Pope Francis instituted a new law with the name of “Brother Sun” a reference to St Francis of Assisi, as he works toward making all the energy used by the Vatican City State, renewable and clean.
In this document, the pope orders the construction of an agrovoltaic plant in an extraterritorial area of the Vatican: Santa Maria di Galeria, about 20 miles northwest of Rome.
This structure is meant to supply energy for the entire Vatican City State.
This is not the first measure Pope Francis has taken to make the Vatican more ecological. In 2019, he promoted the use of electric cars through installing charging stations around the state’s territory.
In addition, the Paul VI Audience Hall, where the pope holds many public appearances, has photovoltaic panels on the roof.
These were built in 2008, however, the energy could not be used to supply the entire territory. For that, a larger space was needed and an extraterritorial area is used.