In memory of Joaquín Navarro-Valls, a distinguished physician, journalist, and longtime director of the Vatican Press Office, the Biomedical University Foundation presented the second International Navarro-Valls Award for Leadership and Benevolence to Lina Tombolato Doris and Nicolò Govoni.

Nicolò Govoni is the President and CEO of the "Still I Rise" Association. Explaining the association's mission, he says, "We offer world-class education to children who can never afford it. We are the first ones in the world to offer the IB, the International Baccalaureate, free of charge in a slum. We do this because we believe that education is only powerful as a tool of social change if it challenges the status quo."

The Ennio Doris Foundation

Lina Tombolato Doris founded the Ennio Doris Foundation in 2022 to honor her late husband. The foundation supports disadvantaged children, offers scholarships, and assists families and the elderly, leaving a lasting impact on the community. Upon receiving the award, she said, "I want to tell young people to dream, to look to the future with hope and confidence, and to plan for tomorrow without getting lost in despair or before the difficulties that are part of life."

Continuing Joaquín Navarro-Valls' Legacy

Alessandro Pernigo, President of the Biomedical University Foundation, adds, "We want to keep remembering Joaquín Navarro-Valls and everything he represented, including the pontificate of John Paul II. We reward individuals who truly know how to make a positive impact on society and promote good."

Still I Rise: Schools for Vulnerable Children

Born in 1993, Nicolò Govoni is the President and CEO of the Still I Rise Association, founded in 2018 in Samos, Greece. The NGO opens schools for refugee and vulnerable children, operating in Syria, Kenya, the DRC, Yemen, Colombia, and India.

Govoni notes, "When we talk about humanitarian aid, we often focus on health, food, and shelter, which are lifesaving. But these do not emancipate a person. What changes a life is the ability and the instruments to truly free oneself from any kind of constraints, even from humanitarian aid itself. The moment you educate a person, that person is free forever."

The award ceremony took place at the Protomoteca Hall of the Capitoline Museums in Rome.