Several Catholic dioceses in big shipping centres have pledged to divest shares in fossil-fuel related companies.
The National Catholic Reporter said the announcement was made following a Vatican-sponsored conference on the challenges facing the oceans and coastal areas.
Among the dioceses involved is Panama City, next to the Panama Canal and the first archdiocese in the Americas to divest.
The Catholic Church in Greece has also pledged to offload oil and gas and coal mining stocks, as has the San Carlos Diocese of the Philippines and Caritas Philippines, the church's development agency in the Southeast Asian country, a major source of seafarers.
