That the contributions of Celia Deane-Drummond, PhD, PhD, to the Catholic intellectual tradition are exceptional is due in no small part to her holding doctorates in two distinct fields: plant physiology and theology. She draws on this wealth of knowledge and wisdom in her current roles as the inaugural director of the Laudato Si’ Research Institute and a senior research fellow in Theology at Campion Hall, University of Oxford. She is also a visiting professor of Theology and Science at Durham University and was Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame 2011–19.
Deane-Drummond’s research focuses on the interface between theology—particularly systematic and moral theology—and science, including ecology, anthropology, evolution, animal studies, psychology and genetics. Issues related to bioethics, environmental ethics, genetics, animal ethics, global development and transhumanism especially fascinate her.
The marriage of science and theology in her academic pursuits occurred in the lab. While Deane-Drummond was doing experiments on plants, she also reflected on spiritual writings. The more she grew in her understanding of science, the more she was attracted to theological and ethical concepts.
Deane-Drummond has shared her gifts on the global stage for decades. She was instrumental in the foundation of and then chair of the European Forum for the Study of Religion and the Environment from 2011 to 2018 and is on the executive committee and a trustee of the International Society for Science and Religion, to name but a few of her services. She also is an inaugural co-editor of the international journal Philosophy, Theology and the Sciences. She serves on the editorial board for the Journal of Catholic Social Thought, published by Villanova University.
A prolific author, Deane-Drummond has written, edited and contributed to many publications. Recent titles include Shadow Sophia: The Evolution of Wisdom Volume II (Oxford University Press, 2021); Theology and Evolutionary Anthropology: Dialogues in Wisdom, Humility, and Grace (Routledge, 2020); Theological Ethics through a Multispecies Lens: The Evolution of Wisdom, Volume 1 (Oxford University Press, 2019); Theology and Ecology across the Disciplines: On Care for Our Common Home (T & T Clark, 2018); The Evolution of Human Wisdom (Lexington Books, 2017); Religion in the Anthropocene (Wipf & Stock, 2017); Ecology in Jürgen Moltmann’s Theology (Wipf & Stock, 2016); Technofutures, Nature and the Sacred: Transdisciplinary Perspectives (Ashgate, 2015); Christian Faith and the Earth: Current Paths and Emerging Horizons in Ecotheology (Bloomsbury T & T Clark, 2014); and The Wisdom of the Liminal: Evolution and Other Animals in Human Becoming (Eerdmans, 2014).
With her ability to blend secular and theological thought and imagine possibilities for a better world, Deane-Drummond personifies the ideal citizen envisioned in the Augustinian masterpiece that lends its name to this medal.