From October 15 to 20, 2017, the first Congress of Education Delegates of the Society of Jesus (JESEDU) took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with the theme “United in a global network: a fire that lights other fires.”

The Congress was convened by the International Secretariat of Education of the Society of Jesus and aimed to establish the lines of common action to consolidate and stimulate the development of a global network for secondary and pre-secondary education, in response to the call “to act as a universal body with a universal mission” (GC 35, D. 2, no. 20).

For the first time, 95 Delegates for Education from Jesuit Provinces and Regions around the world have gathered together.

The process of reflection and discernment they undertook made possible the formulation of a set of common commitments that are articulated in the “Action Statement” document. The implementation of this “Action Statement” is a concrete way of advancing the mission of the Society in accordance with the requirements of General Congregation 36a regarding the educational apostolate.

The Action Statement is divided into 13 actions, establishing a clear and challenging path that will lead us to develop, not only the local, but also, above all, the universal apostolic potential of our colleges, in line with the desire and challenge of the recent General Congregations.