350 KENYA IN SOLIDARITY WITH THE POPES ENCYCLICAL ON CLIMATE CHANGE Pope Francis on his latest encyclical said, "The Earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an immense pile of filth. In many parts of the planet, the elderly lament that once beautiful landscapes are now covered with rubbish." The last Pope to visit Kenya was in the year 1995. It is now exactly 20 years that Kenya will be welcoming the new down-to-Earth climate change enthusiastic Pope! We at 350 Kenya and friends would like to mark this eventful visit by an eventful Pope by planting 20 ecologically approved trees at Uhuru Park, marking the 20 years of the absence of a Pope’s visit to our Land as well as welcoming him back. 20 youth from 350 Kenya and various organizations have already volunteered to plant, each a single tree that they will make sure to nurture till maturity as a show of commitment in supporting the Pope’s encyclical calling on humans to take care of the environment they live in. The 20 youth, who will also attend the Pope’s gathering at Kasarani and the interfaith youth meeting, will also present a diplomatic statement from 350 Africa to the Pope. This ceremony will start at Uhuru Park at 2pm with the tree planting then a musical match ending at the Kenya National Theater with a climate change concert. Various artists have already signed up for the ceremony. We are calling upon all government departments, private sector and the general public to take a front line in ensuring environmental protection and sustenance in its use. And as the heads of states meet in Paris this year, we want to remind them that bold measures must be taken to ensure that fossil fuels remain underground, and that the time for the world to shift to greener and cleaner energy is now!