Together with other members of the Xavier Network, Canadian Jesuits International (CJI) is working with Jesuit Service for the Pan-Amazon Region (SJPAM) and Fe y Alegría (FyA) International Educational Network to raise awareness about ecological and social justice issues and to promote intercultural and bilingual education in the Amazon region.
The people who live in the Amazon River Basin share resources, cultures and land that stretch across established national boundaries. Fe y Alegría and SJPAM are collaborating with local communities in 5 countries – Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela – to strengthen indigenous identity according to each community’s needs and to address environmental damage caused by the exploitation of natural resources.
Pilot projects have been launched in 26 schools in different parts of region. Our partners are developing intercultural and bilingual education curricula tailored to the culture and environment of local communities. Teachers and students need programs to prevent indigenous languages from disappearing and they also need Spanish or Portuguese to interact with others as their localities transform.
Through mutual exchange and collaboration, these 26 schools are partnering with their local communities and with administrative and environmental organizations to identify and implement actions to protect their natural resources and to build a culture of solidarity, awareness and care for “our common home.”
As the Colombian Jesuit Provincial, Carlos E. Correa, has noted, “The Amazon is a key territory for the future of all humanity. Our commitment to its original inhabitants and the biodiversity that exists there is a clear manifestation of how we join our hearts to God, who works tirelessly to make life full.”
Pan-Amazon Initiative Director: Fr Luis Javier Sarralde SJ
Leticia, Colombia
Please support the work of the Pan-Amazon Intercultural and Bilingual Education Program by making a donation:
