The Kircher Network HEST Cluster on Ecology and Environmental Challenges will hold its next key meeting from January 15–16, 2026, at the Notre Dame du Champ-d’Oiseau facilities in Belgium (arrival on January 14 and departure on January 17).
This gathering marks an essential milestone in the implementation of the Kircher Network Strategic Plan 2024–2028, as member institutions come together to deepen collaboration on integral ecology and the Jesuit mission of caring for our common home.
The meeting is organised under the coordination of Dr Richard Mauron (University of Saint Joseph, Beirut), Dr José Carlos Romero (Pontifical Comillas University), and Dr Cristina Alonso (IQS – Spain; Director, CIR UNIJES Environment and Ecology), together with Dr Susana Di Trolio, Executive Secretary of the Kircher Network.
The event’s spirit is to build upon synergies among Kircher institutions and to align the Cluster’s work with global Jesuit initiatives — particularly the IAJU Task Force on Environmental and Economic Justice and the priorities established during the 2025 IAJU General Assembly in Bogotá. The group will also seek to strengthen its collaboration with Campion Hall’s Integral Ecology Research Network (IERN), the UNIJES Research Center on Environment and Ecology, and the Jesuit European Social Centre (JESC).
Main Goals of the Meeting
- Expanding and re-launching the Cluster: Strengthening the group’s structure and defining new directions for the next phase of work.
- Sharing institutional good practices: Each participating institution is invited to deliver a short (maximum 7-minute) presentation on its good practices and opportunities related to ecology and sustainability.
- Defining joint projects: The Cluster will identify concrete, value-added, and feasible initiatives to be developed collaboratively over the next three years.
- Coordinating with global networks: Ensuring synergy with IAJU and other Jesuit initiatives to enhance the region’s collective impact.
- Forming a core coordinating team: Participants will select the members of the Cluster’s coordinating committee and define next steps and an action plan.
Rooted in the Jesuit commitment to integral ecology, this meeting will reinforce the Kircher Network’s mission to promote academic collaboration and ecological transformation across Jesuit higher education institutions in Europe and the Near East.
More information about the cluster
