ceremony and to receive the Lamp of Peace. I only wish I could be with you in the beautiful Basilica of Saint Francis.
By honouring me, you are recognizing the work of all our United Nations personnel striving for peace around the world: diplomats, humanitarians, development specialists, and peacekeepers, who put themselves in harm’s way to safeguard and promote peace.
The United Nations was created in the name of peace, after the horrors of two global wars that began here in Europe. Peace remains our guiding star and most precious goal.
We are united here today in our pursuit of peace. I thank King Abdullah for his efforts to promote peace on the global stage, through his staunch support for international solutions, solidarity, dialogue and human rights. And I express my gratitude to Brother Moroni, Cardinal Basetti and all the Franciscans who are working around the world in the name of peace.
I have very close links to the Franciscans through my lifelong friendship with Father Vitor Melicias, a Franciscan priest who presided over both my wedding ceremonies, baptized my children, and celebrated mass many times in my home.
And as an Antonio from Lisbon, I have a strong connection with Santo Antonio – one of the first Franciscans. People from Lisbon and people from Padua may never agree on where St Anthony belongs, but of course, he belongs to the whole world.
As a person of faith with a deep appreciation and respect for the mission of St Francis, this award and ceremony are especially meaningful.
From the start of my mandate as Secretary-General, I made promoting peace my first priority, having seen some of the worst impacts of conflict during my tenure as High Commissioner for Refugees.
I launched a surge in diplomacy for peace. And I put greater emphasis on prevention, establishing more rigorous systems and frameworks to analyse risks, reinforce decision-making and support Member States to take action before violence escalates.
When COVID-19 first took hold, I understood it would be a new threat to peace and called immediately for a global ceasefire to fight our common enemy – the virus.
Looking forward, I am determined to use my second mandate to build on these initiatives through my good offices, as an honest broker, bridge builder and messenger of peace.
But the struggle for peace is often a Sisyphean task, given the complexity of today’s interlinked conflicts.
We live in a world where peace is elusive, and under enormous threat.
Many countries and entire regions are suffering from prolonged conflicts, with no end in sight.
And in places that have not seen conventional war for decades, peace is routinely undervalued and undermined.
This lends even greater importance to moments like this, when we honour peace, and reflect on our duty to uphold and promote it.
Excellencies, dear brothers and sisters,
Saint Francis of Assisi was a true visionary, whose holistic concept of peace is as relevant today as it was during his lifetime, eight hundred years ago.
The patron saint of ecology has much to teach us about making peace with nature.
Our unsustainable production and consumption habits are causing a triple planetary crisis: climate disruption; a catastrophic loss of biodiversity; and levels of pollution that are killing millions every year.
Pope Francis recognized this in his inspiring encyclical, ‘Laudato Si’.
Our war on nature threatens all human life, together with many other animal and plant species.
Climate disruption is unleashing wildfires, floods, droughts and other extreme weather events that affect every continent.
It contributes to a struggle for scarce resources like clean water and fertile land, which can easily erupt into violence.
Last year, more than 30 million people were forced from their homes by climate- related disasters – many finding shelter in countries that are also affected by the climate emergency.
The triple planetary crisis requires urgent action from everyone – from governments, international organizations, businesses, cities and individuals.
We need global solidarity, not only to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent by 2030, but to support communities and countries that are already reeling under the strain.
Developing countries need urgent access to climate finance, so that they can adapt their infrastructure and economies, and build resilience.
Climate action builds peace.
Reforestation, water cooperation and cross-border land management initiatives protect and restore nature while connecting communities with each other and with the natural world.
That is the way of the future.
Human wellbeing lies in restoring and protecting the health of our planet and everything on it.