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JUHAN 7th Biennial Conference – Humanitarian Action and Climate Change

Introduction: By Julie Mughal, Associate Director for Humanitarian Action, Center for Social Impact and JUHAN Convener

The Jesuit Universities Humanitarian Action Network (JUHAN) was launched in 2006 by Fairfield, Fordham and Georgetown Universities as a way to raise awareness on Jesuit campuses of the meaning of humanitarian response and its implications for the Jesuit ideology of “men and women for others,” as well as to jointly address the humanitarian needs of those who are suffering.

Every two years, JUHAN sponsors a student leadership conference. In the years since its founding in 2006, JUHAN has found an administrative home at Fairfield University and convened the 2021 conference with the support and collaboration of colleagues from The College of the Holy Cross, Fordham University, University of Scranton, John Carroll University, Fordham University’s Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs (IIHA) and Loyola University Chicago’s School of Environmental Sustainability.

In a report issued in early September, the World Bank warned that climate change could lead to 216 million internally displace climate migrants by 2050. (World Bank, 2021) And, we know that the effects of climate change disproportionality affected poor communities and indigenous peoples. Responsible stewardship of the earth is a hallmark of our Jesuit Values, it holds a prominent place in the apostolic preferences and is a culminating cry in the papal encyclical of Laudato Si. The Conference provided an opportunity for participants to hear from the experts in the field, change makers and from the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development on the gravity of the problem and how to take action to address this seminal issue of our lifetime. Indeed, Kanta Kumari Rigaud, the lead environmental specialist at the World Bank notes, “Climate migration will be a reality, but the scale of it depends on what we do now.” This, coupled with the acknowledgment by the UN’s Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lowcock, that “Climate change is already one of the top drivers of humanitarian need and human suffering…,” is our dual call to action as a Jesuit network of concerned universities and students. Using the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to frame our discussions, and with modules and facilitation provided by the youth-led sustainable development organization Foundations for Environmental Stewardship (FES), the conference helped to address climate change as a seminal issue of our time and how it intersects with the field of humanitarian action. The 3-day agenda included a variety of guest speakers, student skill-building modules, and campus-based action planning sessions. The conference included a special collaboration with the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and Fr. Joshtrom Isaac Kureethadam SDB, Coordinator, Ecology sector, who describes the Laudato Si’ Action Platform as a single global framework that unites our distinct experiences and perspectives under one umbrella, promoting local and sectoral initiatives to the fullest possible extent, and developing each member of the human family to lead in his or her own way. Students who attended the conference learned how to plan initiatives on their home campuses using Laudato Si’ and the forthcoming 7-Year Plan as a framework for action.

A Call to Action for the Earth

By Jillian Ryan ‘22

The 7th Biennial JUHAN Student Leadership Conference took place this fall and helped to shed light on how climate change is a major driver of humanitarian crises today, and offered skills and methods for students to take action in resolving this problem.

The first day of the conference consisted of two primary speakers, Dr. Christiana Zenner, associate professor of Theology, Science, and Ethics at Fordham University, and Steve Lee, Founder of Foundations for Environmental Stewardship (FES). Dr. Zenner gave a thought-provoking talk on the systemic injustices driven by climate change. One of her main topics of discussion was the use of the term ‘we.’ Zenner shared how individuals convey groups as a collective, but never truly express who is included in such a vague term. Zenner then discussed how there are deeply rooted patterns in America today. She shared a quote that conveyed this issue stating, “There’s a relationship between Anti-Black violence and climate violence that happens with the transmission of climate injustice all over the Earth,” (Sam Davis, MN350). Zenner concluded her talk with a call to action to find one's ecological vector (hers is water), and invoke deep structural reform. Steve Lee gave an in-depth presentation on what the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are along with their 160 goals and 231 indicators. For each SDG, he shared their goals and indicators, as well as ways in which organizations/individuals can implement the goal. Throughout his talk, he and his team incorporated videos that were entertaining yet powerful for the audience to truly understand the importance behind each SDG. Lee mentioned how as humans, we need to change the way we live our lives and integrate these changes into our disciplines. He concluded his talk by restating how simply talking about the SDGs does not mean that any real progress has been made in implementing them.

The second day of the conference, Friday October 1st, consisted of panels led by guest and faculty changemakers. One of the changemakers that stood out most to me was Dr. Nancy Tuchman, founding director of the School of Environmental Sustainability at Loyola University Chicago. Tuchman gave a presentation on how environmental degradation is the existential grand challenge of the 21st century. In her talk she shared how such ecological disasters further humanitarian crises and negatively impacts our world economy. Tuchman expressed that as Jesuits universities, we are called to care for our common home by Catholic world leaders. She ended with an inspiring call to action stating that we should push to become a Laudato SiUniversity. (Fairfield University has joined this initiative.) One of the faculty change makers that grabbed my attention was Dr. Robert Nazarian, assistant professor of Physics at Fairfield University. Dr. Nazarian mentioned how he conveys the burdens we have borne on the environment. Nazarian engages students with climate concepts through ‘Explosive Pedagogy.’ For example, to construe the physical nature of pressure, Nazarian showed a video of his running an experiment by putting liquid nitrogen in a plastic bottle, then placing the bottle in a trash bin of ping pong balls. The liquid nitrogen would erupt sending the ping pong balls flying. Through entertaining experiments, he is able to provide students an experience they would not usually get in such a setting, provoking an interest or familiarity with such complex topics.

The third day of the conference, Saturday October 2nd, consisted of a talk from Father Joshtrom Isaac Kureethadam from the Vatican’s Dicastery on Promoting Integral Human Development and a workshop led by Jessica LeBlanc from FES. Father Kureethadam’s Keynote was centered around the Laudato Sí Action Platform. The three main concepts of the Platform are: 1) to care for our fragile planetary home, 2) to care for our common home, and 3) to rebuild our common home. For each of the topics covered, Kureethadam provided background on each crisis and why immediate action is needed for the future. Kureethadam was not only able to provide a spiritual point of view of the problems at hand, but a scientific and social justice approach as well. In concluding his talk, he showed a video of Pope Francis expressing the reason for creating Laudato Sí and how implementing the seven goals will promote a more inclusive world moving forward. Jessica LeBlanc’s workshop on how to implement the SDGs at a University level went through the steps on brainstorming solutions, planning for execution, and eventually taking action. Some of the steps shared included: Problem Orientation, (determining the root, cause and effects of issues) determining the gaps in why actions aren't being taken on matters, consensus building (who is involved in problems and how/if they are benefitting from the continuation of it), levers of change (ways to impact, close the gaps, and determine potential solutions), determining the cost analysis of the problem, measuring the impact of the solution, and finally implementing the solutions. LeBlanc provided examples for each step and ways they have already been seen at the University level.

After attending the three-day conference, I can easily say it was a pleasure listening to such admirable individuals who share a passion for promoting a more sustainable and inclusive world. Every day brought a new perspective on the theme of the conference which made it a more well-rounded experience. I also appreciated the efforts of those who made the conference entertaining by including media on current issues in society as well as humorous clips to lighten the conversation.While a majority of the information discussed were topics I have been aware of, it is relieving to now have skills on how to bring about change for a better tomorrow.

Jillian Ryan is a senior Environmental Studies major with a double minor in Biology and Humanitarian Action at Fairfield University. She is passionate about preservation of the environment and matters relating to social justice. She is hoping to serve in Americorps after graduation in a program relating to both of her passions (the environmental and social justice). Jill is currently an active member in both sustainability and humanitarian action clubs on campus and is working with faculty members and students to spread the word on how climate change is in fact a pressing humanitarian crisis.

For more information about the 7th Biennial JUHAN Conference click here.

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