Pope Francis is one of the nominees for 2015 Nobel Peace Prize for his fight on climate change and social justice.

According to Rome Reports, Pope Francis is nominated for Nobel Peace Prize and the Nobel Institute in Norway disclosed the he is one of the 278 candidates total.

The Inquisitr reported that Pope Francis has been nominated for Nobel Peace Prize for his heart to the poor on claiming social justice for all, as well as stressing environment issues particularly on climate change.

"If awarded, Pope Francis would be the first Pope ever to receive a Nobel Peace Prize," Rome Reports wrote on its publication.

However, aside from Pope, Manorama Online said that other nominees include "former U.S. spy contractor Edward Snowden, who leaked details of U.S. electronic surveillance, for showing how citizens are monitored with of democratic controls." Father Mussie Zerai is also nominated, he is a Catholic priest of Eritrean who "helped some of the thousands of African migrants who have risked their lives to cross the Mediterranean."

There are thousands of individuals being nominated for the Nobel, however the list of nominees are kept secret. According to the official website of the Nobel Peace, the name of the nominees who did not win cannot be revealed until 50 years have passed. So details of this year will be disclosed until 2065.

Last year, Pope Francis was also nominated for Nobel Peace Prize 2014. However, the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi "for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education."

In the coming months, the Nobel committee will scrutinize the candidates and narrow down the list. The winner will have a $1.2 million award, which will announce in October.