Welcome to The Bridge , the newsletter of the Office of Global Engagement.

The motto of our office is Faciamus cum sociis pontes , "Let us build bridges with our partners." We hope you will begin to partner with us by subscribing.

SACRU's Response to the Conflict in Ukraine

Pope Francis strongly appealed for peace on several occasions in the last couple of months, and on February 23rd, 2022, he again expressed his great sorrow about the escalation of events.

In light of the Holy Father’s appeals for peace, the Strategic Alliance of Catholic Research Universities (SACRU) started collecting the perspectives of various experts in International Relations, Economics, and Theology from its partner universities during the worsening of the situation in Ukraine.

This document reflects SACRU's mission of global cooperation for the Common Good.

Global Scholars Lecture Series

Please join us for the two Global Scholars Lectures in March. "Nursing’s Impact on Health and Well-becoming: A Global Perspective" on March 2nd and "Ethnophilosophy of Dalits" on March 16th. Both events are in Devlin 101 at 4:30 pm or viewable on zoom. Visit the link for the full schedule. 

Maintaining Global Partnerships during a Pandemic 

Colleen Simonelli, Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs and Clinical Professor in the Connell School of Nursing, was recently featured in the Global Public Health and the Common Good newsletter to describe the strategic alliances between BC and seven other Catholic Universities from around the world with the goal of working collaboratively to tackle global health challenges.

"On March 6, 2020 I had just returned from Australian Catholic University’s (ACU) Melbourne campus with two students and other BC faculty, with plans to expand the summer program to include faculty and staff from ACU and Portugal’s Catholic University (UCP) and open up research and student exchange opportunities. The global pandemic forced us to suspend travel but we were able to pivot and create innovative ways to not only maintain but expand our partnerships."

Dean Simonelli and students from Boston College, PUC—Chile, Universidade Católica in Mozambique, Bethlehem University, and Hong Kong University participated in a collaborative on-line international learning (COIL) in summer 2021. Students shared information about their country’s healthcare system, the impact of COVID-19, customs, values, and beliefs, as well as the educational path of their nursing workforce.

A COIL is planned between the BC and ACU senior Nursing students for the Spring of 2022 to discuss healthcare issues resulting from the pandemic. Dean Simonelli has also initiated planning for a two-week program in Boston and a two-week program in Lausanne during June 2022. This will bring students and faculty together to discuss global healthcare challenges and opportunities once again. Dean Simonelli's international efforts have brought about a promising new chapter for the School of Nursing's international partnerships. 

As partnerships develop and international travel becomes more feasible, consider utilizing the resources available for the Boston College community on the Global Engagement Gateway.

In Memoriam: Paul Farmer

As many of us feel sadness after learning about the death of Paul Farmer, a physician, anthropologist, and world-renowned figure in global public health, who helped found Partners in Health and the University of Global Health Equity in Rwanda, we also feel gratitude for his life and all his good work to improve and bring healthcare to people in need around the globe. Vice Provost for Global Engagement, Jim Keenan, reflects on Paul's life saying:

From the very first time I met Paul some twenty years ago, I always thought of him as playful; it was that playfulness that made him so accessible. By that playfulness, he made you believe that you were fun to be with. He helped you, wherever you were, to laugh.  

When I learned the tragic news of his death I found this photo [left] that I posted on Facebook. You can just imagine the silly way he's talking to his new found pal. That playfulness was infectious. He helped each of us to be child-like. Where the child was, Paul was. And everyone who had a child in him found access to him. He welcomed the child.

I am not trying to romanticize his work or his death.  To know Paul, was to know a man who faced disease and death more than anyone we knew. He was fearless and, if for instance, you read  his book on Ebola , you knew how incredibly courageous he was. It is said that what makes us vulnerable to one another is when we recognize the child in each other. Paul saw the world as a world of children. Against the backdrop of disease, threat, and death he wanted the children to flourish. All of us.

I imagine he is right now playing with God. And, I imagine, everyone else around the Kingdom of God is watching. And they are probably thinking that he's helping God to feel that God is fun to be with. RIP, Paul.

- James F. Keenan, S.J.

Global Conversations Program

Global Conversations is a student-driven initiative to connect small groups of BC students with our peers at universities around the world for conversations about issues that matter to us. With six official overarching conversation themes, Global Conversations offers space for students to learn from one another, share perspectives, and just make new friends—all via Zoom!

Spread the word on an upcoming conversation for students with our partner, Ateneo de Manila University on March 2nd at 8:00 pm. The topic is Global Citizenship and Migration. 

Research Cooperation in a New Geopolitical Context

We invite you to participate in the event "International research cooperation in a new geopolitical context" hosted by the Center for International Higher Education. This is part of the CIHE Monthly Webinar Series. This event will be on March 15th at 10:30 am and held virtually on zoom.

Islamic Case for Freedom & Justice

The Islamic Civilizations and Societies Program of Boston College presents "An Islamic Case for Freedom and Tolerance".

Mustafa Akyol is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, where he focuses on the intersection of public policy, Islam, and modernity. Since 2013, he has also been a frequent opinion writer for the New York Times, covering politics and religion in the Muslim world.

Participate in this event on March 16th at 5:00 pm in the McGuinn 121 Auditorium.

Albert J. Fitzgibbons Lecture Series, Guestbook Project

The Guestbook Project presents the "Hosting Earth" panel discussion sponsored by the Philosophy Department's
Albert J. Fitzgibbons Lecture Series.

The Hosting Earth Project engages the question of ecological hospitality by asking what it means to be guests of the earth as well as hosts. The project comprises a series of symposia, speaker series, and screenings in Spring 2022. We encourage you to participate on March 18th from 5:00-7:00 pm in Devlin 101. 

Abuses are the Rule not the Exception

María Águilar , Postdoctoral Associate, Council on Latin American and Iberian Studies at the MacMillan Center at Yale University presents "Abuses are the Rule not the Exception: Counterinsurgency Logics and the Policing of Everyday Life in War-torn Guatemala".

The hybrid event will be on zoom and at McElroy Commons 237 on March 31st at 12:00 noon.

This presentation centers on the role of the Guatemalan National Police, an instrumental piece of the machinery of brutality and violence of the Guatemalan State during the country's Civil War, 1960-1996. It examines the dual role of the police as the institution in charge of security as well as the perpetrating entity of much of the violence that took place in urban areas. 

Chomsky Book Presentation

Avi Chomsky, Professor of History at Salem State University will present from her recent book
"Central America's Forgotten History: Revolution, Violence, and the Roots of Migration". 

This hybrid event will be held March 17th at 12:00 noon in McElroy Commons 237 and on Zoom.

Centering the centuries-long intertwined histories of US expansion and Indigenous and Central American struggles against inequality and oppression, Chomsky highlights the pernicious cycle of colonial and neocolonial development policies that promote cultures of violence and forgetting without any accountability or restorative reparations.

Follow our twitter for future opportunities to engage with our partner schools and their events!