The United Nations has declared 2025 as a year dedicated to four key global themes: Glaciers’ Preservation, Peace & Trust, Quantum Science & Technology and Cooperatives. For the Focolare Movement, rooted in unity and a commitment to universal brotherhood, these themes resonate deeply, as expressed in the Final Document of the General Assembly 2021, Courage to Embrace the World. Its insights into addressing three key crises—human suffering, environmental degradation and generational inequities—align with the UN’s vision for 2025.
Glaciers’ Preservation: Responding to the Cry of the Earth
The preservation of glaciers, critical to regulating Earth’s climate and sustaining billions of lives, aligns with the Assembly’s call to heed the “cry of the Earth.” The document emphasizes the interconnectedness of ecological crises and advocates for transformative action: “The scale of the pandemic crisis is also linked to the fact that ‘everything is related’: the loss of biodiversity, deforestation, etc.”
In response, the Assembly encourages sustainable practices, ecological consciousness and partnerships to achieve environmental goals, such as the UN’s 17 SDGs. This spirit of action underscores the urgent need to safeguard glaciers as a linchpin of climate stability and to combat the cascading impacts of climate change.
What can we do?
- Advocate for policies that address climate change, prioritizing the preservation of glaciers and freshwater resources.
- Mobilize local communities in sustainable practices and awareness campaigns that reflect ecological conversion.
Peace & Trust: Listening to the Cry of Humanity
In an era of escalating conflict and polarization, the UN’s focus on peace resonates deeply with the Assembly’s commitment to embrace humanity’s cry. It highlights the necessity of reconciliation, dialogue and unity to counter inequality and fragmentation: “We commit ourselves to seek out those who suffer, those who are excluded… to build genuine and quality relationships together.”
This vision mirrors the UN’s call for peace-building initiatives that address the root causes of violence and promote harmonious coexistence. Through inclusive action, the Focolare Movement aligns with efforts to bridge divides and heal societal wounds. In her statement on 8th October 2023, Margaret Karram, President of the Focolare Movement appealed, “Let us commit ourselves to building a world of fraternity and to do all that is possible so that these peoples and all the others who are in the same conditions of instability and violence, can rediscover the pathway of respect for human rights, where justice, dialogue and reconciliation are the indispensable instruments for building peace.”
What can we do?
- Foster interfaith and intercultural dialogue, creating spaces for reconciliation and understanding.
- Advocate for justice-driven solutions to conflicts, linking these efforts to climate action and human dignity.
Quantum Science & Technology: Bridging Frontiers for the Future
The UN’s emphasis on Quantum Science as a transformative tool for humanity connects with the Assembly’s call to engage deeply with innovative solutions and evolving knowledge systems, engaging the new generations. Since 2021, Focolare has intensified its efforts to work not FOR young people but WITH young people, a winning formula as the recent Genfest in Brazil proved. Focolare’s commitment to wisdom and interdisciplinary dialogue finds expression in the Sophia University Institute and its Piero Pasolini Chair, which fosters collaboration between science, philosophy and spirituality. By nurturing ethical responsibility alongside ground-breaking research, the Movement highlights how quantum science & technology can address energy, communication and healthcare challenges while fostering unity and inclusivity.
What can we do?
- Promote dialogue between scientists and faith communities to ensure that quantum science and technology serve humanity, especially the marginalized.
- Highlight the interconnectedness of all creation, which reflects the unity at the heart of Focolare’s mission.
Cooperatives: Fostering Collective Empowerment
The UN’s focus on cooperatives as engines of economic and social development aligns seamlessly with the Focolare’s Economy of Communion (EoC) initiative. This reimagines economic systems as spaces of solidarity, where businesses and communities collaborate to reduce inequality and foster human dignity. The Assembly affirmed this approach: “The complexity of the world’s suffering requires responses that are synergistic in their application… We believe it is necessary to work ‘in living networks’ full of relationships of trust.”
This vision resonates with the Economy of Francesco, a global movement initiated by Pope Francis to unite young economists and entrepreneurs in shaping a more inclusive and sustainable economic future. The Focolare’s Loppianoprima, a pioneering agricultural cooperative in Loppiano, Italy, is an example of this ethos in action. Rooted in shared resources and sustainable practices, Loppianoprima supports the local community while fostering economic inclusion. Together with the EoC and the inspiration drawn from young leaders at events like the Genfest, it demonstrates how cooperatives can drive systemic change and align with the UN’s vision for equitable and sustainable growth.
What can we do?
- By supporting cooperatives, especially in vulnerable communities, Focolare members can create economic systems that reflect unity and mutual care.
- Practical examples, like the Economy of Communion businesses, show how economic activity can promote equity and social justice.
A Shared Vision for Unity
The Focolare General Assembly’s vision of unity resonates deeply with the UN’s themes for 2025. Addressing the cries of humanity, the Earth and future generations requires not only bridging divides but also fostering innovative solutions and collective responsibility. “Courage to Embrace the World” serves as both a roadmap for the Focolare Movement and an inspirational guide for global action in 2025 and beyond.
