Bursars Network of the South America Region meets in Brasilia

Photos

From March 17-21, the Brazil Centro-Norte Province hosted the meeting of the Bursars Network of the South America Region. They were present the five bursars of the Region, their respective advisors. Also attended the event the Econome General, Br. Jorge Gaio, and the Assistant to the Econome, Br.  Goyo Linacero. The purpose of the meeting was to adopt the new orientations and directives of the Marist Institute and to continue the synergy among the Economes of the five provinces of the Region.

The first day and part of the second were dedicated to the study and presentation of the new Economic-Financial Administrative Guide of the Marist Institute. According to Br. Jorge Gaio, deepening the guidelines of the guide allows the provinces to use strategies to reconfigure and professionalize the Marist organization in all areas, to better contribute to the institutional mission. “The perspective of professionalization in the Region is very important for the whole Institute. The Marist mission depends on the updating of the charism in the current reality and context. We invite all the provinces to make an effort, both to update the Charism in the reality of the local mission and to optimize the evangelical use of the goods in the whole financial and patrimonial structure. Our resources must support and sustain the mission and the life of the confreres, today and in the future”, said the Econome General.

For Br. Délcio Balestrin, bursar of the Brasil Centro-Sul Province, putting into practice the orientations and directives of the Guide will make it possible to professionalize management in the Institute and in the administrative units. “We need to be more effective to achieve better results and further enhance our mission. This will also allow our institution to endure. This is an important moment for us, and these policies will help us move forward with good governance practices, confidently and with a view to the future,” said Br. Délcio.

The remaining days were led by the Bursars Network teams, seeking to continue the processes and projects already implemented, as well as the Network’s strategic plan for the next three years. “Our biggest challenge, as the Bursar Network, is to find ways to improve our mission and make it more and more efficient. In this way, the five provinces will be better prepared to make a joint journey, especially now that we are discussing the reconfiguration of the entire América Sur Region,” said Br. Lauri Heck (Brazil Sul-Amazônia Province), coordinator of the network.

José Wagner Rodrigues da Cruz, Bursar of Brasil Centro-Norte Province, the moment is an opportunity for important dialogues to be held among the provinces of the Region. We need to become aware of the economic and financial reality, of our way of managing, of taking care of all the human and structural patrimony and, why not say it, of the historical and material legacy of our Founder. Therefore, we need to learn to manage well, to organize companies from an agile perspective, with contemporary responses. While optimizing resources, we also need to invest in people and walk together towards a new vitality, which is necessary for our Institute and the countries that make up the South America Region,” explained Br. Wagner.

Raquel Monje, a lay person and Bursar of Santa María de los Andes Province, affirms that the current situation in the region will mark a new beginning for the mission in all countries. “Reconfiguring means borrowing the particularities of each country and context and adapting them to the reality we need to build. We have great wealth in all the provinces, a rich culture and pulse, and languages ​​that favor us. The topic may frighten us at first, but we need everyone to understand that the Marist work will not end but will grow. With the riches we all possess, we will be part of something new, stronger, and better prepared for the future,” said Raquel.

Raquel’s perspective is corroborated by Brother Enrique Planas Jordi, treasurer of the Cruz del Sur Province: “I believe that when we open our window, our horizons broaden. And what we will truly receive with this reconfiguration is that we will all be much more enriched by the multiculturalism of all the provinces. It is a great wealth, especially if we consider that the laity are assuming a very important responsibility in our provinces, and this will truly make us feel much more secure. We will feel that we are not just a group of Brothers in a small region, but rather, a global family,” affirmed Br. Enrique.

The trajectory of the coming years will have an even greater synergy, forming and training collaborators, lay people and confreres for the new era that is approaching. Together, we can give more vitality to the Region.