Pope Leo XIV welcomed participants in the first Borgo Laudato si’ Dialogues at Castel Gandolfo on Friday, June 19, 2026. The two-day meeting brought together experts, practitioners, and leaders from different countries and disciplines to discuss urgent issues including artificial intelligence and human dignity, healthy ageing, sports diplomacy, and environmental sustainability.
The dialogues are part of Borgo Laudato si’, a center for integral ecology in the Papal Villas inspired by Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical Laudato si’.Addressing the participants at the close of the meeting, the Pope called the gathering “the first step of a process aimed at renewing and reimagining moral leadership in a world that today appears fractured and forgetful of its historical roots.” Drawing from his encyclical Magnifica humanitas, he stressed the importance of dialogue to find new paths for the common good and a dignified life for all.
He urged engagement “with all men and women of our time, with whom we share in the events, questions and aspirations of humanity.”Pope Leo warned against a growing “spiritual and cultural blindness” and what he called a false pragmatism that tries to sever society from its history, as if a “new creation” could be built detached from the past. He also cautioned that even those who invoke moral principles can fall into “historical nihilism” by believing the tragedies of the 20th century cannot repeat. Inspired by synodality, the dialogues brought diverse voices together around shared concerns, which he commended as a model for ecological, social, and economic renewal.On technology and economic development, he contrasted two visions of society.
Facing the temptation to build the “Tower of Babel” — the idolatry of profit at the expense of the vulnerable — Christians are instead called to build the “New Jerusalem, the civilisation of love.” He said this civilisation will not come from one spectacular gesture, but from “the sum total of small and steadfast acts of fidelity that serve as a bulwark against dehumanization.”The Pope also noted the setting of the Pontifical Gardens at Borgo Laudato si’, where participants could draw inspiration from “the beauty of creation – and of the Creator” while connecting local experience to global responsibility. Thanking those present, he expressed hope that the process begun at Castel Gandolfo would continue through future encounters and initiatives.