The Vatican Puts Environmental Preaching Into Practice at New Ecological Center in Italy
The 136-acre Borgo Laudato Si has a greenhouse, farm animals and educational facilities
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The Vatican has opened a new ecological training center aimed at inspiring other countries to take action to address climate change and other environmental issues. Called Borgo Laudato Si, the new 136-acre site in Italy has a greenhouse, gardens, farm animals and educational facilities.
“If we, the smallest city-state in the world, can do this, what is the potential for other states that are bigger than us?” says Manuel Dorantes, the American priest running the center, to Reuters’ Joshua McElwee. “Our world can be different if we work together.”
Pope Leo XIV officially opened the new complex on September 5. But it was the brainchild of the late Pope Francis, who was a vocal advocate for climate action. It’s named after Laudato Si, a landmark text Francis wrote in 2015 that linked climate change with social justice and criticized consumerism.
Since being installed in May, Leo has also emphasized the need to protect the environment.
"We must pray for the conversion of so many people, inside and out of the church, who still don’t recognize the urgency of caring for our common home," he said at a private Mass for the center’s staff in July, as reported by the Associated Press’ Nicole Winfield. "We see so many natural disasters in the world, nearly every day and in so many countries, that are in part caused by the excesses of being human, with our lifestyle.”
The center is located on the grounds of the papal palace in Castel Gandolfo, a small town roughly 15 miles outside of Rome on the shores of Lake Albano. Popes typically spend their summer vacations at the site, which makes up roughly 55 percent of the Vatican's landholdings, per Reuters.
Borgo Laudato Si is being powered entirely by energy from solar panels, per the Associated Press. The property is equipped with “smart” irrigation systems, as well as wastewater treatment and reuse facilities and rainwater harvesting capabilities, to help conserve water. Plastics are banned at the facility, which also has a robust recycling and composting program to further reduce waste.
The center plans to sell agricultural products made on-site—including wine, cheese and olive oil—under the label “Laudati Si,” according to the Catholic News Service's Carol Glatz. It is also offering job training programs geared toward vulnerable and marginalized individuals, such as domestic violence victims and refugees, in fields like sustainable gardening, organic winemaking and olive harvesting.
Next spring, Borgo Laudato Si plans to open a farm-to-table restaurant and catering operation, offering Italian fare that draws inspiration from Chicago, Leo’s birthplace, and Peru, his long-time home, reports Eater’s Jeffy Mai. The culinary offerings will be run by chef Art Smith and restaurateur Phil Stefani, who are both based in Chicago.
“As a Catholic and Italian, this project is a dream for my family and me,” said Stefani in a statement, as reported by Eater. “To be part of a culinary experience on Vatican property is deeply meaningful to us. But we also share this honor with the city of Chicago. We have the unique opportunity to bring a taste of home, some of that unique Chicago spirit, to a global audience.”
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