Pope's Alma Mater to unveil first-ever Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal recipient
Villanova University will hold a press conference on September 14 to announce the inaugural recipient of the Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal. The ...
8 days ago
Villanova University has named Cardinal Michael Czerny, S.J., the inaugural recipient of the Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal. Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to present the award on October 13 during Villanova’s International Sustainability Conference in Castel Gandolfo. 2 3
The announcement was made by Villanova President Father Peter Donohue, O.S.A., at a September 14 press conference in the Vatican’s Sala San Pio X. Cardinal Czerny is the former prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development. 2 3
Villanova said the medal recognizes leadership that combines environmental protection, social justice, care for vulnerable communities, and responsible economic stewardship. Donohue cited Czerny’s work on human dignity, justice, human rights, and care for creation as reflecting the award’s purpose. 2 3
Czerny described the honor as a call to responsibility and action. He said sustainability extends beyond ecological concerns to include artificial intelligence, political responsibility, and the broader question of how society is shaping the future. 2 3
Villanova is an Augustinian Catholic university near Philadelphia where Pope Leo XIV, then Robert Prevost, earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics in 1977. The university awarded him an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree in 2014. 2 3
The medal is named after the pope and is intended to honor individuals whose leadership reflects an integrated approach to sustainability. It is to be awarded every two years during Villanova’s International Sustainability Conference. 2
Father Joseph Farrell, O.S.A., prior general of the Augustinians, attended the Vatican press conference. 2 3
Pope Leo XIV is expected to present the medal on October 13 at the Laudato Si’ Village in the Pontifical Gardens of Castel Gandolfo; the location is also described as the Borgo Laudato Si’ garden. 2 3
The presentation will take place during the 2026 Villanova University International Sustainability Conference, titled “Responding to the Cries of the Earth and the Poor,” scheduled for October 12–15 in Rome. The event is expected to bring together about 300 academics, researchers, Church representatives, foundation officials, and public- and private-sector leaders. 2
The conference is being organized with support from the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and the Laudato Si’ Center for Higher Education. Its program will address the relationship between ecological degradation and social inequality, with participation from researchers, policymakers, communities on the front lines of environmental challenges, and representatives from the Global South. 2
Czerny linked sustainability to shared responsibility for the world being built, citing Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas. He said education should prepare students not only to care for the existing world but also to take responsibility for the future. 2 3
In comments after the press conference, Czerny focused on the expansion of artificial-intelligence data centers. He said decisions to build such facilities should involve affected residents and examine whether local people will bear the costs, burdens, or consequences. 3
He characterized development without consultation of significant stakeholders as an imposition and an injustice. 3*
Examine the Catholic Church’s teaching on ecological stewardship
The Catholic Church teaches that ecological stewardship is a moral responsibility rooted in God’s creation, human dignity, solidarity, and the common good. Humanity is neither the absolute owner of the earth nor merely one species among others: people are entrusted with creation as responsible stewards, ordered to serve present and future generations.
Creation belongs ultimately to God. In Genesis, humanity receives “dominion,” but Catholic teaching understands this as responsible governance, not permission for unlimited exploitation. Human beings are called to cultivate, protect, and use creation in ways that serve the whole human family.
Because creation is God’s gift, it possesses an integrity and value that cannot be reduced to commercial profit. The Church therefore rejects the idea that economic usefulness is the only measure of nature’s worth.
This stewardship is compatible with the legitimate use of natural resources. Catholic teaching does not demand that human beings cease transforming nature or using its fruits. Rather, such use must be prudent, proportionate, and directed toward integral human development—development of the whole person and all peoples.
The environment is a “common good”: it is shared by humanity and cannot be treated as though present individuals or nations possess an unlimited right to dispose of it. Each generation receives the earth in trust for those who come after it.
This gives ecological responsibility an intergenerational dimension. Pollution, depletion of resources, and environmental destruction can impose burdens on people who had no part in causing them. Consequently, present economic decisions must consider the needs of future generations rather than pursue short-term gain.
The principle also has an international dimension. Environmental damage crosses national borders, so the protection of creation requires cooperation among states and effective action for the global common good.
Ecological stewardship is inseparable from concern for the poor. Environmental degradation often affects those least able to protect themselves: the poor may lose access to clean water, suffer from pollution, or be forced to leave their homes because of environmental changes.
For this reason, Catholic environmental ethics is not simply about preserving landscapes or endangered species. It also asks who bears the costs of environmental damage and who benefits from the exploitation of resources. Wealthier nations have a particular responsibility to address what Pope Francis calls an “ecological debt” owed to poorer nations.
The Church therefore links ecological action with solidarity: the moral virtue by which individuals and societies recognize their responsibility for one another, especially the vulnerable.
Catholic teaching speaks not only of environmental ecology but also of human ecology. The environment cannot be defended while disregarding human life, the dignity of workers, the family, or the moral order. Pope Benedict XVI described the “book of nature” as one and indivisible: concern for the natural environment must be connected with respect for the human person and social relationships.
John Paul II likewise warned that environmental destruction can arise from a distorted view of the human person, in which production and economic interests take priority over workers, communities, and human life. Authentic ecological responsibility therefore protects both the created world and the dignity of every human being.
This does not mean that every environmental policy is automatically endorsed by Catholic teaching. Prudence is required in evaluating scientific claims, proposed solutions, economic effects, and unintended consequences. But the moral duty to avoid reckless destruction and protect vulnerable people is clear.
The Church calls for an ecological conversion: a change in attitude and conduct arising from one’s relationship with Christ. This includes gratitude for creation, restraint in consumption, respect for natural resources, and willingness to accept responsibility for the effects of one’s choices.
Catholic teaching encourages a simpler way of life that meets genuine needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs. It also supports constructive civic participation and appropriate pressure on political, economic, and social leaders.
Responsibilities exist at several levels:
Catholic ecological stewardship is neither nature worship nor unlimited human exploitation. It is a form of justice and gratitude: God’s creation is received as a gift, used responsibly, protected from abuse, and handed on to future generations. Its central principles are stewardship, the common good, solidarity with the poor, respect for human dignity, prudence, and ecological conversion.