Pope Leo XIV Inaugurates the Borgo Laudato Si’

On Friday, September 5, Pope Leo XIV inaugurated the Borgo Laudato Si’ in Castel Gandolfo. Present at the inauguration were Sister Raffaella Petrini, President of the Governorate, along with the two Secretaries General, Archbishop Emilio Nappa and Atty. Giuseppe Puglisi-Alibrandi.

In a chirograph dated February 2, 2023, Pope Francis outlined the reasons that inspired the establishment of the Borgo Laudato Si’. In particular, he wrote that it was his intention to create “a tangible model of thought, structure and action,” to be called Borgo Laudato Si’. “A forum for dialogue and an example of change, this initiative will be located within the endowments, appurtenances and dependencies of the Pontifical Villas of Castel Gandolfo (cf. Lateran Treaty, Annex II, 5), without in any way altering or modifying the overall nature of this property of the Holy See, as established by Article 14 of the Lateran Treaty (Annex II, 4) and defined by customs and various provisions of my Venerable Predecessors.”

The Pontiff went on to explain that “in order to animate the life and works of the Borgo Laudato Si’,” he was establishing the Centro di Alta Formazione Laudato Si’ (Laudato Si’ Center for Advanced Training) as “a scientific, educational and social organization, working for integral formation, with its registered office in Vatican City State and its main operational headquarters in the Pontifical Villas of Castel Gandolfo.”

He further decreed that the Centro di Alta Formazione Laudato Si’, under the jurisdiction of the Governorate of Vatican City State, would be governed by its “own Statutes,” which he simultaneously approved.