Pope Leo XIV will award the first Sustainability Medal bearing his name next October, an international recognition created by Villanova University to honor individuals whose work has contributed to environmental care, social justice, and integral human development.
The ceremony will take place in Castel Gandolfo during Villanova’s International Sustainability Conference, to be held from October 12 to 15 between Rome and the Borgo Laudato si’.
The winner of the first edition will be announced in September and will receive the medal from the Pontiff during the event.
A distinction linked to integral ecology
Villanova University has explained that the new award aims to recognize “an integral vision of sustainability” that unites care for creation, attention to vulnerable populations, and responsible stewardship of economic and natural resources.
Candidates may come from any professional or academic field and will be selected based on the impact of their work in promoting a more sustainable and equitable world.
The U.S. institution emphasizes that the evaluation will not be limited to technical criteria but will also consider the concept of integral ecology and its relationship with human dignity and the common good.
The medal will be awarded every two years as part of Villanova’s International Sustainability Conference program.
A gathering with 300 participants
The October conference is titled Responding to the Cry of the Earth and the Poor and will bring together approximately 300 participants, including academics, researchers, Church representatives, foundations, and leaders from the public and private sectors.
The event will be held at the Augustinianum Patristic Institute in Rome and at the Laudato si’ Center for Higher Education in Castel Gandolfo.
According to the organizers, the goal will be to move from dialogue to concrete initiatives and collaborative projects in environmental, social, and economic matters.
The conference is organized in dialogue with various institutions, including the Dicastery for the Service of Integral Human Development and the Laudato si’ Center for Higher Education, established during the pontificate of Francis.
Leo XIV’s connection with Villanova
The creation of the medal is linked to the Pontiff’s relationship with Villanova University, an Augustinian institution located in Pennsylvania, United States.
Robert Francis Prevost graduated there in Mathematics in 1977. Decades later, in 2014, the university awarded him an honorary doctorate in Humanities.
Villanova’s president, Augustinian Peter Donohue, noted that the medal reflects the conviction that “care for our common home and care for one another are inseparable.”
For his part, Cardinal Fabio Baggio, director general of the Laudato si’ Center for Higher Education, stated that the award will honor those who bear witness to “the inseparable link between care for creation and the promotion of human dignity.”