An environmental magazine has rated Pope Benedict, who rides an electric popemobile and has installed solar power at the Vatican, as among the world's top religious leaders on "green" issues.Catholic News Service reports that the pope and the other Catholic leaders managed to crack the list compiled by Grist magazine because they have spoken out on environmental issues.
The pope's use of an electric-powered popemobile and solar-power-friendly Vatican City helped him land at No 6 on the list.
Grist said the pope has been increasingly vocal about the suffering that climate change will cause for the world's poor.
"When he speaks out on an issue, the world listens," Lisa Hymas, senior editor of Grist, said in a telephone interview from Seattle, where the paper is based.
But solar power and a popemobile could not land the pope the highest ranking on the list.
The top spot went to Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople for his involvement in international environmental causes.
The Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual and temporal leader of the Tibetan people, took second place.
He has become increasingly vocal about the environment since he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.Hymas said the list was compiled by editors of Grist.
The idea originally focused on evangelicals but soon included leaders from other faiths.
"We wanted a mix of people from all kinds of religion," Hymas said.
Hymas said the editors wanted to show that religious leaders who speak on environmental issues can be taken seriously and as leaders they wield influence.
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