New Pope Leo XIV medal on sustainability to debut in Rome in October

Pope Leo XIV will present the first Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal during an award ceremony on October 13 in Rome. The ceremony will take place in the Borgo Laudato Si’ garden within the Pontifical Gardens at Castel Gandolfo.

The medal was established by Villanova University to recognize people working toward ecological stewardship and the common good. The university plans to present this permanent award every two years. The event is part of the International Sustainability Conference, which runs from October 12 to 15 at the Patristic Institute Augustinianum. The Dicastery for Integral Human Development is also sponsoring the conference.

Villanova University president Father Peter Donohue, OSA, stated that the medal honors leaders whose work advances both environmental care and the common good. Pope Leo XIV, formerly Robert Prevost, earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Villanova in 1977 and an honorary doctorate from the university in 2014.