Wildfire smoke, conflict, and conversion: Asian Laudato Si’ groups compare notes in Philippines

Smoke from wildfires in Indonesia shut every school in East Timor for three days in October. A young Catholic from the small Southeast Asian nation brought that story to a gathering of Church environmental leaders in the Philippines.

“Smoke haze from Indonesia forced schools to close in Timor-Leste for three days,” said Isaura Barros, 24, who serves on the executive board of the Laudato Si' Movement in Timor-Leste.

The government suspended classes nationwide Oct. 15–17 because of poor air quality.

Barros spoke at the movementʼs Asia-Pacific chapters retreat, held Oct. 24–27 at the CBCP-Caritas Philippines Development Center in Tagaytay City, south of Manila. Seventeen delegates from Myanmar, South Korea, East Timor, Indonesia, and the Philippines took part, Radio Veritas Asia reported .

Delegates to the Laudato Si’ Movement Asia-Pacific chapters retreat gather for a group photo in Tagaytay City, Philippines, during the Oct. 24–27, 2026, meeting. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Cyprianus Lilik Krismantoro Putro

The Laudato Si‘ Movement is a Catholic network founded in 2015 and named after Pope Francis’ encyclical on care for creation. It says it has more than 8,000…