On the International Day of Democracy, Sunday, September 15, Canadian Jesuits International (CJI) stands in solidarity with its partners in Africa, Asia, and Latin America who are working to strengthen grassroots organizations, encourage civic participation, promote the rule of law and protect human rights.Through advocacy and capacity building efforts, CJI partners promote good governance, freedom of expression, access to basic rights, justice, peace, and the rights of Indigenous Peoples.Read full CJI statement ➡️ Click link in bio, News#DemocracyDay #Jesuis #socialjustice #peace #democracy #freedomofspeech

Canadian Jesuits International (CJI) staff warmly welcomed Fr. Patrick Etamesor, SJ, Regional Director of Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) West Africa, who visited the CJI office in Toronto this afternoon.Fr. Patrick briefed staff on the work of JRS in the region, which focuses on providing education, livelihood and health support to internally displaced persons and refugees in Cameroon, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Chad and the Central African Republic.He highlighted CJI and its donors' support for the construction of classrooms at the Muja High School in the city of Goma, DRC, which was destroyed by a volcanic eruption in 2021. The classrooms were equipped with blackboards, tables for the teachers and desks for the students.Fr. Patrick also spoke about the continued displacement of Cameroonians and Nigerians fleeing attacks on civilians by the armed Islamist group Boko Haram, extreme flooding in once arid areas of the region due to climate change, and other issues.

"The time I spent with the staff at CJI has had a profound impact on me."CJI summer intern Tammy Adewumi reflects on her time at Canadian Jesuits International.Click link in bio, News, to read Tammy's essay.#internship #Jesuits #Canada #CJI #youngvoices

Many thanks to St. Andrew's Catholic Church in Brechin, Ont. for hosting Canadian Jesuits International (CJI) during the Archdiocese of Toronto's Mission Co-Op Sunday this past weekend, September 8, 2024.Fr. Mario Cabal, SJ, spoke on behalf of CJI and shared information about its partnership with Jesuit organizations working with the poor and marginalized in Africa, Asia and Latin America. He highlighted, in particular, the humanitarian assistance and support for forcibly displaced people, an issue that is the focus of CJI's advocacy this fall.CJI International Programs Coordinator Juan Emilio Hernandez joined Fr. Mario in engaging with parishioners before and after the mass.CJI is grateful to Br. Mario for representing us, and to the Archdiocese of Toronto for including CJI in its Mission Cooperative Program. The program connects parishes in the archdiocese to the work of the Catholic Church around the world and gives parishioners the opportunity to offer their financial support.Learn more about CJI, including how you can support the work of its partners: Click link in bio

This fall and in early 2025, Canadian Jesuits International (CJI) will host events on forced migration, one of the defining global issues of our time.These events will explore issues such as the structural causes of forced migration, the challenges faced by people on the move and their host countries, and how CJI's Jesuit partners are responding.Activities will include a series of Youth for Others Social Justice Days in Hamilton, Toronto, Durham and Ottawa, a joint webinar with Jesuit and Jesuit-affiliated post-secondary schools, and CJI's annual online Christmas concert.Please click link in bio to visit our website for announcements of other upcoming events related to the theme.#Jesuits #Canada #forcedmigration #socialjustice #Catholic #events

On International Literacy Day, September 8, Canadian Jesuits International (CJI) reaffirms its commitment to helping poor and marginalized children and illiterate adults access their right to education.CJI supports Jesuit-run formal and informal education projects that include schools serving poor and marginalized communities, learning centres, adult literacy classes, distance learning, skills workshops and vocational training.One such project, by @feyalegriafi is helping 1,500 boys and 1,763 girls from impoverished communities in Kikwit and Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), attend school.The project also provides literacy programs and training for dropouts, as well as workshops for teachers, principals and parents.Fe y Alegría continues the Jesuit tradition of education.The DRC introduced free primary education in 2019, enabling 4.5 million children to go to school. But big challenges remain – schools are overcrowded and there is a shortage of qualified teachers. Students who enroll in primary school don’t complete it because their families can’t afford the school fees.By 2023, one in five children of primary school age were out of school; more than 4 million children between the ages of 9 and 14 remain out of school.Education is a human right, but many children, especially girls, continue to be denied this right because of poverty, displacement due to war and conflict, cultural issues, and other factors. According to UNESCO, an estimated 250 million children between the ages of six and 18 were out of school in 2023.The new data shows that the number of out-of-school children has increased by 6 million since 2021, largely due to the mass exclusion of girls and young women from education in Afghanistan and “the continued stagnation of educational progress around the world,” according to UNESCO. About 128 million or 48% of those out of school are girls and young women. Close to 30% of all out-of-school children worldwide come from sub-Saharan Africa.Learn more about projects we support that help promote the right to education, including how you can support them: click link in bio to visit our website.#literacyday

Donovan Martin, began volunteering with CJI while a student at St. Paul's Jesuit High School in Winnipeg.Now an Environmental Science at @carleton_u in Ottawa, Donovan writes about how his volunteer work at CJI helped shape his career path: Link in bio, click Fall 2024 newsletter#Jesuits #volunteer #dogood #socialjustice #advocacy #environment

On the International Day of Charity, September 5, Canadian Jesuits International (CJI) reaffirms its preferential option for the poor and marginalized who struggle for social justice, peace and dignity in the world.CJI-supported projects reflect the Gospel call to love and care for the least among us. CJI is grateful to loyal and new supporters who, in the face of so much inequality and injustice in our world, choose to be agents of change. After all, as the Gospel states: “How does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses to help?” (1 John 3:17)CJI works with Jesuit partners in Africa, Asia, and Latin America whose projects and initiatives promote human rights, economic justice, equity and inclusion, social transformation, peace, sustainability, and the integrity of creation.One such project, the Human Life Development and Research Center (HLDRC) of the Jesuit Province of Darjeeling, accompanies tea plantation workers in North Bengal, India, who are often deprived of their rights by plantations and government agencies.The HLDRC conducts seminars and workshops to help workers understand their rights and how to access them and helps them organize self-help groups for alternative livelihoods.Click link in bio to visit our website and read the full statement.#Jesuits #India #dayofcharity #teaworkers

CJI supports the Jesuit Migration Network, which provides humanitarian assistance and accompaniment to thousands of vulnerable refugees and migrants from Central America and, more recently, from South America and other parts of the world who are making their way to North America.Learn more about this project ➡️ Link in bio, click Fall 2024 newsletter