Pope Leo XIV to Confer First-Ever Sustainability Medal in His Name at the 2026 Villanova University International Sustainability Conference

Rome, Italy (Sept. 14, 2026) - Villanova University today announced Cardinal Michael Czerny, SJ, as the inaugural laureate of the Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal, a newly established distinction recognizing outstanding leadership at the intersection of sustainability, ethics and integral human development.

Pope Leo XIV will confer the distinction on Cardinal Czerny on Oct. 13, 2026, at Borgo Laudato Si', in the Pontifical Gardens of Castel Gandolfo, Vatican State, where the Laudato si' Center for Higher Education is creating a place dedicated to integral ecology, environmental sustainability, and circular economy. The presentation will take place during the 2026 Villanova University International Sustainability Conference, Responding to the Cries of the Earth and the Poor, being held in Rome from Oct. 12-15.

The announcement was made by The Rev. Peter Donohue, OSA, PhD, President of Villanova University, at a press conference held earlier today in Rome, which also featured Cardinal Michael Czerny, SJ headed the Vatican's Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development as Prefect until his term ended on Sept. 1, and Manuela Priesemuth-Payan, PhD, Villanova Faculty Director for Ethics and Social Responsibility in the Villanova School of Business.

"The Medal reflects a deeply held belief at Villanova: care for our common home and care for one another are inseparable. Inspired by Pope Francis' teachings in Laudato Si' and Laudate Deum, and by Pope Leo XIV's call to serve the poor and marginalized, the award recognizes sustainability as both an environmental and human responsibility," said Father Donohue. "Cardinal Czerny's work has shown us that care for creation cannot be separated from care for people. This is precisely the kind of leadership the Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal seeks to recognize."

The Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal was established by Villanova University in 2026 to recognize individuals whose work demonstrates exceptional commitment to ecological responsibility, social justice, care for the most vulnerable and responsible stewardship of economic and human resources.

"This honor belongs to a shared effort across the Church and beyond to respond to the one cry of the poor and of the earth. The recent Popes have forcefully taught that environmental responsibility and social justice are radically intertwined. The Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal is a loud call to continue accompanying the vulnerable and caring for our common home," said Cardinal Czerny.

Throughout his career, Cardinal Czerny has worked at the intersection of human dignity, social justice, care for vulnerable communities and care for creation. His selection as the first laureate reflects the Church's unique global understanding of sustainability: one in which care for the planet cannot be separated from care for people, particularly the poor and marginalized.

Czerny was born in the former Czechoslovakia in 1946 and immigrated to Montreal, Canada, with his family at a young age. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1963, was ordained a Jesuit priest in 1973, and spent more than five decades serving vulnerable populations around the world. He founded and led a center for faith and social justice in Toronto in 1979. In 1990, Czerny volunteered for assignment to El Salvador during the country's civil war. He later went to Kenya, where he founded the African Jesuit AIDS Network. Pope Francis named him a cardinal in 2019, after two years as under-secretary of the Vatican's section on migrants and refugees.

As Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, Czerny led the Church's work on justice, migration, health and care for creation from 2022 until Sept. 1.