Comillas and the Javeriana of Bogotá celebrate ten years of Laudato si'

If there is one thing that Pope Francis fought for during his pontificate, it was the care of the common home, the foundations of which he wrote in the encyclical Laudato si'. Ten years after its publication, Comillas and the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá organised a joint conference on integral ecology and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Under the title "Pathways of hope in the care of our common home". 10th anniversary of the Encyclical Letter Laudato si' and theSustainable Development Goals, the conference was attended by numerous lecturers and experts from both universities, who reviewed in two round tables the current situation and the future of Integral Ecology and the SDGs, as well as the horizon of these two issues in the Catholic university.

The meeting was organised by the Integral Ecology Unit at Comillas and coordinated by José Luis Villegas. Jesús Camacho, its director, says that "in an atmosphere of hope, marked by the memory of Francis, the advances, challenges and responsibilities of Catholic universities in integrating this ethical, human and spiritual vision in all their spheres of action in relation to the environment were analysed". Camacho stresses that the conference "reaffirmed the commitment of the Universidad Pontificia Comillas and the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana to train agents of change that promote a sustainable transformation, committing to an ecological conversion from within our universities, so that it will have an impact on the real lives of students and on society as a whole".

Students from both universities also took part in this meeting, presenting posters on different approaches to sustainability and integral ecology from their studies. The rectors also spoke about the importance of universities in promoting integral ecology and the valuable collaboration between the two universities, united by the common desire to reflect and learn. "The Pope has urged us to renew our commitment to our common home: Laudato si' is a spiritual compass, a global ethic, a cry of the earth and the poor that must continue to resonate," said Antonio Allende SJ, Rector of Comillas. Both rectors agreed on the need to look with gratitude at the road travelled so far and to open new routes of academic, social and ecological commitment based on faith, reason and discernment.