SAN DIEGO -- Prince Albert II of Monaco will be awarded the Roger Revelle Prize from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla Friday for his efforts to promote scientific research and protect the environment.

The prince is the second recipient of the Roger Revelle Prize, which is named after one of the founders of UC San Diego and the former director of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. The inaugural award went to former Vice President Al Gore.

Before the awards dinner, Prince Albert will lecture students and scientists at UCSD on climate change, focusing on his polar expeditions to study the environment, according to Scripps.

The prince is being recognized for leading efforts to protect the environment through the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, which works to raise awareness about environmental challenges. His work has focused on promoting scientific research, protection of the polar regions and creating awareness of ocean acidification.

The 51-year-old prince -- the son of the late Prince Rainier III and the late Princess Grace, the former Grace Kelly -- is Monaco's reigning monarch.