A few weeks ago, two dead manatees were found within 24 hours of each other in the San Silvestre Marsh, a vital water source for the people of Barrancabermeja and one of the most important ecosystems surrounding the oil port. Over the past seven years, sixteen manatees have died there, raising concerns that oil pollution may be contributing to these deaths (Iguana Papers). Environmental activist Yuli Velásquez of the Federation of Artisanal Fishers, Environmentalists, and Tourism of Santander (FEDEPESAN) lamented: “It is very sad to witness the ‘massacre’ of all the wildlife that dies here time and again.” And how could it be otherwise? The city itself reeks of oil.
For a long time, countries of the Global South have been made to implement economic and political models imported – and often imposed – by the world’s economic centers. At its core, the ecological and environmental crisis is also a political and economic crisis. It stems from a way of understanding the relationship between human beings and nature that prioritizes profit over life. In the relationship between “rich” and “poor” countries, the primary concern is often not the fulfilment of people’s needs but the demands of capital. As a result, the driving force of society becomes not the logic of life – work, health, housing, food, land, and human dignity – but the logic of accumulation and profit.
While a minority consumes and wastes the earth’s resources, polluting and destroying them in the process, the majority of humanity has little or no access to these increasingly scarce goods.
The natural balance of creation has been disrupted by the same unjust structures that have fractured the balance within the human family. The root cause is one and the same: in destroying nature, humanity ultimately destroys itself.
Yet many leaders and social organizations continue to defend the environment and their territories, often at great personal risk. Colombia continues to rank among the most dangerous countries in the world for land and environmental defenders, while those responsible for violence against them frequently enjoy impunity (Climate Whistleblowers, 2025).
Our task, then, is to transform this reality. We must reclaim an understanding of the human person as a being inseparably connected to nature, created alongside all living creatures and entrusted with their care. As beings of the earth, we are called to recognize and renew our bond with “Mother Earth,” from whom we come and to whom we shall one day return.
Let us pray for the restoration of balance, among peoples and between humanity and nature. Such restoration means seeking the flourishing of all living beings rather than the enrichment of a privileged few.
Let us pray for those who make decisions regarding the earth’s resources, that they may exercise wisdom, responsibility, and accountability for the consequences of their actions. Let us also remember those who work the land, the seas, and the rivers, that they may enjoy the fruits of their labor in dignity and peace.
Finally, let us pray that together we may transform our lives and strengthen networks of solidarity capable of renewing the social reality of the Middle Magdalena region, our country, and our world. May this transformation be rooted in justice, commitment, and care for one another. And let us give thanks for our common home—for the beauty of the earth, the abundance of its gifts, and the rich inheritance entrusted to us.
