Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey's trip to speak at a Vatican climate summit this week will include an audience with the pope, but the governor also plans to tend to the Bay State's business ties with Italy while she's there.
The governor's Italian itinerary starts in Rome with an American Chamber of Commerce in Italy roundtable on Tuesday. Healey will host Italian business leaders who are thinking about establishing or expanding a footprint in Massachusetts, her office said, and she will "highlight all that makes Massachusetts a great place to do business, learn more about what the businesses are interested in and the challenges they face, and discuss opportunities for further collaboration."
Italy is Massachusetts' 10th-largest global trading partner, with a total of $2.05 billion in trade between the state and country in 2023, Healey's office said. The administration highlighted Italian companies that maintain operations in Massachusetts, including Enel North America and Piaggio Fast Forward. Healey will also connect Tuesday with U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Joe Donnelly, a former Democrat member of Congress from Indiana.
"I'm excited for this opportunity to showcase Massachusetts' climate and economic leadership on the global stage, and to make the case for why businesses should consider starting and growing in our state," Healey said. "Massachusetts deeply values our close relationship with Italy and the Vatican City State, and we see this trip as an excellent opportunity to strengthen ties and strategize on future opportunities for collaboration."
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Traveling with Healey will be Climate Chief Melissa Hoffer, Director of Operations Ellie Hitt, Director of Scheduling and Senior Executive Assistant Katharine Thibodeau and Press Secretary Karissa Hand. The delegation's expenses are expected to be paid through the Massachusetts Tourism Trust Fund, which allocates funds to the Massachusetts Marketing Partnership, Hand said. The MPP includes the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism and the Massachusetts Office of International Trade and Investment.
On Wednesday morning (4:15 a.m. EST), Healey will give a keynote address at the opening session of the Vatican Climate Summit focused on "governing in the age of climate change" and plans to make news. Her office said the speech "will highlight Massachusetts' global climate leadership, particularly in the emerging industry of climatetech, and announce a new initiative to grow the climate workforce."
Later that evening, she will co-chair the summit's energy session and deliver introductory remarks for panels on the renewable energy transition, access to clean and affordable energy, grid resilience, and clean cooking. Her co-chair is Cheikh Mbow, the director general of Centre de Suivi Ecologique in Senegal and an adjunct professor at Michigan State University.
Hoffer has plans Tuesday to visit the Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research, and to meet with the director of Rome’s Climate Office as well as with environment, science, technology and health personnel from the U.S. Italian Embassy. She will deliver a "report from the front lines" to the climate summit Wednesday afternoon.
Thursday morning, Healey will participate in a "Highlights and the Way Forward" event, which her office said will end with proposals from all mayors and governors on next steps.
The climate summit is organized by the Pontifical Academy of Sciences and the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences under the leadership of University of Massachusetts Boston Chancellor Marcelo Suárez-Orozco and Ram Ramanathan, a renowned researcher who discovered the greenhouse gas effect of halocarbons in the 1970s. Pope Francis, who called climate change "a global social issue and one intimately related to the dignity of human life," will preside over the conference.
Healey, who has previously identified herself as Catholic, will get an audience with Pope Francis early Thursday morning along with Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, the governor's office said. Francis is the first Catholic Church leader from the Americas and he has connections to Massachusetts by virtue of his close relationship with Boston Archbishop Cardinal Sean O'Malley.
The 79-year-old O'Malley told the Boston Globe earlier this year that he expects to leave his post "soon," noting that he handed his resignation to the pope five years ago as is required of bishops turning 75. The 87-year-old Francis would appoint O'Malley's successor as head of the church in the Boston area.
