Photos provided by the Holy Cross Mission Center.
On July 11, Holy Cross Lake View Senior Secondary School (S.S.S.) in Jinja, Uganda, held a Laudato Si’ Green Festival that drew thousands of youth, educators, heads of schools, religious leaders, and community members from the surrounding region.
The festival was organized by the school’s Laudato Si’ Club. The club is part of the Laudato Youth Initiative, which is a youth-led Ugandan climate and ecological movement inspired by Pope Francis’s 2015 ecological encyclical, Laudato si. The theme of this year’s festival was “Environmental Conservation for Peace and Sustainable Development.”
Festivities began with a “Green Walk,” which was kicked off by Rev. Francis Mukasa, C.S.C., the pastor of Holy Cross Parish, Bugembe. The purpose of the walk was to raise awareness for caring for creation.
The walk ended at Holy Cross Lake View S.S.S., where participants celebrated a “Mass for the Care of Creation,” a Mass instituted by Pope Leo XIV in July 2025. Rev. Caxton Peter Mayanja, C.S.C., Provincial of the Province of East Africa, presided and preached at the Mass. In his homily, he emphasized the importance of storytelling for raising ecological awareness.
After Mass, the new Bishop Martin Wamika Legacy and Memorial Program, which aims to teach good manners and responsible use of the internet to young people, was launched by several dignitaries and leaders, including the Hon. Justine Kasule Lumumba, Uganda’s Minister of Information, Communications, and Technology and National Guidance; Hon. Salamu Musumba, a prominent Ugandan politician and former member of Parliament; Br. Adolf Mugume, C.S.C., the director of communications for the Congregation of Holy Cross; and leaders from the Laudato Youth Initiative.
Provided by the Holy Cross Mission Center, August 2026
