Associate Professor Maryann Cusimano Love, an expert in international relations at The Catholic University of America and chair of the Department of Politics, participated in a global assembly on artificial intelligence (AI) and nuclear war.
Organized by the Domus Communis Foundation, the event, July 14-16, 2026, was inspired by Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, and was held in Borgo Laudato Si, located in the papal gardens at Castel Gandolfo. Catholic University was one of the sponsors of the gathering.
Invited participants for the Global Nobel Laureates Assembly on Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear War included Nobel laureates, Catholic cardinals, AI experts, former government officials, and academic experts. The Foundation described the Assembly as “the first structured, multi-stakeholder program designed to bridge the gap between the development of artificial intelligence and the communities that live with its consequences.”
At the opening, Cardinal Silvano Maria Tomasi, president of the Foundation, said the group was “gathered to renew hope, to demonstrate that dialogue remains possible, that wisdom can still accompany knowledge, that humanity has not lost the capacity to govern its own future." (Source)
The Rome Declaration
Catholic University’s Cusimano Love chaired one of the working groups that crafted the event’s concluding statement. The “Rome Declaration: Humanity at the Threshold: A Declaration on Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear Weapons” was adopted by the Assembly’s participants in a ceremony held at Rome’s City Hall.
The Rome Declaration establishes six principles, including the disarmament of AI and nuclear weapons in the next arms race; the responsible development, use, governance, and leadership of AI; and rejection of nuclear weapons.
Beyond her role as a tenured associate professor at Catholic University, Cusimano Love also serves as a consultant to the Holy See Mission at the United Nations, where she participates in U.N. negotiations on lethal autonomous weapons systems, the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty Review Conference, and the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. In this capacity, she is carrying the torch of the Catholic University brand – leaning into our core mission of faith and reason in dialogue and engaging in the world’s most pressing conversations.
Global Ambassadors: Magnifica Humanitas
As part of her participation in this July Assembly, Cusimano Love will serve as a Founding Global Ambassador of Magnifica Humanitas.
The Domus Communis Foundation described the ambassador program as “the first worldwide effort to carry the vision of the encyclical out of the realm of principle and into the life of communities, institutions, and nations, uniting voices across every culture and faith in service of an artificial intelligence worthy of the human family.”
Further Reading
See also: “Autonomous Weapons vs. Moral Agents: A Theologian Discusses the Anthropic Case,” a Q&A with Charles Camosy, associate professor of moral theology and ethics, School of Theology and Religious Studies, Catholic University of America.
